Curriculum – Week Six – SoleKIDs

WEEK 6 – DAY 1

I AM STRONG

“It’s very hard at the beginning to understand that the whole idea is not to beat the other runners. Eventually, you learn that the competition is against the little voice inside you that wants you to quit.”
– George Sheehan

Earn your shirt day!!!

Today is a big day!! You are going to earn your race day shirt!! This will prove to us coaches,as well as to you that you can do this! Your goal for today is to earn your shirt by running 2 miles. We have talked about a lot of different things that can help us achieve this goal and now it is time to put them all to work. As we head out to the run I want you to think positive. Keep telling yourself you can do this because you can! You have all trained so hard and your body knows how to run. Now don’t let your mind stop you from reaching that goal.

WEEK 6 – DAY 2

I AM KIND

“Kind = cheering for and encouraging teammates.”

– Coach Karalynn, Amity Elementary, 7 seasons

Earn your shirt – Part 2

Today is an opportunity for anyone who was absent or unable to earn their shirt the session before. If you have runners who still need to do their 2 miles, go through your normal warm-up and then go into your run. Have the kids who earned their shirts already run with and encourage the runners who are working towards their goal today!

If everyone has earned their shirt then plan a fun adventure run!!

WARM-UP

25 Jumping Jacks

20 High Knees

20 Butt Kicks

10 High Jumps (swing arms back, keep chest up, exploding up)

STRETCHING (FROM HEAD TO TOE)

HEAD

Gently look left to right with head 3 times

Gently nod yes and no with head 3 times

UPPER BODY

Arm circles:

5 small forward

5 small backwards

5 big forward

5 big backwards

Single right arm circles – 5 big forward then 5 big backwards

Single left arm circles – 5 big forward then 5 big backwards

5 arm swings – cross them in the front and swing them back to the sides staying parallel to the ground.

MID-SECTION

Oblique stretch:

With the legs in an upside-down V, rest left hand on the hip. Reach over to the left side extending the right arm up and over. Stretching the obliques. Hold for 5 seconds. Switch sides by reaching to the right side and extending the left arm up and over, with the right hand resting on the hip. Hold for 5 seconds.

Trunk twists:

Stretch the trunk by twisting side to side. Keeping the legs in an upside-down V with the back straight. Toes will also stay facing forward. Twist 5 times each side.

Hip Stretch:

Press hip out to the side and hold for 3 seconds. Do not bounce this stretch. Repeat each side 3 times.

Hip circles:

Press the hips forward, to the side, back and to the side. Doing this motion slowly to stretch each part of the hips. 3 to the right, 3 to the left.

LOWER BODY

Leg stretches:

With legs in an upside-down V and arms out to the side like an airplane, reach the right hand to the left foot. Then stand back up. Repeat with the left hand to the right foot. Repeat 5 times each side.

Knee rotation:

Place hands on knees with legs slightly bent. Move knees in a circular motion. 5 times to the right and 5 times to the left.

Quad stretch:

Bring right foot behind body and grab with the right hand. Balance on the left stretching the quadriceps muscles. If having a hard time balancing, partner up or balance near a wall. For a deep stretch, slightly bend the left leg. Repeat on the other side. Hold for 5 slow seconds.

Hamstring stretch:

With both feet planted on the ground, reach down to your toes keep the legs straight. Hold for 5 seconds.

Leg swings:

Balancing on the left leg, swing the right leg forward and back keep the leg straight. 5 each leg – use a partner or a wall to balance.

Facing a wall, gently place hand on the wall for balance and stand on left leg. Swing right leg side to side in front of the body. Keep the toe pointed to the wall while swinging the leg.

Ankle rolls both sides:

5 circling in

5 circling out

(For ankle rolls you can start off by sitting on the ground and gently placing the right foot over the left knee. Then with the hand, help assist in rolling out the ankle.)

WARM – UP WALKS/RUNS

Mark off a distance of about 30 feet. Do each exercise one time. After, go into your 5 minutes warm-up walk and workout.

Slow moving high knees:

Walking forward, lift knees high with the arms swinging in the opposite direction. It will look similar to a march.

Fast moving high knees:

Running forward, lift knees high with the arms swinging in the opposite direction.

Slow moving butt kicks:

Beginners placing hands behind them so they can feel their feet hit their hands. Advanced runners can swing their arms in the opposite direction of their legs.

Fast moving butt kicks:

Beginners placing their hands behind them so they can feel their feet hit their hands. Advanced runners can swing their arms in the opposite direction of their legs.

Hip flexor rolls to the front:

Place hands on hips, with the knee leading, lift the left leg to the side and then swing it to the front. (It looks similar to stepping over a log.) Make sure the knee is leading and not the toe or it will just look like a giant step. You can also refer to this as closing the gate.

Reverse hip flexor rolls:

Place hands on hips, bring the knee up in front then to the side and down. You can refer to this as opening a gate. You can do this by either walking forwards or by walking backwards.

STRENGTH

Have 2 students pick a strength exercise! Here are some to choose from:

Pushups – 5 Crunches – 15

Burpees – 5 Sumo Squats – 15

Lunges – 5 each leg Squats – 10 Planks – 30 seconds Bodyweight Calf Raises – 20

WORKOUT

DAY 1 Walk: 5 min at brisk pace

Run: 2 miles

Walk: As needed

Walk: 5 min at a slowing pace

DAY 2 Walk: 5 min at brisk pace

Run: 8 minutes

Walk: 2 minutes

Repeat for a total of 20 min

Walk: 5 min at a slowing pace

COOL DOWN

Oblique Stretches:

Spread feet to make an upside-down V. Place right hand on hip and with left arm reach to the right side stretching out left obliques.

With feet still in an upside V reach to the sky.

With feet still in an upside-down V place left hand on hip and reach to the left with the right hand stretching right side.

Hamstring Stretches:

With feet still apart reach down and touch the left foot and hold for 5 seconds stretching the hamstrings, walk hands to the middle and hold for 5, walk hands to the right foot and hold for 5 seconds, go back to the middle and roll body up to a standing position. (Emphasize straight legs! Even if they can’t touch their toes.)

Gluteus maximus/Hamstring Stretches:

With feet together, reach for the sky.

Slowly walk your hand down to touch your toes (hint: that’s okay if they can’t touch their toes, but emphasize keeping legs straight!) Stretching gluteus maximus and hamstrings. Hold for 5 seconds.

In standing position, bring left knee up to chest and hug, balancing on right foot. Hold for 5 seconds. Stretching the gluteus maximus and hamstrings. Repeat with other leg.

Quadriceps Stretches:

Working on balance: reach right hand behind to grab left foot stretching the quadriceps muscles. Hold for 5 seconds (Hint: Have them pick a spot on the floor and focus on it while balancing. If needed start them with holding onto a wall or partner. To get a deeper stretch, slightly bend knee.)

Switch sides with the left hand reaching behind and grabbing the right foot.

Ankle Rolls:

In standing position, keep the ball of the foot on the ground and gently roll ankle around to the outside for 5 circles. Then roll it to the inside for 5 circles.

Repeat on other side.

Shoulder/Arm Stretches:

In standing position, place right arm across the chest keeping it straight. With the left arm hug the right arm and bring to the chest stretching the right shoulder and arm muscles. (Make sure shoulders stay down and relaxed).

Repeat on the other side.

Arm Stretches:

In standing position, extend right arm straight up in the air next to the ear. Bend the elbow with the hand reaching behind the head and neck. With the left arm reach across the head and gently press down on the right elbow stretching the arm.

Repeat other side.

Neck Stretches:

Stretch neck by looking to the left slightly over the shoulder for 5 seconds

Repeat looking to the right slightly over the shoulder for 5 seconds. Then gently drop chin to chest for 5 seconds.

GAMES

ANT BAIT

Have a few runners be “it” or the person tagging the other kids. (Hint: Set up a perimeter so kids aren’t going everywhere.) Once you say go, the runners that are tagging the others, will chase the other runners. If you get tagged, you lay on your back with both arms and both legs straight up in the air. The runners that have not been tagged yet come and touch 1 of the extremities. Once it’s been touched, they pull it close to their bodies. When all 4 have been touched, they are back alive and in the game. Once they die 3 times, they are out. In other words they play the dead ant twice, but when they get tagged the 3rd time they are out.

The point of the game is to keep the kids moving but to realize that they need their friends to help them.

OCTOPUS TAG

One child is chosen to be the octopus. The others line up along one side of the area. When the Octopus yells out “Octopus” the children all run to the other side of the area- trying not to get caught. Those that are caught become one of the Octopus’s arms. They stay where they were caught and help catch everyone.

Curriculum – Week Six