Grade 4: Movement
(Alternative-Environment Activities)

This sub-organizer contains the following sections:
Prescribed Learning Outcomes
Suggested Instructional Strategies
Suggested Assessment Strategies
Recommended Learning Resources

Prescribed Learning Outcomes

It is expected that students will:

demonstrate activity-specific motor skills in a variety of alternative environments
demonstrate locomotor and non-locomotor skills, and body and space awareness when performing activities in alternative environments

To view the prescribed learning outcomes for Movement (Alternative-Environment Activities)
in other grades click on an icon below.

Suggested Instructional Strategies

Through participation in a variety of activities in natural or alternative settings, students develop safety, survival, orienteering skills, and an understanding of the use and preservation of natural resources. They also identify nutritional and fitness levels required to participate effectively in alternative-environment activities, and discover links between active living and our environment. Activities could take place on a ski hill, or in a wilderness setting, outdoors school, or local park.

Strategies:

Invite a local parks authority to speak to students about visiting a wilderness area without damaging the area.
Develop a relay or game using articles of clothing suitable for the area and season.
Set up a vigorous walking or jogging program in preparation for hiking, orienteering, snowshoeing, and so forth.
Have students walk vigorously for 15 minutes, noting the distance covered. Over time, increase the time and distance, and chart the results.
Prepare first-aid kit and safety provisions needed for a day trip. (Consider cuts, burns, heat exhaustion, allergies.) A district nurse or organization providing first-aid courses could be consulted.
Have students follow directions and symbols on a map on an activity circuit around school property, locating specific landmarks (controls).
Have students plan healthy snacks and lunch for a day trip.
Set up an activity circuit in a park with various stations (e.g., Aboriginal and Inuit games).
Have students plan a treasure hunt using basic orienteering skills (e.g., map reading, symbol identification).
Use community facilities and qualified instructors to provide training in water safety, stroke techniques, skating skills, or other available activities.

Suggested Assessment Strategies

Have students work together in small groups to create a treasure map that uses basic orienteering skills (e.g., map reading, symbol identification, following directions). Have students use the playground or local park to hide a treasure. Have the groups exchange maps and try to locate one another's treasures. Have each student write in a journal about what they did and what they found. Examine their work for accuracy, scale, and complexity. Have students record and present their data.
Have students, working in pairs, create a poster representing activities that both take place in a natural setting and include active living. Alternatively, they could create a cartoon, flip book, collage, or puzzle. Have students present their poster to the class and explain it. Look for evidence that students are aware of the connections between active living and outdoor activities, and the extent to which they understand the range of physical activities possible in an alternative environment.