Team-Designed Warm-Up Cards
Each team of four designs a four-exercise warm-up on cards following the phases mobility, general activation, sport-specific, and speed, and then leads it for another team. Students build independence in warming up and practice communicating clearly.
How to play
- Make teams of 4 and give each team 4 blank cards and a marker. Each card has a fixed heading: mobility, general activation, sport-specific for the current unit, and speed.
- Minutes 0-3: each team writes one exercise per card with a name, reps or time, and a simple drawing. The teacher checks that each one is safe.
- Minutes 3-4: teams pair up (A with B) and move to a coned-off area.
- Minutes 4-8: team A leads its warm-up for team B: each member explains and demonstrates one card and gives feedback for 1 minute.
- Minutes 8-11: switch roles and team B leads its warm-up for team A.
- Minutes 11-12: each team gives the other one thing they liked and one improvement; the best cards are saved for future classes.
Rules
- Exercises build from lower to higher intensity and do not include long static stretches.
- No exercises with a fall risk, jumping over classmates, or added weights.
- Every team member leads at least one card.
- The leader also does the exercise and sticks to the time limit.
Variations
Easier
The teacher hands out a bank of illustrated exercises and each team just picks and orders four.
Standard
Each team invents and leads four exercises, one per phase.
Harder
Add a fifth card with an original 2-minute activation game.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: the student designs and leads a card and offers a version of the exercise that they can also do.
- Shyness: the student can lead by holding up the card while a teammate demonstrates, without speaking to the whole group.
- Higher fitness: assign the speed card and ask for two difficulty levels.
Learning goals
- Organize a warm-up that follows a progressive phase structure.
- Lead and correct exercises for classmates clearly.
- Give respectful feedback on other teams' work.
Equipment for a class of 25
- cards: 28
- markers: 7
- cones: 14
Teacher tip
The first time, teams take longer to write; post a completed sample card where everyone can see it. Store the cards in a box for each class so the warm-ups can be reused in later lessons.
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