Stick exercises
In physical education at schools the stick is primarily used to develop and improve co-ordination skills and the posture (an iron stick is now rarely used, even when training athletes).
The sticks are usually made of painted hardwood; they are 100-110 centimeters long, with a diameter of 3 to 4 centimeters. The stick can be used both in girls’ and boys’ gymnastics,
Preferably one practice each student should get a stick during practice. The preparation, allocation and stowage of sticks is carried out similarly to the ball. When allocating sticks, we apply the method of giving 2, 3 or 4 sticks to the pupils at the wings of rows of 2, 3 or 4 students, who pass the sticks to fellows next to them.
While moving around, pupils can carry sticks in two ways:
- in their right hand, under/overhands, holding the stick at the two thirds of its length, close to their body;
- in their right palm, leaning it on the shoulder.
The stick exercises are carried out in the formations mentioned and used for the ball exercises.
It may be necessary, especially in the exercises, in which the stick is held at one end, to position the children at an angle of 45 ° to one another (half to the left and half to the right) to make sure they are not going to hit each other.
When teaching stick exercises first we practice holding a stick horizontally, then vertically, and then diagonally. It is important that during the practice swinging and lifting up the stick precede rotating movements.
Naturally, when teaching stick exercises, we can apply only such postures and movements which have been mastered by children during free practices. It is worth to note that stick exercises facilitate the acquisition of precise arm positions. Using stick exercises, in almost all cases we also perform posture correction.
After individually performed stick exercises, we can carry out exercises in pairs and groups, using a stick for pulling, pushing and in competitive practices. We should make sure to call the children's attention on the correct use of the stick, to prevent accidents.
Returning the sticks to their storage area should follow the distribution procedure. (Table 15)