New
New
Year 1

Playing games to make our heartbeat and breathing faster (warming up)

I can warm up before exercising and know why this is important.

New
New
Year 1

Playing games to make our heartbeat and breathing faster (warming up)

I can warm up before exercising and know why this is important.

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.

These resources were created for remote use during the pandemic and are not designed for classroom teaching.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Move: warming up gradually increases our breathing rate and heartbeat.
  2. Think: warming up prepares the body for exercising and helps to prevent injury.
  3. Feel: consistently trying our hardest shows courage, which helps us to improve.
  4. Connect: listening to others when they answer questions shows gratitude and helps us to understand.

Keywords

  • Warm up - prepares the body and mind for movement and exercise

  • Heartbeat - the regular movement or sound that our heart makes as it sends blood around our body

  • Breathing - the process of moving air into and out of the lungs to bring in oxygen

Common misconception

Warming up is only needed for outdoor lessons and in the cold weather.

Warming up is a gentle and gradual way of getting the body and mind ready for exercise. Our bodies might not be ready for sudden, energetic movements even in warm weather or when we are indoors.


To help you plan your year 1 physical education lesson on: Playing games to make our heartbeat and breathing faster (warming up), download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Mindful breathing in the cool down is a good way to introduce calming breathing activities which can also be useful in other curriculum lessons and times when pupils need to manage their emotions.
Teacher tip

Equipment

30+ cones, 20+ hoops, 20+ beanbags

Content guidance

  • Risk assessment required - physical activity

Supervision

Adult supervision required

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Prior knowledge starter quiz

Download quiz pdf

4 Questions

Q1.
Which of these activities is a good way to get your mind and body ready for exercise?
Correct answer: warming up
running a marathon
cooling down
Q2.
Which of these types of movements is best to slowly increase your heartbeat?
reading a book
Correct answer: gentle jogging
sprinting non-stop
Q3.
How would you expect your breathing to change during a warm up?
slow down
stay the same
Correct answer: get faster
Q4.
Which of these qualities will help you most when you are trying something new?
bossiness
sadness
Correct answer: courage

Assessment exit quiz

Download quiz pdf

4 Questions

Q1.
What should we always do before starting vigorous games and exercise?
Correct answer: warm up
wear a coat
sprint our fastest
Q2.
Why is a warm up good for our muscles?
makes them bigger
makes them tired
Correct answer: helps avoid injury
Q3.
What is the best way to increase our breathing and heartbeat?
Correct answer: gradually
quickly
suddenly
Q4.
How often should we warm up before exercise?
sometimes
most times
Correct answer: always