A Hypothetical High Jump Curriculum for Elementary School Children based on Educational Contents and Optimum Use of Time

Abstract

In this paper a curriculum for the high jump for elementary school children is proposed based on our previous findings related to the developmental process for running and jumping, the optimum time for learning the running high jump (scissors jump), possibilities for learning the Fosbury Flop, and so on. First and second grade students should be able to do a one-leg jump, skip, etc. (various jumps), and they should also be able to jump down from a high place and land safely. Third grade students should learn the rubber jump with a run-up and one foot take-off. Fourth grade students should learn the 'scissors jump' with a short run-up and focus on the ability to clear the bar. The next stage for students is to discover how to clear the bar from an appropriate take-off position. Fifth grade students should do the 'scissors jump' with a short run-up. Following this, the 'scissors jump' should be studied from the skill of clearing the bar to the skill of taking off. In the latter half of the unit there is a shift to learning the Fosbury Flop. For sixth grade students the HJS index is 90 points. Junior high school students are expected to be able to complete the Fosbury Flop (HJS index: 100 points).