Power Up!

• Safety: Allow enough space to move freely and minimize collisions. Determine boundaries that are a safe distance from obstacles and walls.
• Ensure equipment and materials are properly cleaned. 
• Determine how you will group learners, using best practice guidelines from Effective Strategies for Grouping Learners.
• Download the Hydration Posters to encourage kids to drink water throughout the day.
• Be prepared to demonstrate fitBoost activity and fitFlow yoga.

Note: The fitBoost warm up is also part of the Captivate section of this lesson. You may opt to skip this warm up.

Say: Let’s pretend to be astronauts! Your rocket ship is ready! Before blastoff, you must prepare to be healthy while in space. (Actions are noted by text in all capital letters.)

1. First, let’s talk about mood. It's normal to have all kinds of feelings, and those feelings can influence your mood, which in turn affects your choices. Sometimes you feel motivated to make healthy choices, and other times you might not. When you're feeling unmotivated, it's important to recognize that all feelings are okay, but your mood can change. Positive self-talk can help! This is when you pause, notice how you're feeing, remind yourself of something positive, and then make a healthy choice to manage your mood. Let's start our journey with a star jump and some positive self-talk. DO A STAR JUMP OR WAVE YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR WHILE CHANTING “I CAN DO THIS.”
   
   
2. Let’s gather food to eat while on board the rocket ship. MOVE IN PLACE. We will choose nutritious foods for energy to power our brains! Let’s dig for some sweet potatoes and carrots. MOVE ARMS AS IF DIGGING SWEET POTATOES AND CARROTS. Add the vegetables to your basket.
   
   
3. Now, let’s get some fruit!  We will walk to the fruit area. MOVE IN PLACE. Watch out for the fruit vines! MOVE FRONT AND BACK, AND SIDE TO SIDE to go around the vines. Now, GET LOW AND REACH YOUR ARMS OUT to pick blackberries and strawberries and add them to your basket.
   
   
4. Next, we will move to keep your body and brain healthy. Let’s practice exercises to do while exploring the planets. Do a fitBoost: Select a Warm Up, a Move, and a Cool Down card, then complete the moves. Follow up with a drink of water to hydrate your body! BEND OVER AS IF DRINKING FROM A WATER FOUNTAIN.
   
   
5. It's time to make a plan to recharge our energy while in space. PRETEND YOU ARE SLEEPING. Getting enough sleep—9 to12 hours every night—sets up our brains to store all our fantastic space memories! Another way to recharge is to relax—without a screen. So let’s practice a relaxing breathing exercise. TAKE A DEEP BREATH IN THROUGH YOUR NOSE AS IF YOU ARE SMELLING FLOWERS, THEN EXHALE THROUGH YOUR MOUTH AS IF BLOWING UP A BALLOON. Repeat 4 times.

Congratulations, astronauts! You are ready for your journey. You have made great recharge, mood, food, and move choices for the brainpower you need in outer space.

• Your nutritious food and drink choices fuel your body and brain.
• When you move, it lights up the connections in your brain!
• When your mood is motivated, your brain is more creative and ready to solve problems.
• When you recharge with 9 to 12 hours of sleep, your brain is hard at work storing memories.

The number one thing you need to know is that healthy choices give your body and brain power!

Today, we will practice making healthy choices to power our bodies and brains—both on Earth and in space!

1. Separate learners into 4 groups for station activities. Rotate after 3 to 4 minutes at each station.
   
   
2. Present an overview of stations. Ask volunteers to demonstrate each activity station. Station activities:

• Recharge Station: Reinforce that children need 9 to12 hours of sleep by challenging learners to toss between 9 and 12 beanbags into a bucket. Learners work in pairs, taking turns to toss beanbags.
• Mood Station: Present a Hula-Hoop challenge to reinforce that a motivated mood is great for creativity and problem-solving. Teams of 3 to 4 stand in a circle and raise their arms, index fingers extended. Place a Hula-Hoop so it rests on the tip of their fingers. Keeping their fingers straight, the team should work together to lower the hoop to the ground without letting it drop. Once the hoop touches the ground, the team should lift it back up together. Repeat.
• Food Station: Partners select a food card then move (teacher-selected locomotor move) across the play area and place it into an “Eat More” (green) bucket or an “Eat Less” (red) bucket.
• Move Station: Learner’s choice! Move around the perimeter of the play area. Walk, jog, run, skip, hop, gallop, or leap. Move forward or backward!

1. Partner learners.
   
   
2. Select a fitFlow card and complete poses.
   
   
3. While stretching, ask learner pairs to discuss the activity. 
   
   Q: Today, I was a health helper who helped you with fit activities that power your body and your brain. Can you name some other health helpers that can help you with healthy choices?
   A: Teachers, food-service workers, school staff, caregivers, or trusted adults.
   
   Q: We know that healthy choices strengthen our bodies, but how do they also strengthen our brains?
   A: Recharge helps your brain store information. A motivated mood helps problem-solving. Nutritious food choices fuel your brain. And, you move to light up brain pathways.
   
   Q: Ask learners to give examples of people whom they would go to for help with a health-related decision.
   A: Trusted adults and professionals who can serve as a health helper. (i.e., family, teachers, PE teacher, counselor, school nurse, food service helpers, etc.).
   
   
   

Name a recharge, mood, food, or move choice. How will it power your brain?