Motor Skills and Movement Lesson Plans

Students compare their performance of a series of tasks using their thumb and fingers to their performance of the same tasks without the use of their thumb. They discuss the role of fine and gross motor skills and speculate on the role of the opposable thumb in primate evolution.

Students use their bodies in daily activities, by promoting a regular routine of using large and small motor skills, personal space, and boundary awareness. They move a scarf to the rhythm of the different kinds of music the teacher provides.

Students compare and their performance of a series of tasks using their thumb and fingers to their performance of the same tasks without the use of their thumb. The class discussion that follows the activity defines and discusses the role of fine and gross motor skills and speculates on the role of the opposable thumb in primate evolution.

Students explore ways to move creatively and demonstrate various gross motor skills. They observe a teacher-demonstration of various movements, move in different ways and stop when the teacher says freeze, and discuss the ways they liked moving.

Students compete in a variety of games. In this gymnastic skills lesson, students play tag, participate in a challenge course, and practice gymnastics moves to increase physical fitness. 

Students practice controlling their motion and reflexes by participating in different motor skill activities.  In this physical education lesson, students utilize bean bags and hula hoops to help create flexibility and coordination in their body.  Students complete these physical activities with the help of their classmates.

Students practice galloping. In this gross motor skills instructional activity, students review how to jump and hop using a jump-rope and hopscotch. The teacher shows the steps to gallop and they hold a noodle and pretend as if they are riding a horse. 

Fourth graders study the Civil War and Indiana's participation in the war. In groups, they choose a person from the Civil War and create a "bio bottle" of that person. They use fine motor skills to create and dress a model of that person using a bottle as the body and a Styrofoam ball as the head. They present their bio bottle to the rest of the class.

Students explore rhythmic movements. In this performing arts activity, students create their own movements and then repeat the each others movement. Finally, students create movements to the Haiku generated by the entire class.

Students identify the state capitals. For this geography lesson, students pick a card with a state or capital written on it and perform the motor skill written on the card. Students continue to pick cards until they match the state with the correct capital