Choose-Your-Level Warm-Up Cards
Every warm-up move comes in three difficulty levels, bronze, silver, and gold, and each student picks the level that fits how they feel that day while a student leader runs the warm-up. It builds independence, self-awareness, and inclusion without comparisons.
How to play
- Prepare eight task cards, each with one move at three levels; for example, lunges: bronze walking lunge, silver with a trunk twist, and gold with a knee drive at the end.
- Set out three rows of colored cones, orange for bronze, white for silver, and yellow for gold, about 5 yards apart.
- A student leader stands in front, reads the card, and demos all three levels in 15 seconds; each student lines up in the row for the level they choose.
- Each move lasts 45 seconds; before the next one, the leader asks who wants to switch rows, and students switch without explaining.
- The leader changes every two cards, with four leaders in total over about 8 minutes.
- In the last minute, each student tells the person next to them which move they went up or down on and why.
Rules
- Picking a level is a personal choice: nobody comments on anyone else's level.
- Students can switch levels on any move, up or down.
- The leader always demos all three levels, not just the hardest one.
- Safety: if something hurts or feels off, drop to bronze or stop and tell the teacher.
Variations
Easier
Only two levels per move, with the teacher as the first leader.
Standard
Three levels per move, with rotating student leaders.
Harder
Each student records their level for each move on a sheet to compare next class.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: add an adapted level to each card, seated or supported, with its own cone.
- Visual impairment: the leader describes each level out loud, and a partner helps the student choose a row.
- Fitness level: this is the point of the activity; everyone adjusts to their own fitness without being singled out.
Learning goals
- Choose an appropriate intensity independently based on how they feel.
- Notice body signals to adjust effort.
- Respect classmates' choices and pace.
Equipment for a class of 25
- task cards: 8
- colored cones: 15
Teacher tip
Don't let gold become the "good" level: praise students out loud when they drop a level for a smart reason. Laminate the cards and they'll last many classes.
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