The purpose behind these curling warm-ups is to maximize participation within facility constraints; be interesting and motivational; quick to organize; and blends components of fitness.  The students heart rate and body temperature will gradually increase getting them ready for activity.

1. Tag

Equipment:

• 12 pylons

• Students will number themselves 1 to 3 and then gather into their specific group number.
• Group one will move to a grid, group two will move to a grid, and so on....
• There will be three separate grids of 10 students each.
• Students must stay within grid during play.

• One student will begin the game by being designated as "it."
• This student will run within the grid and try to tag another student, if this occurs, that student then joins the initial "tagger" to play against the others.
• Students will be able to become neutral (not allowed to be tagged), if they assume a curling delivery stance. This will help stretch the legs and groin.
• Those who use the neutral option can only for up to 5 seconds, then they must continue to run and elude the taggers.
• In the stance, students must remain balanced and stable, because if they fall over or use a hand for balance then its fair game, the tagger can proceed to tag that student.
• Once there is one student left untouched, they become the winner.
• Restart with a different initial tagger.

Teaching Cues:

• Ease into curling delivery stance, to avoid muscle strain.
• Use of push off from stance to quickly elude tagger.
• In the stance, stay low and be wide to aid stability.
• When entering the stance, use a staggered stance and transfer weight gradually to lead foot.

Equipment:

• 1 bean bag between two people
• wide open gym area

• number off into either one's or two's
• all pairs need a wide open space in the gym
• pairs stand 5 meters apart with ankles together, toes pointing outwards

• to throw the bean bag into your partners feet using the correct curling delivery (stance, back swing, and forward glide)

• Stance: staggered stance, weight is evenly distributed on right and left feet
• Backswing: hand that holds rock is extended out straight, weight transfer onto hack foot, slide foot moves back
• forward slide: eyes looking straight ahead, weight shifted to slide leg, hack leg extends

2) throw the bean bag with your eyes closed
 

Equipment:

• 15 bean bags
• open space

• students pair up and number themselves 1 and 2 (1's get bean bag and 2's find open space).

• to toss the bean bag to one another when the teacher yells "toss."
• students must catch the bean bag with two hands, lower onto one knee, and then proceed to toss the bean bag underarm.
• as the students initiate the toss from one knee, they will have to push off with back leg and lunge forward, resembling the curling delivery.
• after a few successful completion's, the students may choose to increase distance between them.

• gradually lower the body onto knee, there is no time limit.
• push off with your back leg to produce enough distance for toss.
• utilize a wind-up for underarm toss.
• lunge forward to complete force production, and recognize weight transfer from push off foot to lunging foot.

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4. Bowling to a Target

Equipment:

• 15 pylons
• 15 bean bags, 15 tennis balls

• students pair off and number themselves 1 and 2 (1's get pylon and find space and 2's get one bean and one tennis ball).
• students throw towards a wall, therefore they begin near center of gym.

• one student begins with a bean bag and throws it towards the pylon which has been set up approximately 10 feet away.
• alternate student throws.
• if the bean bag has been thrown within one foot of target (both students), then the pylon is moved further away to 20 feet and so on.
• once they have reached 30 feet successfully with the bean bag, then they can use the tennis ball.
• the roll and weight difference between the tennis ball and bean bag will make the students adjust their force generation.

Teaching Cues:

Curling Delivery:  slide foot moves back, weight transfer to hack foot, forward slide, weight transfers to slide leg, hack leg extends, eyes are always forward.

Equipment:

• 30 hockey sticks or broom handles
• 32 pylons
• 56 total objects (plastic hockey pucks, bean bags, tennis balls)

• twelve teams of two and two teams of three
• seven ten x ten grid squares
• two players for each five by five half of grid square
• four pucks per grid, two pucks, bean bags or tennis balls on either side

• using a sweeping motion and the butt end of the hockey stick try and get all four pucks on to your opponents side without hitting them out of the grid.
• if all four pucks are in your opponent's part of the grid you score a point
• a round lasts two minutes then teams rotate in a clockwise direction

Teaching cues:

• sweeping motion must be controlled to keep the puck in play
• knees should be slightly bent and your back should be straight to avoid injury
• aim away from your opponents in order to gain time, and a chance at another shot

Equipment:

• 15 bean bags
• large gym space

• Moving in clockwise direction around the outside of the gym
• Find a partner, number yourselves as number one or two

Part 1:

• move around the gym doing lateral movements on both sides beside your partner
• whenever the teacher claps, students get into the curling stance
• when the teacher claps again the students returns to the previous movement
• running backward, skipping, and hopping can be added in for variety

• each pair gets one bean bag
• moving in clockwise direction, students move laterally passing the bean bag back and forth
• students start off one step apart
• once they have successfully completed 10 passes, they move to 2 steps apart
• if the bean bag falls to the ground, each student has to get into the curling stance and then continue with game

• Side to side movements rather than crossing over
• pushing off with your right foot if you want to go to your left and pushing off with your left foot if you want to right
• hands out in front of you, ready to catch bean bag

Equipment:

• 30 hockey sticks
• 8 bean bags

• six lines of five students
• students spaced at about two feet apart
• the students will go back and forth across the gym twice

• to move your entire team across the gym and back
• each team will start with one bean bag at the back of the line
• in order to move you must sweep the bean bag forward to the person in front of you
• once you finish your sweep you run to the front of the line and stop two feet in front of the first person
• the first team back in round one will start 5 seconds behind everyone in round two

Teaching Cues:

• slightly bent knees
• butt end of stick on center of bean bag during sweep
• the sweep should be a light and controlled push
• your teammate ahead of you should not have to turn around to accept the bean bag

8. Curling Dog (Modified British Bulldog)

Equipment:

• full basketball court
• 10 pylons to mark end safety zones

• two students start in the center of the court
• 28 other students start in safety zone

• students in the center yell "Curl"
• the others must then run across the gym without getting tagged
• if their tagged they become part of the center team
• in order not to get tagged when out of safe zones students my duck into the curling delivery stance
• the game is over when all but five students are in the middle
• a progression of lateral movement may be added in half way through the warm-up

• run to open space
• when going into safety position bend knee and take weight onto front left foot (right handed thrower)
• be careful running into safety zones, watch out for others

Equipment:

• 6 hockey sticks
• yellow cones or orange pylons

• in groups of 6 (30 students in class)
• race from line to line and back, then tag the next student
• one hockey stick per group
• 10 pylons set up  for each group

• To practice the basic motion of sweeping while having fun

• Lateral Movements:  keep weight on inside foot (closest to rock), push off with outside foot, knees bent
• Knee Tagging: in pairs facing each other, move to the line and back while tagging opposite knees (this movement represents the arm motion of sweeping)
• Sweeping Around Pylons:  sweeping in and out of pylons with the butt end of a hockey stick

10. Curl Ship

Equipment:

• 8 pylons
• 4 safety zone signs (thrower, sweeper one, sweeper two, skip)

• two students start in the middle (rocks)
• rest of students start in throwers safety zone

• half way through teacher calls out a safety zone and students must run to that area without being tagged
• if tagged a student becomes part of the rock team
• in order to avoid a tag a student may crouch into a curl delivery position
• a progression to lateral movement may be made half way through warm-up

• same as "Curling Dog"

Equipment:

• deck of cards
• stereo
• 10 hockey sticks

Organization:

• place cards face down in the middle of gym
• set five stations up around the gym
• each student selects a card,
• the number indicates the amount of task
• Aces, Hearts, Spades, Clubs, Diamonds indicates the station:

Ace-forward lunges
Heart-lateral movements from cone to cone
Spades-curling delivery
Clubs-curling stance
Diamonds-sweeping with hockey sticks around cones

Objectives:

• review curling skills (sweeping, stance, delivery: backswing and forward slide)

Teaching Cues:

• Lateral Movements:  keep weight on inside foot, knees bent, fluent sweeping motion with elbows bent at 90 degrees
• Curling Delivery:  slide foot moves back, weight transfer to hack foot, forward slide, weight transfers to slide leg, hack leg extends, eyes are always forward
• Curling Stance:  feet staggered, weight distribution is equally distributed between right and left feet.

12. Knee tag & Curling stretching

Equipment:

• none

• class will stand off the ice (on the carpeted area along the sheet of ice).
• number class into five groups.

• jog on the spot.
• lateral movements from one side of the building to the other (in groups of five).
• knee tag with a partner, try to tag partner's opposite knee to get the feeling for the proper sweeping movements.
• lunges (from one side to the other, in same groups of five).
• jog on spot, high knees (everyone).

• Lateral movements: keep weight on inside foot, knees bent, fluent tagging motion with elbows bent at 90 degrees and arm motion at 60 degrees.
• Lunges: think about curling positioning.  Eyes straight ahead, hack leg extended, throwing arm extended forward, weight shifts from hack leg to slide leg.

13. Getting the Feel for the Ice

Equipment:

• curling shoes (slide and grip) or clean indoor running shoes and a plastic slide that slips onto the running shoe.

• 8 students on each ice
• students will number themselves 1 to 8
• students will leave 10 seconds apart so they don’t run into each other
• students wait for everyone to get to the end before starting the next one

• lateral movements down the ice (four times).
• sweep slide down the ice (four times), switch sides each time.
• 5 deliveries, no rock on the ice.

•  Lateral movements: keep weight on inside foot, knees bent, fluid sweeping motion with elbows bent at 90 degrees and broom at 60 degrees.
• Curling Delivery:  slide foot moves back, weight transfer to hack foot, forward slide, weight transfers to slide leg, hack leg extends, eyes are always forward.

14. Curling to a Target

Equipment:

• slide and grip shoes
• broom
• 12 rocks placed for targets
• 30 playing rocks (one for everyone)

• separate students into six groups of five students (six sheets of ice).
• place rocks down the ice at five, ten, and fifteen meters.
• each group gets one rock to shoot with while three students sweep and the other uses a criteria sheet or task card to advise the thrower about proper technique.
• each group member gets one delivery each and then start from top

• to work on placement of the rock
• to progress to hitting the farthest target rock with consistent accuracy.
• in order to move up, you must be within 1 meter of the target rock (two times).
• you want everyone in your group to get as far as they can (aiming for third rock).

• Curling Delivery:  slide foot moves back, weight transfer to hack foot, forward slide, weight transfers to slide leg, hack leg extends, eyes are always forward.

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