You Can Get Active

YOU CAN GET ACTIVE Being active is really fun! There are so many exciting ways in which YOU CAN get active.

This book will give you 50 different activities to try out. Use the list opposite to tick off each one as you complete it and see if you can get through them all – you never know, you might find a new favourite sport, game or hobby.

Whether you are in the garden, at the park, in the woods, enjoying a day at the beach or stuck inside on a rainy day, you can get active anywhere. And the good thing is, for many of the activities, you don’t even need much (or any!) equipment to get started.

There is something for everyone – from trying a new sport, or building an obstacle course, to simply walking to the top of a local hill with your dog.

There are spaces to record your ideas, distances, times and achievements. So what are you waiting for?

Read on, and then go and get active!

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Tick off each activity here once you’ve tried it!

1 Garden circuits

27 Time to relax

2 Outdoor obstacle course

28 Open water swimming

3 Scavenger hunt

29 Canoeing & kayaking

4 Trampolining

30 Rowing

5 Build a crazy golf course

31 Stand-up

6 Jumping

paddleboarding (SUP)

7 Throwing

32 Dinghy sailing

8 Catching

33 Climb a tree

9 Skipping

34 Nature trail

10 Leapfrog

35 Plan a walk

11 Jumping waves

36 Climb a hill

12 Catch a wave

37 Go for a run

13 Hopscotch

38 Geocaching

14 Wheelbarrows

39 Fly a kite

15 Boules

40 Ride a bike

16 Frisbee

41 Scootering

17 Rounders

42 Roller skating or blading

18 Cricket

43 Skateboarding

19 Gymnastics

44 Go karting

20 Indoor obstacle course

45 Football

21 Circuits board game

46 Tennis

22 Movement chains

47 Martial arts

23 Home dance routine

48 Hockey

24 Animal races

49 Netball

25 Ping pong with cups

50 Basketball

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OUTDOOR OBSTACLE COURSE

Now it’s time to get creative and make an obstacle course in the garden or park. You can use anything you have in the garden, or you can head to a park and use the equipment that is already there.

WHAT COULD YOU USE? Ladder

lying down – to step or jump in all the gaps Skipping

rope – to skip with 10 times on the spot or skip around part of the obstacle course Football

to dribble around rocks or sticks or to try keeping it up in the air 5 times Garden

chairs – to crawl under, dribble a football around or use as starting point Picnic

table – to crawl under on your tummy Hula

hoops – to jump in, crawl through or hula hoop with Sticks,

stones and leaves to mark your route A stopwatch or a friend to count 10 You Can Be Active_NL 3rd Proof_kr.indd 10

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Now think about your own obstacle course! You need a start line, a route around the garden or park – under, over, through or round lots of times – and a finish line. You can make it as challenging or as easy as you like.

TIP! If you’re at the park, use the monkey bars, slide and climbing frame as part of your obstacle course.

Plan your own obstacle course and route here!

Now you’ve designed your course, have a go at making and completing it. Time yourself and see if you can get faster each time!

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ANIMAL RACES

Time for some relay races with a difference! For this activity, you need to act and move like an animal. It can be a straight race from a starting point to finish line, around some furniture, or into different rooms. You can be in teams for this, with a friend, lots of friends, or just on your own with a stopwatch to time yourself.

Can you think of how different animals move? Here are a few ideas to get you started...

FROG JUMPS Hop back and forth like a frog.

BEAR WALKS With your hand and feet on the floor, and your hips high, walk left and right in a sideways movement.

GORILLA SHUFFLE Sink into a low sumo-squat, with your hands on the floor, and shuffle around.

STARFISH JUMPS Do some jumping jacks as fast as you can with arms and legs spread wide.

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CHEETAH SPRINTS Run as fast as you can, like the fastest animal in the Sahara!

CRAB WALKS Sit on the floor and place your palms on the floor behind you, near your hips.

Lift your bottom up off the ground and crawl from side to side like a crab.

ELEPHANT STOMPS March using very heavy feet, lifting your knees as high as you can and stomping on the ground. Wave your arm around near your head like a long trunk!

SNAKE SLITHERS Lie on your tummy and slither along without using your arms.

How do these animals move?

Penguin Horse Bird Kangaroo Worm

Now try moving like them!

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FOOTBALL

Football started in England in the 19th century and just under two million people now play it in England. It is the most popular sport in the world.

As soon as you can walk, you can start to kick a football, play for fun and develop your football skills. It is great to play in the garden, park or to join a football club.

People play football anywhere and everywhere, from the playground, to the beach or in a field. If you don’t have football goals, you can use cones or your coats and anyone can join in even if they haven’t played before.

If you want to improve as a player, your technique is very important.

Ball control – do you have good ball control so that you are able to receive good passes, on the ground and in the air with one touch, and also turn quickly with the ball?

Dribbling skills – how quickly can you move up and down

the pitch with the ball, in different directions and at speed with both feet?

Passing accurately – can you use both feet to pass the ball to the correct player or place on the pitch?

Body control – do you have long strides, are you a quick runner, and do you have a low centre of gravity to turn easily? These all help with the above three techniques.

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You can improve your technique by practising regularly.

Here are some ideas: Dribbling a ball around cones Keeping the ball in the air with your feet or your head Shooting the ball accurately Passing the ball to your friends Tackling Or simply play a game of football for fun with all your friends.

How many players are there in a football team?

What football team do you support?

How many football teams do you know the name of? Write them here.

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