What's My Magic Number - Outcome D (4-6)-6

Running (for speed)

This activity is a walk/run program. Identify the perimeter in the gymnasium or field, or map out a route around the school. The activity can be done as an ongoing warmup activity or as a personal fitness unit.

Explain to the students that for various reasons, each individual is at a different fitness level. For this activity they need only be concerned about themselves. Each student's goal may be slightly different from the goals set by others. After the first day, they should have the opportunity to set a goal as to how far they hope to walk/jog on the final goal day.

Great Stretches	Hydration
Cool Down	Warmup

Encourage all the students to start by walking around the designated area. If you can measure an area to be one quarter of a kilometre, this provides an easy distance for calculating times and speeds if you decide to do this later. As they improve, students may want to jog or try a comfortable run. Students can slow down to a walk whenever necessary.

Each time a student passes the starting point, give them an object such as a straw or popsicle stick and tell them to hang onto it until the end of the activity. If you have pylons set at premarked distances of approximately 10 metres around a 1 kilometre course, the students can calculate that they walked an exact distance (e.g., 1 lap + 2 pylons = 1.2 km). The first day, students need only walk or jog for five minutes. Extend this time by one minute per day until you reach a goal time. It is not unreasonable to expect a Grade 4 class to walk or jog for 10 to 12 minutes if they have had an opportunity to build up their endurance.

Once the time is up, have the students come together for a stretch, and then record in a journal or logbook the number of objects they collected that day or the rough estimate of distance, e.g., 3.3 laps = 3.3 kilometres. Encourage students to jot down concerns they have or roadblocks they may be experiencing that day, so that they can evaluate why they may or may not be able to reach their goals.

Once students have reached their goals, plan a family fun-run.

Start a running club at lunch hour, in the morning, or after school.

Enter community fun-runs for charities as an activity to promote school spirit.

These are clues that you have reached the outcomes ...

Students can see results in their journal or logbook. The number of objects they collect each day is increasing.

Students are aware of roadblocks or setbacks such as being sick and away from school, and realize they may have to slightly modify their goals.

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