Title – Aerobics for Kids

By – Renee Dye

Subject – Physical Education

Grade Level – 5th grade

(3 Class Session)

Objectives: Students will discover movement patterns that express information about the basic systems, organs,
and processes of the human body. They will work alone, in pairs, and in small groups to make
movement choices that communicate scientific concepts in creative movement. They will make
inquiries, through research and movement experimentation, into the ways in which the body’s systems
work and how those systems interact.

Keywords: creative movement, dance, systems, physiology, anatomy, organs, processes, circulation, respiration,
skeleton, digestion, musculature, spine, brain, esophagus, peristalsis, alveoli, capillary, valve, synapse,
digestion, neuron, heart, blood vessels, lungs, muscle fibers, nerve cells, stomach, breathing, body,
energy, space, time.

Equipment: Diagrams or posters of the body systems
Blackboard or Dry Erase Board and Markers
Resource books with clear pictures and diagrams
Basketball Court

National Standards

National Standards of Dance

1. Identify and demonstrate movement elements and skills in performing dance.

2. Understand choreographic principles, processes, and structures

3. Understand dance as a way to create and communicate meaning.

4. Apply and demonstrate critical and creative thinking skills in dance.

5. Making connections between dance and other disciplines

National Standards of Science

1. Understand about scientific inquiry

2. Understand the structure and function of living systems

3. Understand Personal Health

National Standards of Physical Education

1. Uses a variety of basic and advanced movement forms

2. Uses movement concepts and principles in the development of motor skills

Lesson 1

Line up In Exercise Spots

1. Begin with a simple movement warm up focused on the concepts to be explored, but allowing the students to also explore abstract movement. Students come into the classroom with basic preconceptions about the human body, and it can be useful to begin with those during the introductory activities, allowing them to self correct erroneous ideas as they explore. Use leading questions to provide students this opportunity and also to draw out their ability to see the meaning in each other’s movements.

2. Demonstrate or model an action from the body (such as a heartbeat) without telling the students what it is. Take guesses. Discuss the answers. Provide background information on the five major systems of the body, the circulatory, respiratory, nervous muscular-skeletal, and digestive. Help them by discussing basic terminology of each system.

3. Discuss parts of the systems, such as blood vessels, lungs, muscle fibers, nerve cells, and stomach. Link systems with elements of dance (for example, breathing, energy, or rhythm, circulation and pathways).

4. Physiology Action Words warm up (use words taken from the body’s systems in action, such as: beat, inhale,
push, connect, float, churn, etc.) – have student’s move through the general space, using the given words as the
movement stimulus. Have them freeze between movements, add call attention to the interesting or unusual
shapes or forms as they remain frozen.

5. Mirrored Actions: Divide group into pairs, with partners facing each other. Repeat the word list with one
partner performing the word and the other partner doing the mirror image of it.

6. Complementary Actions: Still keeping the partners facing each other, repeat the work list (or new words). This time the leader moves freely as the responder attempts to move in complementary fashion. (Example the leader “chews” at a high level, and the responder does a similar action at a slower speed.) Discuss the activity after each partner has had a chance to lead and respond.

Evaluation

Each student will be assessed on how they participate in each activity.

Lesson 2

Small Group Activity

Assign five small groups to work on one system each. Present the small group rules and evaluation. Circulate around the room and listen to the groups as they work. Resist the temptation to choreograph for the groups, and offer suggestions as question. (Which parts have the most movement possibilities?)

Rules

1. Everyone in the group must have a job. This means that everyone must take part in all phases of the work., from the choreography to rehearsal to performance.

2. Each performance mush have a beginning, a middle, and an end. The beginning gets our attention, the middle is the movement content, and the end lets us know you are finished.

3. Use your bodies only. You may not use props or vocal sound effects.

4. Use your time wisely. Don’t waste time on things that don’t help you create your assigned work.

5. Safety First!!!!!!!!!! The floor is hard, you are not.

Evaluation

Judging will be based on the Rubric for Evaluation System.( Silently evaluate the first two elements on a scale from 1-4)

1. Artistic Expression

2. Curriculum Content

3. Effort

4. Visual Design

5. Organization/Structure

Lesson 3

Have each of the five groups pick a different part of the system, and create a large-scale model of that system. They may perform, use music, or a large board model.

Evaluation

Judging will be based on the Rubric for Evaluation System.( Silently evaluate the first two elements on a scale from 1-4)

1. Artistic Expression

2. Curriculum Content

3. Effort

4. Visual Design

5. Organization/Structure

E-Mail

Renee Dye

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