Week 17
Pre-Kindergarten
P.E. IPG’s
Guideline
(PK/PHD: 1G)
Begins to participate in group games involving movement
Matrix
#600
Game Play
Week
#17
Card
#12
Description
Sit on the floor and face the parachute.
Grasp the parachute edge with both hands – palms down.
Shake the parachute to make ripples and waves.
Repeat the 1st three steps kneeling and then standing
Raise the parachute above your head and lower it
Make a merry-go-round by walking (hold with one hand only) – gallop, jump, slide, stop.
“Popcorn” – make ripples and waves to move or bounce objects on and off the parachute.
Sit under and inside the parachute to make an mushroom.
Equipment
Parachute
Foam Balls
Beanbags
Day 1
Review shaking/moving the parachute. Have students shake the parachute sitting first on their
assigned poly spot. Then, have students kneel on their poly spots and shake the parachute.
Finally, have students stand on their poly spot and shake the parachute. Remember to use your
start/stop signal taught and reviewed in previous weeks. Do the activity several times making sure
to rest in between each movement. (Students’ arms get tired quickly with this activity.)
Remember to have students leave the parachute in an orderly manner. This procedure was taught
in Week 6.
Day 2
Review previous days. Organize students like the previous days around the parachute. Students
will start out by sitting on their poly spots for this activity. Talk about the idea of a lake/large
body of water. Possibly show pictures of lakes. Students will be pretending the parachute is a
lake. While sitting, lead the students through weather conditions on the lake. “What would the
lake look like on a bright, sunny, calm day?” (The parachute is lifted off the ground and stays
fairly still.) “What would the lake look like on a windy day?” (Students move the parachute just a
bit.) “What would the lake look like on a stormy day?” (Students move the parachute as fast as
possible.) Go back from stormy to calm by saying, “The sun has come back out and it’s calm
again.” Rest after this part of the activity and review the idea of weather. Give praise to students
following the protocol and correct treatment of the parachute. Repeat the activity with the
students standing on their poly spots. Upon your questions, students move the parachute
appropriately. Change up the order of your questions and see if students can respond
appropriately. Review and follow procedures to leave the parachute and exit the play area.
Day 3
Review parachute protocols. Students take a position sitting on their assigned poly spots.
Students put the parachute on their knees. Have students stand up on their poly spots, holding the
parachute. Students are to raise the parachute above their heads and bring it back down to their
waist area. You can use the cue, “Up, down…. up, down…. up, down.” (You will probably have
to be a part of this activity because it is difficult to raise the parachute with few students and of
their lack of upper body strength) From standing, have students start bending their knees and put
the parachute on the ground (while still holding on). Repeat this several times – from the waist to
the ground, waist to ground, and waist to ground. (Safety Alert: Remember to tell them to bend
their knees to avoid back strain.) Rest and review next part. Students are to again go from waist
to ground, but this time they will put their knees on the parachute between their hands. (Hands
and knees are both holding the parachute to the floor.) Practice several times. Finally, students
© Austin Independent School District
Parachute
SportFun
A Module of the Sport For All Program
Week 17
Pre-Kindergarten
P.E. IPG’s
stand up again with the parachute. Students raise the parachute above their heads and take it to the
ground, putting their hands and knees (like practiced) on the parachute. (This creates a mushroom
effect.) The teacher must walk around the parachute to make sure no one has disappeared under
the parachute and doing the correct technique. This is a good time to review cooperation and
everyone working together to make this mushroom happen. Practice the mushroom again.
Review and follow procedures to leave the parachute and exit the play area.
Day 4
Have the students practice the mushroom from the previous day. Remind the students to only
move the parachute on command. As the students get proficient in making a mushroom, as they
are bringing the parachute down to the ground, have them take on step in and then sit on the inside
edge of the parachute holding the air inside. All students should be sitting on their bottoms on the
inside of the parachute. The teacher must do this activity with the students to ensure the safety
underneath. This will take several attempts before it is mastered. When the air is gone, have the
students stand and repeat the process.
Day 5
Have the students stand holding the parachute at their waist. Place a lightweight ball on the top of
the parachute. Have the students attempt to shake the parachute and pop the ball off and onto the
floor or ground. Once the students master the art of popping the ball onto the ground, add more
balls for the students to pop off. You may have to give clues as to how the balls can be popped
off. All students raise the parachute at once and then bring it down quickly together. This is
called making popcorn.
Teacher Notes
Make sure your students are under control. Stress cooperation and progress though skills slowly.
Most of the activities with a parachute cannot be completed without total class cooperation. Praise
students for working well together.
© Austin Independent School District
SportFun
A Module of the Sport For All Program