Thinking Outside the Rope
Presented by Marlys Gwaltney
mgwaltney@usd440.com
Bentley Primary School
Kindergarten – 3rd Grade
My Philosophy
Jump Rope for Heart should be:
• Fun for everyone
• Learn something from doing something
• 100% involvement
• Accessible to all skill levels
• Not dependent on money or donations
• Multi-dimensional and not just about the rope
My Jump Rope for Heart event
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Activities
• 15-16 stations
• All JUMPING or HEART related
• Event, activities, components tie directly to Physical Education and Health curriculum
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Time Frame
• During rotation times (Kindergarten and 1st grades in morning, 2nd and 3rd in afternoon)
• Approximately 65 minutes for each group
• 5-7 minutes of talking before, during and after
• 58-60 minutes of activity time
• 3½ – 4 minutes at each activity depending on number of stations
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Set up
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Put down most of the boundary lines in preceding days
Put down final lines after school the day before
All Honor Wall posters up hopefully by the day before
Final tape markings and equipment are set up after breakfast
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Logistics
• Approximately 60 students in the gym doing vigorous activities…safety is paramount
• Several adults help at specific stations, play with their child, or move around room
• Change out activities from morning to afternoon so they are age appropriate
• Lots of talk during school, letters home, and demonstrations to ensure success
• Lunch that day is sack lunches and most teachers eat in classroom or outside (not in gym)
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Donations
• Not the priority of this event
• Only collect donations a) if parents allow
b) if the student wants to
• All envelopes are expected back (empty or with donations)
• Used additional incentive of ducks (pilot program last year) with high level of success
Some of the activities that I have used over the years
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Jump Ropes – need space to avoid getting hit by rope
Long Ropes – affix one end to a wall or structure so only one turner is needed.
Chinese Ropes – use boxes to hold the rope. Use set routines or create own patterns.
Skip-its – need a lot of room for the skip-it to swing around. Also put barriers for runaways.
Ball and Stick – need a lot of room for the ball to swing around
Ball Hoppers – sit on ball and grip handle to bounce under control
Foot Jumpers – lots of different ones out there where students grip with feet and jump
Hopscotch – create a hopscotch court to play. Students must know rules ahead of time.
High Jump – use a foam noodle for the crossbar and soft mats for landing
Dot Jumps (athletes) – just like the big kids do for athletics and weight lifting
Dot Jumps (polyspots) – quick and easy, but the dots will move and “fixing” is required
Hoops Course – tape flat hoops together and to the floor for jumping
Inflatables – expensive to rent for just one day, but the students love them
Pattern Jumps – use colors, letters, numbers, etc. to create patterns to follow while jumping
DDR Video Game – any Wii, DDR, XBOX, or similar game where they are dancing/jumping
X Jumps – place X’s on floor for each foot to jump on
Pogo Sticks – only for older students. MUST HAVE A SPOTTER.
Ball between Knees – place a very squishable ball between the knees, jump down to
cone and back and then stop the timer or use like a relay
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Hoop as Jumprope – use a hoop or half hoop to use like a jump rope
Jump the River – create rivers with scary creatures swimming in them for kids to jump over
Standing Long Jump – stand with two feet behind line and jump as far as can in one jump
Line Jumps – front/back jumps, side/side jumps, scissor jumps, ski jumps
Basketball Dunks – adjustable goals allow for a low height for safe dunking
Mini Trampolines – jump on trampolines and use arms for extra exercise
Obstacle Course – any obstacle like hurdles or a short wall of mats to jump over
High Fives – suspend objects of varying heights for kids to jump and give a “high five” to
Balloons over Net – hit balloons over a net or similar structure
Heart Rate Check – use monitors to see how fast their heart is beating
Stayin’ Alive – kids learn how to keep someone alive by pumping the ping pong pumper so
the ball is above the “stayin’ alive” line. Students often comment on how
“tough” this activity is.
I try to add to this list to keep interest. Several activities are used every year. Each year a
crazy idea comes to me from suggestions from students, something I’ve seen in a magazine or
on TV, or simply from looking at the equipment in my storage room. Sometimes they are
winners and sometimes, hmm, not so much.
If it requires a lot of fixing or maintenance during K/1st grade sessions, then I usually tear it
down and put in a different activity for the afternoon sessions. Safety is always a concern.
Some activities are only for the older students.
I tie other important topics to this event as well
 Nutrition and making healthy choices
 Energy balance – energy in (calories) = energy out (exercise)
 Pacing
 Hydration
 60 minutes a day of exercise
 Safety and space
 Proper footwear and clothing
 Honor wall - students bring names of people THEY KNOW who have/had heart or
stroke related problems (living or deceased). Posters are created and displayed on the
wall.
All non-essential items are moved out of the gym to clear as much space as possible. My gym
has a gray line around the perimeter and down the middle. This line is always clear of activities
and acts as a boundary. The gray line is used as a path to get to the restroom or drinking
fountain, place to tie a shoe, or an area to simply take a break.
Tape has been a lifesaver for me over the past few years.
 Provides clear boundaries and arrows to next station that do not move
 Utilized as part of the equipment in several stations and withstands abuse very well
 Use dots to get a general idea of how big the spaces need to be and where lines will go
before tape goes down
 Wipe floor with towel/rag to remove dirt or debris before laying tape-- it will last longer
and not peel up
I use my 3rd graders to demonstrate each station. Something I was not smart enough to do
until last year. I would run around to each station and demonstrate and explain and run out of
breath at about station #10 and try not to pass out by the time I reached the last one. Last
year, they helped me for about 5 minutes at the beginning of K, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd for their own
classmates. I was able to talk and make sure that everyone was listening while they went
through the motions.
I stop every 3-5 station changes to talk about pacing, taking breaks, taking our pulse, checking
shoes, safety, and space. At the end, I tie into the fact that we just did 60 minutes of
exercise…just like we should do every day and make our heart beat fast like this EVERY DAY.
Two Days before Jump Rope for Heart Day 2013
Playing catch
Bowling
Football throw
Shooting at
basketball goals
Dribbling
Passing
Throw at target on wall
Balloons
KanJam
Scooters
Run around
Horse races w/noodles
Jacks
Cup Stack
Jump Rope
Skip its
Long Rope
Putt into cups taped to floor
Mini parachute w/popcorn noodle
Juggling
Scoops
Hula Hoops
Paddle w/yarn ball
Day before Jump Rope for Heart Day 2013
Mats for tumbling
Balance beam/rope/etc.
Juggling
Throw the ball over the wall
1 on 1 tennis/pickleball/volleyball/badminton
Paddle w/yarn ball
Throw at target on wall
KanJam
Floor juggling with skybounce ball
Skip-its
Jump Rope
Ogo
Shooting at
basketball goals
Dribbling
Passing
Keep balloon in air
Balance feather/noodle
Mat for fitness
Scooters
Run around
Horse races w/noodles
Jacks
Cup Stack
Mat for arm
wrestle or
fitness
activities
Putt into cups taped to floor
Mini parachute w/popcorn noodle
Juggling
Mat for fitness
Exercise bands
Bucket ‘o chicken
Ring toss
Beanbag in hoop
Jump ropes
Skyball bounce
Scoops
Final tape lines and arrows for Jump Rope for Heart Day 2013
Stayin’
Alive
Hoop challenge course
Ball between knees race
Basketball Dunk
Pogo
Or
Hoop jumps
Obstacle Course
Foot Jumpers
High Jump
Ball Hoppers
Chinese
Jump
Ropes
Standing
Long
Jump
Line Jumps
Heart Rate
Monitors
Jump the River
Mini
Trampolines
X Jumps
Final look of the gym space with equipment set out and tape on floor for our Jump Rope for Heart Day 2013
Hoop challenge course
Foot Jumpers
Stayin’
Alive
Ball between knees race
High Jump
Basketball Dunk
Pogo
Or
Hoop jumps
Chinese
Jump
Ropes
Obstacle
Course
Mini
Trampolines
Ball Hoppers
Standing
Long
Jump
Line Jumps
Heart Rate
Monitors
v
X
Jumps
Jump the River
Basic timeline
1
Intro to JRfH
and
Show video
2
Explain about
donations, thank
you gifts, ducks,
envelopes, and
online process
3
Final words
Letter and
envelopes
sent home
4
If more
explanation is
needed, I take
another day
and send info
home today…
5
…or the next
day
6
7
8
Reminders to
turn in
envelopes
and names for
Honor Wall
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Reminders to
turn in
envelopes
and names for
Honor Wall
16
Leg,jumping
activities, and CV
work to get ready
for the big day
17
Start talking
about
procedures
and specifics
for JRfH Day
18
19
20
21
22
All Envelopes
and names for
Honor Wall
Due
23
Turn in
envelopes/names
if you haven’t
24
Jump Rope
for
Heart Day
25
Talk about
JRfH Day
- Favorites
- Suggestions
- What did
you learn?
26
Last day for
envelopes
Lines Down
Get good
sleep/food
More lines
Please email me at mgwaltney@usd440.com
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If you have any questions regarding setting up your own Jump Rope for Heart event
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If you would like a copy of the letter I send home to parents
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If you would like a copy of the Honor Wall form or template for the posters
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If you would like a copy of the posters I used in 2013
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If you would like a copy of the PowerPoint presented at the 2013 KAHPERD Convention
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If you would like more info about the Ping Pong Pumper