Give Me Five: Good Sport Goodbye

To finish, children walk past each other in two lines, slowly high-fiving and saying "Good game!" like real athletes, and then share what they enjoyed. It works on sportsmanship, appreciating classmates and cooling down.

How to play

1. The teacher explains that when athletes finish, they shake hands and say "Good game!" (1 min).
2. We make two lines facing each other and walk slowly past, high-fiving each friend (1 min).
3. We repeat with a new greeting: a gentle fist bump, an elbow bump or a greeting a child invents (1 min).
4. Sitting in a circle, each child shares one thing they liked about playing with someone: "I liked it when Paul passed to me" (1 min).
5. A final cheer for the whole class team with three slow claps and one big one (1 min).

Rules

• We high-five gently, no smacking.
• We say "Good game!" to everyone.
• We listen to whoever is talking in the circle.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: the wheelchair stays in one spot and the lines pass by to high-five.
• Autism: the child may wave in the air without touching if they don't like contact.
• Hearing impairment: add a thumbs-up sign to "Good game!".

Learning goals

• Value playing together over the result.
• Notice the good things classmates do.
• End the session in a calm, positive way.

Teacher tip

Do this greeting at the end of every sports session and it becomes a habit. The typical mistake is smacking hands hard and fast, so do it in slow motion.

More activities like this

More cool-downs for Elementary