Creating Developmentally Appropriate Activities

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A group of school-age children in your program have started to show great interest in street skateboarding. Many of them watched the recent X-Games skateboarding finals and have been discussing their favorite moves. Use the chart below to brainstorm some potential activities you could offer based on this interest. For each idea, consider the materials you would need, where in your program you could offer this activity idea, and what learning goals the activity would foster. As you brainstorm ideas, consider how you would make the experiences culturally relevant. Share your responses with a trainer, coach, or adminstrator.

Activity Ideas	Materials Needed	Where Offered	Learning Goals
Researching skateboarding, e.g., the history of skateboard, famous skateboarders, names of moves, famous tournaments, important safety gear.	Books, magazines and list of helpful and approved websites. Make sure that resources offer information about male and female skateboarders of various abilities and from different countries and cultures, and that reading materials reflect a variety of reading levels. Offer notepads and pencils for taking notes, writing down questions, and have notecards for writing down key names, moves, and related vocabulary that can be added to the “word wall” in the writing area.	Set up a special area in library, creating inviting displays of new resources; can also use the computer lab or tablets. Discuss idea at group time and gather initial questions group might have to help focus research.	Practice reading and writing nonfiction, practice researching.
Tracking favorite skateboard moves in the program or ranking the most difficult moves; comparing famous skateboarders; working with children and youth to create poster boards.	Poster boards, pictures of skateboarders or different skateboard moves, pencils, markers, rulers, sticky notes for children to vote or for children to record the special tricks each skateboarder can do, or awards different skateboarders have won.	Table for small-group activity, share in larger group time, leave on table for voting, explain how voting can happen or how children can add to the comparison chart.	Planning, geometry (in crafting chart), math in counting and comparting, social studies in voting.
Discuss safety gear for skateboarding.	Skateboard, safety gear (e.g., helmet and knee and elbow pads), local community person from a health-care organization or skateboard group to discuss, have gear to fit different-size children.	Large area for group to sit indoors or out–gym or shaded outdoor area.	Personal health and safety, language.
The physics in skateboarding; watching, practicing and discussing.	Skateboard, safety gear (e.g., helmet and knee and elbow pads), local community person from a health-care organization or skateboard group to discuss, have gear to fit different-size children.	Large area for group to sit indoors or out–gym or shaded outdoor area.	Personal health and safety, language.
Creating own mini-skateboards (for toy figures) and mini-skateboard park out of recycled materials.	Materials that could be used to make mini-skateboards and skate park, for example, little pieces of wood, beads or wheels, nails, hammers, screws, cardboard boxes, plastic bottles, tape, scissors, glue, paint, markers, pictures of local or famous skate parks and skateboards, toy people.	Woodworking, to create mini-skateboards, art and or construction area.	Fine motor control, creativity, mathematics and geometry applying research.
Write to famous skateboarders.	Stationery, computers, envelopes, stamps, example letter format, pencils and pens, correction fluid, addresses of skateboarders (include return envelope), list of ideas to write about generated from previous activities, possible photos for previous activities to include in letters, markers for younger children to draw pictures.	Table for small-group activity, introduce in group, do as small-group activity, and help younger children pair with older children as needed.	Literacy, creativity, social-studies writing to others.