Winterball Program
Overview
- Winterball is a program delivered by Baseball PEI and all other Provincial Baseball Associations in Canada. Originally created by Baseball Ontario and Baseball Canada, it has the support of Sport Canada, Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Toronto Blue Jays in promoting and delivering this program to schools across the country.
- The primary focus of Winterball is to introduce to children the fundamentals of baseball in a fun manner that is non-competitive and that provides a positive learning experience for all involved.
- Designed for students in grades K-6 - but can be used by all ages - Winterball progresses through activities set out in nine different lesson plans. Lessons are taught in three sets (Grades K-2, 3-4 and 5-6) to ensure students learn at an appropriate skill and ability level.
- Winterball is designed to comply easily within the SCOs of the Department of Education and Lifelong Learning on Prince Edward Island.
Goals and Objectives of the Winterball Program
- To promote an active and healthy lifestyle to children while encouraging them to participate in sport.
- Help increase participation in baseball locally, provincially and nationally by introducing the sport in a fun and exciting program.
- To teach the fundamentals of baseball while promoting a safe and non-competitive environment that provides children with a fun sport experience that is inclusive of everyone, regardless of gender or physical ability.
- To give students the opportunity of working in a teamwork setting, teaching them the importance of working together to achieve a common goal.
- To develop a program that helps students realize individual progress on a continual basis.
Winterball Expectations
- All students following the teacher's lesson plans detailed in the Winterball program will exhibit proficiency in movement skills while gaining social skills by working and getting along with others.
- At the completion of each grade level (K-6), students will demonstrate profiency in several basic skills. Students will also use the principles of movement to acquire skills through body awareness, space awareness, effort and relationship.
- Children will also display social skills to cooperate with and respect others while demonstrating fair play, activity etiquette and group interaction.
- During the Winterball program, children will also benefit through the practice of daily participation, fitness activity and personal and group safety.
Equipment in a Winterball Kit
- Heavy Duty Tee
- Four Foam Bats
- One Throwdown Base Set
- Four Foam Blastballs (Softball Size)
- Four Indoor Baseballs
- Four Safety Foam Baseballs
- Twelve Baseball Size Whiffle Balls
- Twelve Softball Size Whiffle Balls
- Thirty-six Soft Gym Balls
- One Saucer Cone
- One Equipment Bag
Winterball Manual (PDF)
Each Winterball kit contains a Winterball manual. A Winterball manual includes hard copies of all items below:
- Lesson Plans for Kindergarten to Grade 6
- Teachers Support Material
- Worksheets
Teachers Support Material
Throwing
*Receiving
*Fielding Ground Balls
*Fielding Fly Balls
*Hitting
*Baserunning
*The Strike Zone
Fair Play Code for Coaches
Fair Play Code for Athletes
Fair Play Code for Parents/Guardians
Worksheets
The manual contains four "Baseball Worksheets' (two pages each) for Winterball students. The worksheets teach some of baseball's fundamental rules and concepts through fun and interesting exercises in reading comprehension, vocabulary, and math. Please review the worksheets before copying and handling them out to students, as they may only apply to certain ages/grades.
DVD
Each Winterball Kit contains one DVD.
"This is Baseball', Major League Baseball's introductory video to the game of baseball, is including in your Winterball Equipment Pack. The twenty-two (22) minute video explains the basics of baseball through footage and highlights of real Major League games and showcases all components of the world's premier baseball league.
Sign Up to Play Ball!
When Winterball is over, there are plenty of opportunities for students to continue to develop their skills by playing baseball in your area. All students, boy or girl, beginner or expert, young or old, can sign up with their local minor baseball association.
