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Subjects Mathematics Measurement Physical Education Games

Grades K-2, 3-5, 6-8

Brief Description

A sponge relay race offers a cool challenge and a fun way to learn math (measurement) skills.

Objectives

Students will

• participate in a timed sponge relay race.
• measure the amount of water (in pints, cups, and/or ounces) they carry to the finish line.

Keywords

relay, game, physical, sponge, water, measure, liquid

Materials Needed

• sidewalk chalk or masking tape
• bucket and sponge (one of each for every four to five students)
• whistle (optional)
• timer or watch
• plastic measuring cup
• chart and markers (optional)

Lesson Plan

Arrange students into teams of four or five. (If one team has fewer members than the others, students on that team will participate more often than those on the other teams.) Draw a start line for each team. Set a bucket of water and a dry sponge at each start line. Set up an empty bucket about 50 feet from the start line. (Vary the distance depending on the grade level.)

Blow a whistle to signal the start of the sponge relay race. The first student in line dips the team's sponge into the bucket of water. He or she pulls out the soaking sponge, runs to the bucket that has been set up 50 feet away, and squeezes the water out of the sponge. Then the student runs back to the team and passes the sponge to the next classmate in line.

The game continues until time is up. At the end of the game, the team with the most water in the bucket opposite the start line is the winner of this cool challenge!

Game Tips:

• Set a time limit before the game begins. Five minutes is a good time limit for most grades.
• Use the game as an opportunity to work on math (measurement) skills. At the end of the game, pour the water from each bucket into a measuring cup and ask students to tell how much water is in the cup by reading the markings on it. This is an opportunity to work on fractions, equivalencies, greater than or less than, and more math skills. If you can cart a tripod chart out to the playing field, you can use the chart for this lesson in measurement.
• When the game is over and the winning team is announced, play again; this time the students must run backward!

Assessment

Create a simple measurement work sheet for students to complete during the cool-down period when they return to the class. The work sheet might have some simple equivalencies written on it, for example:

1 cup ____ 3/4 cup
2 cups ____ 1 pint

Students fill in each blank with the symbol representing greater than (>), less than ( Lesson Plan Source

Education World

Submitted By

Gary Hopkins

National Standards

MATHEMATICS: Number and Operations

• GRADES Pre-K - 2
  NM-NUM.PK-2.1 Understand Numbers, Ways of Representing Numbers, Relationships Among Numbers, and Number Systems

• GRADES 3 - 5
  NM-NUM.3-5.1 Understand Numbers, Ways of Representing Numbers, Relationships Among Numbers, and Number Systems

• GRADES 6 - 8
  NM-NUM.6-8.1 Understand Numbers, Ways of Representing Numbers, Relationships Among Numbers, and Number Systems

MATHEMATICS: Measurement

• GRADES Pre-K - 2
  NM-MEA.PK-2.1 Understand Measurable Attributes of Objects and the Units, Systems, and Processes of Measurement
  NM-MEA.PK-2.2 Apply Appropriate Techniques, Tools, and Formulas to Determine Measurements

• GRADES 3 - 5
  NM-MEA.3-5.1 Understand Measurable Attributes of Objects and the Units, Systems, and Processes of Measurement
  NM-MEA.3-5.2 Apply Appropriate Techniques, Tools, and Formulas to Determine Measurements

• GRADES 6 - 8
  NM-MEA.6-8.1 Understand Measurable Attributes of Objects and the Units, Systems, and Processes of Measurement
  NM-MEA.6-8.2 Apply Appropriate Techniques, Tools, and Formulas to Determine Measurements

PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND HEALTH: Physical Education

• GRADES K - 12 NPH.K-12.3 Physical Activity

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