BOOK 5: TIRE, PARACHUTE ACTIVITIES
This book is divided into 2 Parts: PART 1--TIRE ACTIVITIES; and PART 2--PARACHUTE ACTIVITIES. The book consists of 36 pages and all the activities are sequenced according to difficulty.
PART 1 introduces the student to TIRE ACTIVITIES that consists of bicycle tires which are among the most versatile, inexpensive, indestructible and easily obtained teacher tools available for use in the physical education program. They are safe, easy to handle and their shape makes them convenient for storage. Bicycle tires, being lightweight, are more practical than automobile tires thereby allowing for a greater variety of uses. The tires can be painted in a variety of colors and when used with colored bean bags, children can toss the red bean bag into a red tire, blue bean bag into a blue tire, etc. Matching objects that are the same color develops visual perception in your children and reinforces the same skills that are used in a reading readiness program. By using color labels, children can match the word to the appropriate colored tire, thereby helping to build and strengthen the bridge between cognition and language. (Note that, of course, if necessary, due to your particular circumstances, plastic hoops could be substituted for the rubber bicycle tires. However, within this series of 5 books, plastic hoops are already used in their own activities in Book 2. Varying the use of different equipment items keeps the children interested and engaged. Using new equipment items will keep the children from getting bored with the same old items and signal brand new motor development activities and more fun!)
PART 2 introduces the student to PARACHUTE ACTIVITIES that utilize the parachute which represents an exciting catalyst for movement in the physical education program. Movement means life. It means freedom, pleasure, communication and sensuous enjoyment. Inflating the canopy requires teamwork and cooperation. A child learns first hand the meaning of total involvement and so moving through space he gains an understanding of his physical relationship to the real world. The games and exercises develop and strengthen arm and shoulder muscle development and at the same time strengthens wrist and finger muscles. There are wide variations in interests and abilities within a given group, however, all students, regardless of skill and strength, can participate successfully and non-competively in parachute activities.
Jack Capon was known nationally and internationally for his practical application of Movement Education to the classroom environment. By means of his numerous workshops that he conducted throughout the world, Jack Capon has shown how teachers and others interested in Movement Education can start their own successful programs.
Jack Capon was active in Movement Education from the early 1960's right on up to the mid 1990's when, by an ironic twist of fate, he was forced into early retirement by the onslaught of a rare neurological disorder called Striatonigral Degeneration. In the early stages this disorder mimics the symptoms of Parkinson's disease but later on as it kills off more and more brain cells it forces its host into paraplegic-like conditions. And finally, after several years of deteriorating health, Jack passed away in the summer of 1999 soon after the publication of the newest edition of his Perceptual-Motor Lesson Plans, Level-2 book. But Jack's legacy lives on and thanks to Jack's many workshops over the years and to the continuing great success of his programs, many people have been trained in the Jack Capon method and are quite skilled in advising any of those who are interested in starting, restarting, or continuing his Movement Education programs. People who have been trained in the Jack Capon method and who are willing to offer their advice and assistance are available from the publisher, Front Row Experience. Also available from the publisher, are training videos for teachers and instructors that show Jack's program in action for themselves!
Jack Capon was not only a great Movement Educator, but a great human being as well, as witnessed by his 25 years of volunteering to direct the Special Olympics Program for his local town of Alameda, California. Although Jack is no longer here with his energy and enthusiasm for Movement Education, his Perceptual-Motor Development Programs lives on and continues to provide valuable help in developing the movement coordination skills necessary for the healthy development of children everywhere.
Jack Capon, by means of his numerous workshops that he conducted throughout the world, has shown how teachers and others interested in Movement Education can start their own successful programs. It's been told that the original founder of the nationwide and now worldwide chain of Gymboree fitness centers for kids got her inspiration and many of her ideas from observing Jack Capon's programs in action and in attending many of his early workshops. The fact that you can start a business using Jack Capon-like activities for kids is further testament to the obvious that his programs do work and give a valuable boost to the development of any child in the early childhood years.
Jack Capon was active in Movement Education from the early 1960's right on up to the mid 1990's when, by an ironic twist of fate, he was forced into early retirement by the onslaught of a rare neurological disorder called Striatonigral Degeneration. And finally after several years of deteriorating health, Jack passed away in the summer of 1999.
Jack Capon has authored numerous Movement Education books over the years. He has been a consultant to several films and videos on Movement Education and he has produced many record/cassette/CD albums on musical Movement Education activities. Jack Capon, who spent nearly his entire professional career as the Coordinator For Physical Education in the Alameda City School District, Alameda, California, has been appointed to many positions and given many awards and honors over the years recognizing his great achievements in Movement Education and his unselfish volunteer work in his community. From 1968 to 72 he served on the Perceptual-Motor Task Force of the American Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD). He was elected National Chairman of the Elementary Physical Education section of AAHPERD in 1972. The California Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (CAHPERD) presented him with their State Honor Award in 1978. Around that time AAHPERD presented him with the City and County Director's Honor Award. In 1982 the California Association of School Administrators (ACSA) selected him as the "outstanding Administrator of the Year." He served as the volunteer Director of the Special Olympics Program for 25 years for the town of Alameda, California where he lived and worked. The local Channel 4 TV station in his area honored him in 1992 with it's annual "For Those Who Care" award. The City of Alameda, California, gave him the Citizen of the Year Award in 1993. San Jose State University's College of Applied Arts and Science, San Jose, California, gave him its Distinguished Alumni Award in 1995. Jack Capon was not only a great Movement Educator, but a great human being as well. Although Jack is no longer here with his energy and enthusiasm for Movement Education, his Perceptual-Motor Development Programs live on and continue to provide valuable help in developing the movement coordination skills necessary for the healthy development of children everywhere.
