Petanque is a classical French boule-sport game played by throwing hollow metal balls as close as possible to a small wooden ball while standing together with their feet in one spot. In this unit, students will gain object control skills when acquiring different principles and practices of how to play petanque, create cognitive quantity in understanding the cultural setting of the game in France, and encourage a sense of accuracy and strategy.
Objectives
Motor: Students will be able to perform an underhand throw a pétanque ball towards the target ball with proper form in ¾ trials during a pétanque game when verbally prompted by the instructor.
Cognitive: Students will understand the cultural value of pétanque in France and to learn the popularity of it being a social and competitive game during the reflection portion of class with a classmate when verbally prompted by the instructor.
Affective: Students will have a sense of accuracy and strategy through the game, realizing the very importance of controlled throws by working together with their teammates in a petangque game.
Skill Focus: Object control with metal boules, cultural awareness, accuracy.
Equipment
Metal boules and target ball (cochonnet)
Bocce Ball(Alternative)
Activity Description
Background information about petanque, explaining its cultural importance to France, how it is prevalent as a pastime.
Display simple throwing techniques(Underhand throw-eyes on targer, throwing arm moves back, footstep forward, follow through) which include the grip, basic stance(Shoulder width), and control over boule composed of metal.
Precise throws destined toward a target area for the students during a drill session.
Group the students into pairs or small teams(4) and stage petanque matches for them to get an opportunity to implement skills learnt.
Students will throw target ball first then take turns throwing the boules ball as close as possible to the target ball, whoever has the closest ball to the target wins the round.
Assemble the students for a discussion on their experiences during the drill and match play with special attention paid to the importance of object control in petanque.
Wrap up the session with a reflection to share how being involved in petanque had helped them improve on their object control skills and as well as creating understanding of cultural and social sports.
Modification
Challenge: Differentiate the throwing distances or encourage strategic plays rather than play by hit-and-miss during the matches.
Simplified: Emphasize shorter distances and fundamental throwing skills, offering extra assistance to students who might not be familiar with petanque.
