Drills

The students were excited to have another day of outdoor recess.  For weeks now, they have had to play indoors.  The third and fourth graders arranged a game of basketball.  Of all the recess games, this is the one game that requires proactive supervision.  Let the game begin!  The energy level was high, and the students were playing a good game.  After 5 minutes, I noticed that they were getting out of breath and starting to play a little sloppy.  At the next jump ball, I had them circle up and organized a foul shooting drill so they could catch their breath.  I promoted it as a drill to increase their accuracy.  Once they had settled, the game began again.  Again, the energy level was high and the ball moved quickly around the court.  After some time, when the play began to get sloppy and they were huffing and puffing, I circled them up for a dribbling drill.  I told them the dribbling drill would improve their ball handling.  Each student was given time to show their ball handling skills.  When they had caught their breath, they asked if they could go back to the game, which they did.  Now, I am reflecting on the success of breaking the game into parts.  The parts gave them opportunities to practiced as a team, and parts were they practiced individually.  My purpose was to make sure the game continued to be safe.  Their purpose was to play- which they did.  Recess was a success.