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Looking for a Halloween fitness activity your students will ask for every October? Pumpkin Patch Fitness turns your teaching space into a pumpkin patch. Students run out, flip over a pumpkin, and do the exercise on the back. They have so much fun hunting through the patch that they hardly notice how hard they’re working.
 
How It Works
Spread the pumpkin cards face down in the middle of your space, and put small groups behind cones around the outside. On your signal, the first student in each line runs (or skips, gallops, or slides) to the patch, flips a pumpkin, and does the exercise. Then they hurry back and tag the next teammate. Keep it going for 5 or 10 minutes, and play some Halloween music to bring it to life.
 
What’s Included
28 pumpkin exercise task cards, each with a different exercise, the number of reps or seconds, and a colorful picture of a student doing the move
Quarter-page version (4 cards per sheet) and full-page version, so you can choose what works best for your setting
A one-page Activity Plan with the object of the activity, setup, equipment, step-by-step directions, modifications, and a diagram
Introduction and setup tips
Print-ready PDFs plus JPG files of every page (43 pages)
 
The 28 Exercises
Jumping Jacks, Tuck Jumps, Squat Jumps, Burpees, Half Turn Jumps, Butterfly, Straddle Stretches, Quad Stretches, Dance, Hamstring Stretches, March in Place, Lunges, Curl-ups, Crab Push-ups, Sit & Reach, Push-ups, Raise the Roof, Mountain Climbers, Trunk Raise, Wall Sit, Plank Hold, V-Sit Balance, 1 Foot Balance, Scissor Steps, Balance Bridge, Arm Rotations, Leg Kicks, and Runner’s Stretches.
 
What Students Practice
Muscular strength and endurance: push-ups, curl-ups, planks, and wall sits
Flexibility: stretches for the hamstrings, quads, and whole body
Power and cardio: jumps, burpees, and mountain climbers
Balance: V-sits, 1 foot balances, and balance bridges
Locomotor skills: moving to and from the patch
 
How to Use It
Use the cards as a warm-up, a full-lesson fitness activity, fitness stations, or a classroom brain break during the weeks before Halloween. The activity works for groups of 20 to 60 or more. For larger classes, print 2 or 3 sets. With smaller groups, skip the lines and let students move freely from pumpkin to pumpkin. Laminate the cards and you can use them year after year.
 
Designed for grades K–5 and aligned with SHAPE America National Standards 1, 2, and 4.
 
Created by Cap’n Pete, a physical educator with more than 30 years of teaching experience.