Niamh's classroom

Red, White The children stand in two lines 2-3m apart, facing each other. One line is the 'red' team and the other is 'white'. First, have the children listen and respond to a command: Sit down Turn around Lay down Touch your toes Sit on your knees Once every child is in the same position, shout either 'red' or 'white'. The team you shout the colour of have to try to 'tag' members of the opposite team, whilst they run towards a 'safe zone'. If any child is tagged, they have to join the opposite team. For example, if you shout 'red', then the red team chase the white team to the safe zone. If any white team members are tagged, they become part of the red team. The game ends when one team has all the players bar one. It's important to start children from different positions (sitting, kneeling, etc.), as it encourages them to listen to English commands.

 I've recently been helping out with a Grade 2 class here of 6-7 year olds. Part of their essential curriculum is PE. This class speaks little to no English (they start to learn it in Grade 3) but seem willing to try out new words. They have a good grasp of basic colours and numbers up to ten. My challenge was to integrate new words into easy games. The following have been trialled and tested, and seem to have worked: Walk like a... The class were somewhat familiar with basic animals, so we gave this a try.  The kids take part in a relay race with multiple teams. They must walk like a certain animal to a checkpoint and then run back to tag their teammate. Some examples: Walk like a snake = 'slither' on the floor. You'll have to demonstrate. Walk like a dog = hands and knees. It's okay! Walk like a kangaroo = jumping on both legs with your hands tucked into your front Walk like a rhino = push a ball with your head while on your hands and knees Walk like a crab = side...