Week 19

This was a very long week with the Science Fair, Chinese New Years, and having school for five days! Can I just say it is nice having a 4 day week here at Cascade Heights!

We continued our pickle ball unit this week. The students are getting better with controlling the ball with their paddle, hitting the ball over the net, understanding the rules, showing great strategy, and having fun!

K-2

The students practiced hitting "dinks" which are soft hits that go right over the net.  It took some reminders, but by the end of the week they were all able to serve the ball over the net, get into ready position, and hit the ball with an underhand hit. We need to remember to not throw the ball up before hitting it, this makes it more difficult to have a controlled serve.

Things you can do/ask your child(ren) this weekend:

• Practice your serves at a tennis court.

• Practice your underhand hits.

• Is wind a factor when playing pickle ball?

 

3-4

We started learning some of the rules to the game of pickle ball. Many of the students were doing a great job with their serve. They understand that the serve must be an underhand serve below the waist. We started the unit off with a choice of using a pickle ball or a tennis ball. Many of the students chose a tennis ball because it bounced easier. By the end of the unit, they could only use a pickle ball. Many of them noticed right away the difference in the two balls. 

Some things you can do/ask your child(ren) this weekend:

• What are the differences in a pickle ball and a tennis ball?

• Practice your serves at a tennis court.

• What are some other hits in the game of pickle ball?

5-8

This week we finished our pickle ball unit! The students should know all the rules, most popular hits, ready stance, parts of the pickle ball court, and strategies they can use when playing.

Next week is our 5th annual pickle ball tournament. Each middle school student is required to pick a partner from another class and complete in the single elimination tournament. The tournament is held at lunch recess each day for three weeks. Students who are absent, in lunch detention, or have other responsibilities will miss their game and their partner will have to play on their own. The students really enjoy this tournament and it helps them practice their tournament etiquette!

Things you can ask/do with your child(ren) this weekend:

• Play a game of pickle ball (tennis courts are great)!

• Talk about strategies they can use in the tournament.

• Watch some pickle ball games online.

Have a great weekend and remember to keep moving!!!!