Stretching is as important for young children as it is for adults. Teaching a child to stretch helps prevent injuries and can serve as an educational lesson on muscle and bone groups. The first 10 minutes of physical activity and the last five minutes should be devoted to stretching and a calm-down time. This will benefit the teacher and students to transition into quieter, calmer learning times.
Physical education activities can include many different sporting events combined into one session. A field day, for example, can incorporate a variety of events that allow children to try a range of activities. Appropriate events for an elementary school child include long jump, time sprints, relays and three-legged races. Medals and ribbons given for achievement and participation can help to motivate and encourage practice and advancement while rewarding hard work.
Elementary school physical activities must incorporate learning and education in addition to physical movement. Many games and activities can incorporate math or science skills, as well as reasoning and listening skills. Hopscotch and foursquare can promote math skills such as addition, subtraction and number representation. Scavenger hunts based on nature helps to promote science, reading and listening skills.
Tried-and-true sports that have been around for decades are still popular in elementary school physical activities. Kickball is a game similar to baseball that omits the bat and allows the child to kick the ball. In the game of tetherball, a ball is attached to a pole that two child try to hit past each other. Games such as volleyball, basketball and soccer also work well in elementary schools by omitting lengthy rules and techniques while allowing the children to playing by the basic rules.