Spell out your FULL name and complete the activity listed for each letter. For a greater challenge, include your middle name and do each one twice! For a variety you can use a favourite character's name or the name of your best friend!
All you'll need for this challenge is a rolled up pair of socks, a partner (or group) and a little bit of space. What better way to spend some quality time with your family than working on your counting (French or English) and hand-eye coordination. This is The Keep Up Challenge. The challenge is simple - choose your starting point from the chart below based on your comfort levels, and try to work your way through the stages. Don't forget to celebrate your success with your partner! Note: Before you start, determine how many tosses you'll need to do in a row before moving on to through the stages. Younger students should consider setting goals of 10-20 tosses, older students 40-60.
Tips for Success...
keep your eye on the object being thrown to you
let your partner know when you are ready
reach out and trap the object in your hands
pinkies together for a low pass, thumbs together for a higher pass
make sure your partner is ready before throwing the object back
use a larger garment like a t-shirt or hoodie, rolled into a ball if the sock roll is too small.
The video clip below shows a variation of the challenge above.
Are you checking in for the first time? Here is quick reference of the various things we've been doing this month.
April's Daily Family Fitness Calendar
New Morning Routine
Challenge 1 - Wall sit
Challenge 2 - Crow Pose
Challenge 3 - Headstand
2min Plank Challenge - with Guest Appearances!
30-Day Plank Challenge
We hope that you stick with us to help maintain your physical and mental well-being during this pandemic. Also keep this in mind - practice mindfulness and take deep breaths, stretch or meditate. Try to eat healthy meals, exercise regularly and get plenty of sleep. Check back every Monday for a new Challenge.
So we've got our weekly challenges on the go, and now we're going to throw something else out there. It would seem that we all have a little extra time on our hands these days so we thought why not 'do' a little extra? We are feeling that we could certainly be doing more when it comes to being active, so we're going to give the30-day Plank Challenge a try --- Will you join us?
Planks are popular for many reasons, including engaging multiple muscles at once, therefore benefiting the core strength of our body. A strong, stable core is the foundation we need to not only prevent injury but to move freely and strongly in every activity -- especially when attempting those crow poses and headstands...and who knows what else is in store!
Take a look at the 30 day challenge below. Each day, we get a new plank workout move that builds upon the last, leading to new challenges at the end of each week.
BEFORE you start, it's important that you visit the link below for an explanation of how to properly perform each new move and for how long. It is not stated how long you wait in between sets but anywhere from 1-2 minutes is acceptable. Important to note: this challenge was created for an adult - if you are in grades k-3 and finding 45 seconds to much, cut that in half (22sec-23sec).
Decreases Fluid Build-Up In The Legs, Ankles, And Feet
Develops Strength in Core Muscles
Stimulates the Lymphatic System
IMPORTANT - please make sure you are attempting this pose with an adult supervising you. To get started, make sure you protect your head with a thin pillow or mat and clear the space around you. Start off using the wall as support, making sure you leave a few inches between your head and the wall. Seek out someone to hold your legs if you're unable to hold them on your own in the beginning. Lastly, watch Ms.Purvis' awesome video below to be inspired! Thank you Ms. Purvis, your headstand is impressive!
Hey Team! I miss you all so much. Ms. Lowen and Mr. Church have been doing an amazing job at posting fun challenges for us. My Crow Pose is bad. It's really, really bad. However, I'm not going to give up. I'll keep practicing!
For now, I'm going to focus on the positive. I learned how to do a headstand when I was in grade 4. I remember it took a lot of time and perseverance. These days, they're not so hard (unless the floor is hard, then it's really hard).
Let's see yours and thanks for the challenge, Ms. Lowen!
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1 week later..... Hi everyone..Ms.Lowen here. I'm so excited to tell you that after a few days of practice I finally got into and held my headstand for quite sometime. I made sure I followed the guidelines in the challenge and I was successful. The videos below are from some of our own Clairlea students - they're Pros!
Take a look at Mlle. Jang-Narus in her impressive headstands!
Ok, we know our junior and intermediates and even some of our older primaries can navigate through youtube safely and find the dances they love....so, go crazy kids! We have a bunch of favourites in the primary division and likely haven't' tried all of the BEST ones. We're reaching out to all our older students to post a comment below regarding your favourite dance(s)...maybe we haven't tried it yet! For those who are new to the process, you simply open Youtube.com and search out Just Dance - if you want to get specific you can add the name of the song you're looking for - There are dances for just about every song out there!
Hello Fellow Isolators! We are half way through the first week of online learning! Please share your thoughts about how you're finding it. We are hearing mixed feelings from people. Some are finding it a breeze and others find it a challenge. What do you think? Also...how's your morning routine coming along? Are you having that full glass of water BEFORE anything else? You may not feel the good it's doing for you, but trust us, you will reap the benefits! And are you stretching before getting out of bed? For us older people, getting out of bed hurts. Doing a good stretch BEFORE you start your day will help with the aches and pains. How about those Challenges? We are working to lengthen the time spent in crow pose...5 seconds is Ms. Lowen's best (she can do better). What about you? Please share your comments!
With a little practice, we got it. Now, we're going to work on holding it for as long as possible! Anyone else want to share their photos? Let us know.
If you'd like for us to post pictures or videos of your kids engaged in physical activities or attempting the challenges, we would love to. This would definitely help keep everyone motivated!
Clink on the link below to watch a How to video on the Crow Pose. We will be learning and practicing right along side you as it is new to us too! Don't forget to share your success and struggle stories in the comments below!
Without recess and gym time, we wanted to make sure you have some resources to keep you and your family active and healthy. One of the most important things you can do for you and your families mental health and physical health during this time is make sure you stay active and get at leastthe CDC recommended 60 minutes of activity each day. We created the guide below to cater to everyone in your family. It is just that...a guide. If you are finding the duration or repetitions to simple, increase your numbers. And on the flip side, if it's too much for you, reduce the the numbers and aim to increase them as the month progresses. Given that we should be doing 60 minutes of physical activity each day we encourage you to seek out additional ways to stay active through the day. We have posted ideas, links and resources to help you out.
Here is one of our students doing the V-Sit! --- nicely done.
