Is jump rope challenging for kindergarteners? It may be. It may take a lot of practice and focus to acquire and refine jump rope skills but we know that young children enjoy the challenge of trying to jump and land over a rope. Therefore, during the learning process, it’s appropriate to allow Kindergarteners explore the beginning stages and then later combine them together. Motivating students to believe in their abilities as learners will help them to persevere throughout.
In Physical Education, our K1 and K2 students have been learning jumping skills and basic jump rope techniques. Through constructive feedback and positive reinforcement as well numerous opportunities to practice and reflect, students have demonstrated steady improvement. I am impressed with their enthusiasm and dedication to learn, and thus I’m proud of each student’s achievement so far whether it is a demonstration of a single jump rope turn, pause and jump over the rope, a single jump with self-turned rope, or the ability to jump rope a few times in a row. In our PE classes, what matter the most is to keep on practicing patiently, knowing that sooner or later everyone will be able to combine all skills together. In addition to that, it has been very rewarding to seeing students incorporate jump rope activities in a variety of games played in Semester 1. The knowledge acquired in previous Units has served as basis for a new learning to take place.
It is undeniable the benefits of jump rope in improving health and coordination. Journals of Sports Science & Medicine have proven that individual jump rope is an effective workout that improves balance and agility. But more than that, as we offer jump rope classes to our Kindergarteners, we hope to instill in each student the self-discipline and commitment needed to achieve success, and thus help them develop skills that are highly relevant for present and future lives in a rapidly changing world.
