Whiteboard Cool-Down: Play of the Day
A cool-down after an invasion games lesson where, while stretching, teams pick the most important play of the day and draw it on the whiteboard. Intensity comes down and tactical learning sticks as students name the principle behind the play.
How to play
- Easy walk in pairs where each student describes the play they remember best and why it worked or failed (2 min).
- Static stretches on the mat for quads, hamstrings, calves and adductors, 30 seconds each, while the team chooses its play of the day (3 min).
- One representative per team draws the play on the whiteboard with arrows for passes and runs, while the others do belly breathing (3 min).
- Each representative explains it in 30 seconds and the class names the tactical principle involved, such as commit and pass or closing passing lanes (2 min).
Rules
- Stretch with no bouncing and never to the point of pain.
- Each team picks just one play, whether a success or a mistake.
- Talk about the play, never about who is to blame.
- A different student draws each lesson.
Variations
Easier
The teacher suggests three plays from the lesson and each team picks one to draw.
Standard
Each team draws and explains its play of the day, linking it to a tactical principle.
Harder
The team also suggests how the opponent could have defended that play.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: does upper-body stretches in the wheelchair and is the one who draws on the whiteboard.
- Hearing impairment: explanations rely on the drawing and are repeated in writing on the board.
- Autism: may explain the play to their own group instead of the whole class.
Learning goals
- Recover gradually after the lesson's effort.
- Diagram a real game situation.
- Link what happened in the game to the tactical principles practiced.
Equipment for a class of 25
- mats: 30
- whiteboard: 1
- markers: 6
Teacher tip
Take a photo of the whiteboard at the end: it serves as a record of the unit and a way to open the next lesson. If there is no whiteboard on the court, a large sheet of paper on the floor works.
PatioLab has "Whiteboard Cool-Down: Play of the Day" and 5176 more activities ready to drag into your lesson and run from your phone in the gym.
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