Since the fall, I have been playing baseball twice a week with a class that is a mix of CP/CE1 students, or the youngest students in the primary school. I recently started playing with another class of older students, CE2/CM1,  as well! Not only does it get us moving, but it also is a fun way to learn English outside of the classroom!

We started with the basics, both vocabulary and activity-wise: run, throw, catch, and hit. I only speak English with the class, so for them to learn the vocabulary, I acted out the actions. They guessed what I was doing in French, and after a few repetitions of the vocabulary, we moved outside.

For the first few weeks, the kids played a game similar to Red Light, Green Light- one student would call out « run, » « walk, » or « stop, » and the other students would have to do that action.  They also practiced tossing a ball back and forth and hitting with a partner or small group.

Soon, we started playing a basic version of the game, but as the weeks went on, we added more and more elements. Soon, the students learned new vocabulary, such as bat, ball, base, and team.  We set up bases in the courtyard, had the students count off, and then divided them into two teams. Each team gets a chance to hit and to catch, and at the end, we see who won!

Baseball is also a good way to learn numbers/count! Each student is assigned a number so that he or she gets a chance to play in the different positions. We also count how many runs each team had to see which team is the winner.

The students tend to be really enthusiastic, even in the cold, and I am so proud of them for how much they have learned!