Mini-Moves

Physical activity among youth is linked to better physical, mental, and social health as well as better learning outcomes. Physical movement powers a culture of learning, health and happiness in Indiana schools and communities. That's why the 500 Festival and INSHAPE have partnered to launch Mini-Moves, a free program for Indiana teachers at any grade level, designed to inspire physical movement and instill lifelong healthy habits in Hoosier youth. Mini-Moves is more than classroom activities and lesson ideas, it’s the foundation of a fundamental change for our state, led by Hoosier kids and educators

Mini-Moves is produced by the 500 Festival, an Indiana nonprofit responsible for one of the nation’s largest half marathons – the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon, in partnership with INSHAPE, a professional association for educators engaged in the promotion of quality health, physical education, recreation and sport in all Indiana schools. Both organizations are committed to leveraging the value of Indiana being the home of the Indy 500 and the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon to further a culture of running, walking and movement in grades K - 12.

Mini-Moves in Action!

"I incorporated smaller Mini-Moves activities during my class time. Mini-Moves was easy to incorporate to my weekly lesson plans. I picked one topic from each pillar and took 1-3 minutes to discuss the mini-moves lesson of the week. I used small warm down times throughout the activity time to discuss these topics and have students relate them to their own personal lives." - 2018/2019 Mini-Moves Teacher

“For the month of March, our warm up warm up for class was Mini-Moves. Each day we highlighted one of the Mini-Moves pillars of health. Students came into the gym and walked, jogged or ran laps. Each time they went by the table, they grabbed a playing card. Once I stopped the activity, they counted their cards, and wrote them down on the calendar for their iPad. When they reached 20 laps, they could write their name on the 1-mile club board. They did this for each mile after that. I had discussed with them that the goal I had for the class was to have everyone reach a 5K. When they reached the 5K mark, I gave them a Mini-Moves bracelet that I received as part of our classroom materials. At the of the month we totaled all the miles for the class. We announced how many miles they all completed as students in PE and how many laps that would be at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.”

“I see my kids 1 time per week, so we spent 4 weeks talking about the Mini-Moves pillars of health. We would have a short discussion about the focus of the week and then have a game that corresponded to the topic. We talked about the Physical Health pillar the week before spring break and did some activities that they could incorporate at home. This provided them with activities they could do over spring break to get their 60 minutes of activity every day.”