Grade 4 Lesson 1 Item Lesson Plan KidsHealth Article Juan Pierre Article Bubble Map Page Page 2 Page 4 Page 6 Page 10
DETERMINING METHODS VISION-SETTING Marlins Think Tank: Fourth Grade Health/Fitness Lesson Plan #1 OBJECTIVE. What is your objective? PE.4.C.2.7 - Identify proper warm-up and cool-down techniques and the reasons for using them. PE.4.L.4.6 - Identify how specific stretches increase flexibility and reduce the chance of injury. SWBAT - Identify, recognize and understand the benefits of stretching before exercising, and the positive effects it has on the body. KEY POINTS. What knowledge and skills are embedded in the objective? Stretching is vital to helping the body prepare for any type of action. It maintains muscle and joint health, and increases your range of motion. Participating in a warm-up can reduce the risk of injuries. Cooling-down after a workout allows the body to return to its normal state. ASSESSMENT. Describe, briefly, what students will do to show you that they have mastered (or made progress toward) the objective. Students will create a routine of four stretches for a certain muscle group, recognize their benefits, and lead their peers in a group warm-up/cool-down activity. OPENING (15 min.) How will you communicate what is about to happen? How will you communicate how it will happen? How will you communicate its importance? How will you communicate connections to previous lessons? How will you engage students and capture their interest? Ask students how many of them skip the warm-up/cool-down when participating in aerobic activity, school related activities, or extracurricular activities. Talk about the common misconceptions related to stretching, such as it s a waste of time, and stretching does nothing for you. Begin this lesson with a KWL chart. On it, separate the paper into three sections: what the students Know, Want to Know, and Learned. Fill in the chart as a group activity. You can do this using sticky notes, or simply fill in the chart as they call out answers. Explain to the students that you will fill out the L column as you finish the lesson. INTRODUCTION OF NEW MATERIAL (5 min.) How will you explain/demonstrate all knowledge/skills required of the objective so that students begin to actively internalize key points? Which potential misunderstandings do you anticipate? How will you proactively mitigate them? How will students interact with the material? Together with the students, read the article from KidsHealth. Pick out some of the most interesting details to add to the L column of the thinking map. Focus on the importance of stretching each muscle group, how it is necessary in improving performance, and lessening injuries. (Article taken from http://kidshealth.org/en/teens/stretching.html#) Before we create our own warm-up/cool-down routines, let s take a look at Marlins alumnus Juan Pierre! MATERIALS. Student notebooks Sticky notes (optional) MATERIALS. KidsHealth article Student notebooks
GUIDED PRACTICE (15 min.) How will students practice all knowledge/skills required of the objective, with your support, such that they continue to internalize the key points? How will you ensure that students have multiple opportunities to practice, with exercises scaffolded from easy to hard? How does warming up your body, physically and mentally, prepare you for a task? Students will work in groups and read the article Hard work, humility carry Juan Pierre into Hall of Fame. They will create a bubble map to display the facts they felt were the most important. After they complete the map, they will participate in a class discussion about the article. MATERIALS. Juan Pierre article Bubble map chart Do you think Pierre s success is a direct effect of his warm-up routine and the way he channels his energy? If Pierre hadn t changed his mindset, do you think he would have had the same success in his career? How do you think his team is affected by his work ethic? After honing in on the importance of being mentally prepared, students will return to their assigned groups and pick a group of muscles (shoulders, back, thighs, calves, arms) out of a hat. (Article taken from: http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/sports/article_9e8d65be-4fbd-11e7-b0cdefb4370a76ac.html) INDEPENDENT PRACTICE (15 min.) How will students independently practice the knowledge and skills required of the objective, such that they solidify their internalization of the key points prior to the lesson assessment? Groups of students will work together to come up with a series of FOUR different stretches that will target their given muscle group. Once they have each chosen a stretch, they will independently, or in a group setting, research the benefits of that stretch and prepare a routine/presentation for their peers. They may also include ways to improve work ethic and maintain mental stability as well as physical abilities. MATERIALS. Computers/iPa ds/internet for research Student notebooks Lesson Assessment: Once students have had an opportunity to practice independently, how will they attempt to demonstrate mastery of the knowledge/skills required of the objective? Students will lead their peers in group stretching activities before recess each day. They will document how they feel before they began stretching, and if there were any differences after. They will be able to attribute Pierre s success to his mental and physical warm up. CLOSING (10 min.) How will students summarize and state the significance of what they learned? The students will expand on what they have learned about the importance of stretching and work ethic. They can continue to practice their new routines or substitute different ones to target other muscle areas. MATERIALS. Student notebooks Extension- The children can research other fitness misconceptions, or other famous MLB players routines.
Ben wants to start exercising regularly, but he is embarrassed to ask how. He knows that he can t just start sprinting or pedaling rapidly on his bike when beginning a workout. He needs to prepare his body for these activities, but has heard mixed things about stretching before working out. Here are the cold, hard facts on warming up, stretching, and cooling down. It's important to warm up your body before any physical activity. Warming up for about 5-10 minutes goes a long way toward preparing the body for exercising, both physically and mentally. It also helps prevent injuries. The term "warm-up" describes many light-aerobic and cardiovascular activities. When you warm up, you are literally warming up the temperature of both your body and your muscles. Warming up also: increases your heart and respiratory rate boosts the amount of nutrients and oxygen delivered to your muscles prepares the body for a demanding workout You can use many types of warm-up activities to prepare your body for intense physical exercise. Often a warm-up activity is simply the activity you are about to do, but at a slower pace. For example, if you're about to go for a brisk run, warm up with a light jog, and if you're going to go for a swim, do a couple of slow freestyle warm-up laps. If you play a sport, focus on the muscles that are used for your particular sport. For instance, if you play baseball, you might focus on your shoulder for throwing. Dynamic stretching uses many muscle groups in a sport specific manner and can be incorporated in your warm-up. In addition to warming up the body and preparing muscles that will be used in the activity, dynamic stretching allows for full range of motion of the joints. Stretching used to be considered the main activity before a workout. Recent studies have called into question the benefits of stretching before working out. Traditional, or "static," stretching may lead to decreased muscle strength and performance. Consider doing dynamic stretches before and static stretching after a workout. Stretching still can be a beneficial activity after you have sufficiently warmed up. The reason for this is that stretching cold muscles can directly contribute to pulled or injured muscles. Stretching properly may reduce muscle injuries and improve athletic performance. In addition, stretching provides increased:
flexibility joint range and motion blood flow to muscles Stretching has to be done right to have benefits, though. Here are some tips on stretching properly: Stretching should never hurt. If you have reached a point in your stretch where it hurts, relax to where it feels comfortable and hold the stretch. Holding a stretch for any less won't sufficiently lengthen the muscle. Holding a stretch for longer may have negative effects on performance. Stretch the muscles gradually and don't force it. Avoid bobbing. Bobbing or bouncing while stretching may insure the muscle you are stretching. This damage may even cause scar tissue to form. Scar tissue tightens muscles and can get in the way of flexibility. Breathing is a necessary part of any workout, including stretching. Even if you are a righty, it doesn't mean that you should neglect the left side of your body. Make sure you stretch both sides equally, so all of your muscles are evenly ready for action. Stretch regularly. To maintain flexibility, you should stretch at least 3 days a week. The most efficient way of slowing down a car or bike isn't by riding straight into a brick wall. The same way you have to gradually slow down either your bike or your car, you need to slow down your body after a workout or exercise: 5 10 minutes of slowed-down, easy activities will go a long way in helping your body recover from a workout. Your cool-down routine can vary from workout to workout. It should include light aerobic activity and stretching. If you're running at a quick pace, you can slow down to a steady walk to cool down. Cooling down and stretching at the end of a workout help to: slow your heart rate to a normal speed return your breathing to its regular pace avoid stiffness and soreness of the muscles reduce any risk of dizziness and lightheadedness relax the muscles Whether you are new to working out or have been playing a sport your entire life, adding a good before-and-after routine to your workout will give you the best chance of avoiding injuries and may even help improve your performance.
One of the iconic images of Juan Pierre from his 14 seasons in Major League Baseball is that of him running with pure joy from center field to the pitcher s mound to celebrate the World Series championship for the Florida Marlins in 2003. Yet, there is a less known, but just as poignant, image from the career of the base-stealing legend who is among the 2017 inductees into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, to be enshrined June 24 in Natchitoches. It was from the 2009 season, when he was with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and he was sent to bat as a pinch-hitter. Manny Ramirez had just come off a 50-game suspension, and Dodgers manager Joe Torre made the strapping, highly paid slugger his starter in left field, sending perhaps the best known baseball player ever to come out of Alexandria to the bench, even though he had filled in admirably during Ramirez s absence. I pinch-hit the first night he came back, said Pierre, and some 50,000 fans in Dodger Stadium gave me a standing ovation something I totally didn t expect. It was one of the coolest things in my career. It was like they understood all the hard work I had put in and the humility I had, not complaining or whining about it. It showed they appreciated how I went about my business. Pretty cool. How Juan D Vaughn Pierre went about his business was one of the attributes people noticed favorably about him since youth baseball. I saw Juan from T-ball up, said Don Boniol, who coached him in youth baseball and later at Alexandria Senior High. You knew that he was going to be a player, a great player. He worked hard at the game. He wasn t a big guy, and the little fellow knew if he was going to be good, he d always have to work hard on his skills. That is what he did, and it was instilled in him from his parents, James and Derry Pierre. His mom was pretty strict on him: If you start something, finish it; try to be the best at what you are, said James Pierre, who named his second son after his favorite ballplayer, San Francisco Giants legend Juan Marichal. As a kid, he always wanted to be the best. One of his first gifts was a baseball glove when he was about 3 years old. His older brother (Derrick) was a natural, but he didn t work as hard as Juan.
Boniol recalled how Juan played both basketball and baseball at ASH but would work on his own at baseball during the basketball season. Juan would ride his bicycle from Deerfield subdivision to ASH with his bat and his glove and knee socks with seven or eight balls in them, Boniol said. He d run up the stadium, then hit six or seven balls off the tee. He d simulate catching fly balls in the outfield and throwing a runner out at third or home. He d work on his bunting. He d work on his steal break. He worked on all details. This same work ethic carried through his playing days at the University of South Alabama - where he is a member of USA s Sports Hall of Fame - Galveston Junior College, the minor leagues and the major leagues. A lot of times in professional sports, you don t get to meet a guy you really click with, said Chone Figgins, who began a strong friendship with Pierre as a minor league teammate in Portland, Oregon, in 1998 and would later be Pierre s teammate again with the Marlins in 2013. From Day 1, his locker was two lockers down, and he was like, 'You want to go hit some more?' In his fourth season in the major leagues, Pierre was the first Marlin to record 200 hits in a season one of three 200-hit seasons in his career but he made his biggest mark in the big leagues as a base stealer, collecting 614 stolen bases while playing for six different teams through 14 seasons. That ranks him 18th on MLB s career base stealing chart. He was the season s league leader in steals three times. He is one of only four major-leaguers to collect at least 100 steals with three teams (Marlins, Rockies, Dodgers). You could tell right away (about his potential as a ballplayer) because he had the speed, said Jodie White, a baseball icon in Alexandria as a youth coach, recreation superintendent, minor league general manager, public address announcer and ballpark custodian. When I coached him in T-ball, I d often have a quiz for the kids after practice. Who s the fastest guy on the team? I d ask. Juan, they d all answer. Then I d ask him the same question. Juan s answer: Me. It was instinctive to me, Pierre, who now lives in Parkland, Florida, near Fort Lauderdale, said of his base-stealing talent. My instincts would take over, but (former major league players and coaches) Dave Collins and Dallas Williams, when I got to the big leagues, really challenged me and taught me a lot about pitchers moves.
A leadoff hitter and outfielder, Pierre fashioned a.295 career batting average and led the National League in hits in 2004 (221) and '06 (204). Pierre had 2,217 career hits (225 doubles, 94 triples, 18 homers) and 517 RBIs. He had a 16-game hitting streak to start his career the second-longest streak to begin a career in MLB history. When we met (in the minor leagues), he wasn t actually a starter, he was a backup, Figgins said. The first game he played they wanted to give one of the other prospects a day off he went 4-for-5. After that, the manager had to put him in the next day and he had three or four hits. I remember thinking, this guy can hit. How was he ever a backup? Pierre wouldn t be a backup again until opening day 2008 when, in the second year of a fiveyear, $44 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, he found himself sitting on the bench for the first time in his big league career. My whole foundation was rocked because all I cared about was baseball, he recalled of the experience in a 2014 interview with the Town Talk, his hometown newspaper. I had played in 800 straight games. I didn t know what was going on, and I was bitter and wanted to get traded. He realized later, he said, that I was being presented a challenge. He realized this after his life changed forever at a 2009 team chapel service in spring training. The chaplain s words spoke to him in such a significant way that he said he became entrenched in religion that spring and life has not been the same since. That explains why he didn t sulk when Torre sat him in favor of Ramirez, in contrast to his depression after being benched the year before in favor of Andruw Jones. Torre said Pierre was the feel good story in baseball during the time he filled in for Ramirez. He said despite having to deliver bad news to him two years in a row, Pierre was a pro through this whole thing. At the end of the '09 season, Pierre was presented the Roy Campanella Award, given annually to the Dodgers player who best exemplifies the spirit and leadership of the Hall of Fame catcher. Then in 2010, his first of two seasons with the Chicago White Sox, he led the major leagues in stolen bases (68) for the third time in his career. I probably wouldn t be in the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame if I hadn t changed my ways, Pierre said. How you react when adversity strikes, that s the test of a human being, said former Marlins teammate Dontrelle Willis. Being able to show class, your coaching staff sees that, your teammates see that. Quite possibly the finest person I know is Juan Pierre.
We d go together to practice, Willis said, and if you weren t in his car at 6:15 in the morning, you were getting left behind. I ran down the stairs a couple of times with toothpaste still on my face so I wouldn t get left behind. The work ethic he picked up from Pierre helped shape his career, Willis said. If it weren t for Juan Pierre, there would be no D-Train, Willis added. From the first time I met him, he just oozed professionalism. He always stuck to his routine and to his roots. Remember that image of him joyfully running from center field to the pitcher s mound after his team clinched the title in the World Series one that Pierre helped make possible with a.333 batting average, two doubles and three RBIs? These are some flashes of thoughts he had during that dash to dog pile. To win the World Series in 2003 at Yankee Stadium home of Mantle, Ruth was the icing on the cake, Pierre said. I thought of Little League days, my parents bringing me to practices, going to ASH (Alexandria Senior High), and that my mother and dad, sister and brother were there, and all the work I d put to get to that point and how it was a great feeling. Remembering all that, he continued, I couldn t believe that for little me, this literally happened, and I m from Alexandria, Louisiana.
Using the article about Marlins alumnus Juan Pierre, complete the bubble map below. Use the center bubble to list the main idea and the outer bubbles to write down details from the article.