Home›Lesson Plans›PE & Health›Physical Education · Grade 5

Warm Up & Cool Down

Fifth graders learn why to warm up before activity and cool down after — preparing muscles, staying hydrated, and stretching to help the body recover and prevent injury.

Grade 5Safety40 minutes1 class periodSHAPE / Skills-BasedExplicit teaching4 StandardsSHAPE
Start the Lesson
Assign or share this lesson
Share to Google Classroom Share to Microsoft Teams

Copy link works with Canvas, Schoology, Moodle and any other LMS — paste it in as a resource or assignment.

Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Explain a warm-up.
  • ✓Explain a cool-down.
  • ✓Order the steps.
  • ✓Prevent injury.
Essential Question

Athletes never just jump straight into a game — they warm up first and cool down after! Why does that matter, and what’s the order?

0
Lesson Phases
0
Vocabulary Terms
0
Standards Aligned
0
Interactive Task
Put in Order · Interactive

Order the Warm-Up to Cool-Down Steps

Project this and have students put the steps of a safe workout in order — from warming up to stretching.

🤸 Put the workout steps in order!Try it
Tap the first step!
The Lesson · Health & PE Flow (Warm-Up · Learn · Practice · Apply · Cool-Down)

40 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Warm-Up — Never Just Jump In

5 min

Athletes warm up first and cool down after — why does it matter?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show a cold vs. warm start.
  • Ask why warm up.
  • Get ready.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Consider.
  • Reflect.
  • Get ready.
2

Learn — Warm Up & Cool Down

10 min

Students learn.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Explain warming up.
  • Explain cooling down.
  • Note hydration.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Learn warm-up.
  • Learn cool-down.
  • Note it.
3

Practice — Order the Steps

11 min

Students practice.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to Order the Steps.
  • Order them.
  • Try a warm-up.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Order them.
  • Warm up.
  • Explain.
4

Apply — Apply

9 min

Students apply.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Lead a mini warm-up.
  • Cool down after activity.
  • Explain the benefit.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Lead it.
  • Cool down.
  • Explain.
5

Cool-Down — Cool-Down

5 min

Students close.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name the first step.
  • Say why cool down.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Name it.
  • Say why.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to SHAPE America National Health Education & Physical Education Standards.

SHAPE
PE.3

Use warm-up and cool-down for fitness.

SHAPE
PE.4

Practice safe personal behaviors.

SHAPE
HE.7

Practice injury-prevention behaviors.

SHAPE
HE.1

Comprehend concepts of activity safety.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Step picture cards.
  • Sentence frame: “First ___, then ___.”
  • Demonstrate a warm-up.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with warm up and activity.
  • Order two at a time.
  • Do one stretch.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Design a warm-up routine.
  • Explain dynamic vs. static stretch.
  • Lead a cool-down.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Projector / board
  • 🤸Open space
  • 💻Order the Warm-Up to Cool-Down Steps
  • 💧Water bottles
  • ✏️Pens
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

warm-uplight movement to get readycool-downeasing down after activitystretchto lengthen muscles gentlyhydrateto drink watermusclea body part that moves youinjuryharm to the bodyrecoverto return to normalpreventto stop before it happens
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
What is a good FIRST step before exercising?
Warm up — do light movement and stretches to get ready.
QUESTION 2
Why do you cool down after activity?
To help your body slow down and your muscles recover.
QUESTION 3
Why should you stay hydrated during activity?
To keep your body working well and avoid getting overheated.

Cool-Down: warm up right.

Have students design a short warm-up they could do before playing a sport. A printable warm-up sheet is in the PE & Health library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Warm Up & Cool DownFlip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
0

Nice work!

Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Warm Up & Cool DownQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
0%

Nice work!

Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Warm Up & Cool DownPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: cool-down, hydrate, injury, muscle, prevent, recover, stretch, warm-up
  1. to stop before it happens
  2. a body part that moves you
  3. light movement to get ready
  4. to lengthen muscles gently
  5. easing down after activity
  6. harm to the body
  7. to drink water
  8. to return to normal

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What is a good FIRST step before exercising?
  2. Why do you cool down after activity?
  3. Why should you stay hydrated during activity?
Answer key — Part A: 1) prevent · 2) muscle · 3) warm-up · 4) stretch · 5) cool-down · 6) injury · 7) hydrate · 8) recover
Part B: 1) Warm up — do light movement and stretches to get ready. 2) To help your body slow down and your muscles recover. 3) To keep your body working well and avoid getting overheated.