Mini Tournament Fun

Lesson Overview

• Unit Title: Play Fair, Play Together
• Lesson Number: 14 of 15
• Lesson Title: Organising a Mini-Tournament
• Year Level: Foundation
• Duration: 60 minutes
• Class Size: 6 students
• Australian Curriculum Learning Area: Health and Physical Education
• Strand: Movement and Physical Activity
• Sub-Strands:
  • Moving our body (ACPMP008)
  • Understanding movement (ACPMP009)
  • Learning through movement (ACPMP011)

Purpose:
This lesson allows Foundation students to apply key concepts learned throughout the "Play Fair, Play Together" unit. Students will co-operatively plan and participate in a mini-tournament, promoting fairness, rule-following, and collaborative play.

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Learning Intentions

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

• Work as part of a team to help organise and participate in a basic mini-tournament
• Apply their understanding of simple game rules
• Demonstrate fair play, turn-taking and encouragement of others
• Reflect on how it feels to win, lose and try their best

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Success Criteria

Students can:

• Explain and follow simple game rules during activities
• Take turns and encourage peers
• Organise simple tournaments with teacher support
• Celebrate effort and fairness, not just winning

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Resources & Equipment

• Cones and markers
• Beanbags or soft balls
• Hula hoops
• Soft foam bats or paddles (if used)
• Whiteboard and markers
• Visual schedule cards (for neurodiverse inclusivity)
• Award ribbons/certificates (optional)
• Timer or stopwatch
• Music and speaker for transitions

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Learning Sequence (60 minutes)

⏱️ 10 mins – Warm-Up: Team Tag

Activity: "Coloured Corners"

• Place one cone of each colour (red, blue, green, yellow) in four separate corners of the play space.
• When the teacher calls out a colour, students jog or hop to that corner.
• Integrate fairness by taking turns letting students call out the next colour. Use this to model leadership in a fun, low-pressure way.
  Focus: Movement variety, listening, following instructions, teamwork.

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⏱️ 10 mins – Revisiting Fair Play

Discussion (Interactive Circle Time):

• Ask: "What does 'playing fair' look like?" Use prompt cards or emojis.
• Model a few scenarios for students to identify as fair/unfair (e.g., "Someone keeps the ball to themselves—Is that fair?").
• Introduce badges like "Fairness Friend", "Sharing Star", "Good Sport" — to be awarded later.

Key Messages:

• Take turns
• Encourage others
• Follow the rules
• Trying your best is more important than winning

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⏱️ 15 mins – Tournament Planning Together

Set-Up:

• Class splits into two teams of three.
• Students help plan two simple game stations (see ideas below). Allow a choice to promote engagement.
• Emphasise collaboration: students decide team names, assign who sets up cones, who keeps time (with adult assistance)

Mini-Tournament Game Station Examples:

1. Hoops & Beanbags Relay – Toss beanbags into hoops (team relay).
2. Cone Dash – Run to collect cones one at a time and build a 'tower'.
3. Ball Roll Race – Roll a ball from A to B between cones using hands or bat.

• Each station runs for 5 minutes per team. Swap roles.

Teacher Roles:

• Guide planning, help distribute roles
• Remind students of fair play roles (e.g., scorekeeper, encourager)

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⏱️ 20 mins – Mini-Tournament Time!

Format: Round Robin (each team plays at all stations)

• Use a timer and switching music
• Teach how to rotate between stations fairly
• Encourage cheering and clapping for good effort

Emphasis:

• Reflection questions between switches:
  • "Who helped someone just now?"
  • "How did you show fair play?"
• Award tokens for positive behaviours (e.g., stickers or points)

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⏱️ 5 mins – Awards & Reflections

Circle Time Reflection

• What was your favourite part?
• How did it feel to work as a team?
• What would you do differently next time?
• Hand out "Fair Play" ribbons or stickers for effort, kindness, or resilience

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Adjustments & Differentiation

• Neurodivergent learners: Use visual cues (schedule boards, role choice cards), simplify rules, allow planning breaks
• ESL students: Pair with buddies, use gestures and picture support
• Students with physical limitations: Adapt games to be inclusive (e.g., underarm rolls instead of running)

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Assessment Strategies

Formative Observations

• Note students demonstrating skills aligned to success criteria
• Anecdotal reflections (keep brief sticky note records) during team-play

Student Self-Assessment

• Happy/sad face cards to show how they felt during the game
• Sentence stem cards: “Today I was _______ when I _______”

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Links to Australian Curriculum

Content Descriptor	Description
ACPMP008	Practise fundamental movement skills and movement sequences using different body parts
ACPMP009	Participate in games with and without equipment; follow rules and procedures
ACPMP011	Cooperate with others when participating in physical activities

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Extension Ideas

• Invite another Foundation class next week for the final lesson to act as guest competitors
• Create a team chant next week to use in Lesson 15 (Celebration Carnival)
• Let students vote on favourite station to revisit later

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Teacher Reflection Prompts

• How well did students organise and respect roles?
• Who showed emerging leadership or fairness?
• Were the stations age-appropriate?
• What surprised me in terms of collaboration?

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Notes

• Next Lesson (15): Celebration Carnival – A fully student-led game day showcasing collaboration, teamwork and unity!

Let this mini-tournament be a joyful rehearsal of all the values students have practiced over the term, shining a spotlight on kindness, inclusion and play-based learning.