I can't say I enjoyed gym class when I was in school. Short amounts of time trying to exercise, and I usually had gym class right after recess...which was right after lunch, so I really didn't need any more exercise time right then.
There of course was the inevitable game of dodgeball, duck-duck-goose, and climbing the rope..which I NEVER was able to do. There were uniforms and different tennis shoes we had to change into. There were some kids who were superior and others...like myself...who just did not excel in this class. But even with my bad attitude about gym class, I still wanted to be able to play games with our kids that I had played in gym class. Games where they did not even realize we were exercising...because if I say we are exercising there are two boys that will run the other direction.
My other major issue with having a "gym" class was how to get started. There are many fun activities out there, but really I am running out of time to continue to research. I spend so much time working on our 'book' curriculum, that our 'phys ed' curriculum was suffering. And no kid really wants to just do jumping jacks and run laps around the yard.
So I was pretty excited when we had the privilege of using Family Time Fitness 4 Home School Physical Education Curriculum. I was very nervous about trying this product. I have two sons that DO NOT enjoy physical exertion. So the option of trying to get them to exercise was something I really didn't feel tackling...in fact I feel that is my exercise..lol. But in my mind I know that this is very important for them.
I decided to actually attempt to present the curriculum as "gym class" to the kids. And as shocked as I was...all of them agreed. I have to admit that I had a really hard time taking pictures....so we do not have a huge amount of the kids playing the games. The kids were having so much fun, that I had to join in!!
Family Time Fitness Fitness 4 Home School is laid out so easy that there is no way to "mess" it up! I cannot tell you how super simple it is. I basically skim the lesson, and make sure I have the equipment needed. There is no fancy equipment required. Just plain everyday stuff that most families have around the house, such as jump ropes, hula hoops, cones, soccer balls, kick balls, bean bags, sidewalk chalk to just name a few items.
Now I do have to say that I did kind of skip around a bit while we have been working on this program. If there was an activity that didn't seem to keep the kids attention or if someone was struggling due to the inability to physically complete a task, I did skip over and move to another item.
Something that I found so wonderful though with Family Time Fitness 4 Home School is that if I or the children were unsure how to properly complete an activity, there are videos that they can watch to make sure they are doing it right. Simply click the link in your lesson plan, and a video would pop up showing how how to do the exercise or game properly. Again, no extra work for me!!! This not only helped to build the kid's confidence in performing the task, but it kept them from injuring themselves by taking what could be a nasty fall or even pull a muscle.
You can choose to spend about as long on an a lesson plan as you would like. If the kids seemed to have a short attention span that day, I might not do as many slides or jumping jacks as recommended (but I was careful to make sure they were warmed up) and then we would move on to an activity in that lesson plan that would keep their interest. They do recommend a minimum of 3 days per week, but 5 is really good for our physical health. If you do each lesson fully, depending on your child(ren), it could take between 30-45 minutes.
This program was so easy to use. I did not have to guess what activity to do or write up any sort of lessons. It is all laid out completely, even with the suggested amounts of time to do each activity or exercise. There are games and exercises included that I completely forgot about. So you do not have to have any type of Physical Education degree to get started with Family Time Fitness. It is made for those of us who didn't really like gym class to start with...lol!! It really made our Gym class fun!!!
Another thing that I really liked was that so many important skills were highlighted. There was emphasis on skills such as balance, endurance, agility, and coordination to name just a few. These are all skills that at least 3 of my kids need improvement on. This program gave me a basis to get started and help the kids to continue to improve in these areas.
Family Time Fitness really worked well into our days. I usually set aside about 45 minutes for activities, knowing that some day we wouldn't spend as long or there could be times (like when we played freeze tag) that we would be longer. You can do these activities indoor and outdoors, although we do not have the space for indoor activities. So we will have to figure out something as it gets colder.
Here is one day when I could snap a few pics: They are playing Jump the River....
We used the Core 1 Curriculum that is recommended for kids in grades K-8. But I found this program challenging. I really got out of shape the last couple months after my foot injury in the summer. This program showed me I need to improve! But even though it was challenging, it was not overwhelming for either myself or the kids!
I forgot how fun it was to crab walk...and quite painful at my age..lol. But the kids thought it was cool that I was down and crawling around the yard with them. So it creates great family time activity!
If you would like, Family Time Fitness 4 Home School even includes an assessment form for you to track your child(ren)'s progress. I am very curious to use this form as some of the kids have trouble doing jumping jacks, skipping, etc due to various delays. I think the extra video links that are included with instructions have helped with them a lot!!
From the Family Time Fitness 4 Home School:
How Does the Fitness 4 Homeschool Curriculum Work?
The program is designed to create a fun and engaging atmosphere for fitness. The 260 planned lessons teach you everything you need to know with minimal preparation time, and the lessons are also designed so that they do not require a large investment in equipment.
Our program is the only professionally planned comprehensive curriculum for Physical Education and Athletic Development designed with the needs of the parent in mind. Our PE curriculum works for any homeschool because it is easy to follow, can be customized to any schedule, and can fit in almost any space, outdoors or indoors. It’s even easier to follow with our tips for integrating physical education, progress logs and instructional videos.
The Fitness 4 Homeschool program is structured to be integrated into your teaching a minimum of three days per week, but we strongly recommend five. It takes 30 to 45 minutes each day, and we’re certain that it is so fun and engaging for the whole family that it will be the highlight of your student’s day.
The 260 lesson plans utilize repetition, but they are also progressive and sequential. The program is designed for all age levels and abilities, and because we believe that the learning process is most valuable with family engagement, the lessons are designed so that the whole family can join in the lessons.
Still not sure, check out this video about this wonderful product:
What is included in the Fitness 4 Homeschool Package?
The Fitness 4 Homeschool Curriculum includes a startup guide, 260 PDF lesson plans, video demonstrations, assessment tools, reminder emails, lifetime curriculum and video updates, access to online webinars and certificates of completion. One curriculum purchase can be used for all your children, and we never charge any subscription fees or annual renewal fees.
You can purchase Fitness 4 Homeschool Core 1 Physical Education curriculum for $57.00. Do I think it is worth this cost, because I know that price would be steep for our family to pay. Yes, I do think it is worth the cost. I recently checked into a place the kids could swim and play in a gym area and it was about $40.00 a month to play there. This program is a one-time fee of $57.00 for a program that you can repeatedly use (260 lessons are included). So it is definitely worth it for our family.
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*****Disclaimer......I received Fitness 4 Home School Core 1 curriculum free of charge for the sole purpose of this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The views I have expressed are my own and are real experiences with my family. I am disclosing this is accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html>:"Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."
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