Interval Timer App Makes Stations A Breeze
This post is about an app for iPhones and iPads. If you have an Android device, I'm sure there are similar apps out there. If you find any let me know and I'll add it here. If not, just re-think some life decisions (I'm not sponsored by Apple... yet... Let's make this happen).
If you're anything like me, you use a ton of stations. In my small "Gym", I use stations for just about everything. I also like to add the "Minute to Win it" Rule to many games.
The iOS Interval Timer app, which I call The Dinger makes all of this incredibly easy. For my warm up, I sometimes have students go through a Fitness Circuit. I have a routine I set up called "30s PE Warm up" that plays a DING every 30 seconds for each of my 7 stations. When it's finished, I get a BUZZER that ends the activity.
In my "Minute to Win it" games, I use The Dinger to indicate when the round is over and sometimes I'll use a second sound so the kids know when the next round begins.
The Dinger is also great for dealing with lines. I use Spooner Boards and Balance Boards during warm ups and other activities. When the dinger sounds, it's the next person's turn.
It's easy to set up. Just set how long you want your intervals to be then pick a sound effect and you're ready to go. See below for tips on setting up Dingers
There's a free and a paid version. The free version has ads and is perfect for regular use. I ended up buying the paid version because I've had times where I need two different dingers going at once. It's best to have your phone/tablet connected to a speaker. Bluetooth setup is great and the sound effects are loud enough to be heard over music (which should be blasted at full volume at all times, but thats a topic for another post).
Set up tips:
SETS: How many cycles do you need? For my warm up, this number is 7. For some games, I put over 100 so that The Dinger doesn't stop until I stop it.
HIGH INTENSITY: How long do you want each interval to be? For my 30 second warm up, each station is 30 seconds, so I set the HIGH INTENSITY to 30s.
LOW INTENSITY: How long do you want it to be until your second sound? For my
*Keep in mind that the sound will play at the beginning of that set and that set needs to be long enough for the sound to play (at least 4 seconds). In my warm up example, I put no sound on the HIGH INTENSITY and a BOXING BELL on the LOW INTENSITY.
Take it to the next level
Take the guess work out of how long you should make each station last. With the iOS 12 app "Shortcuts," I created a way to get that math done quickly with the push of a button. Learn more here.
Recommended Reading
Station Duration - Make an iOS Shortcut that tells you how long to make each interval for stations. Set it up by telling it when your classes end. Use it by saying how many stations you want. Then wait for the magic.
Own Your Alarms - Ever sit in a day of PD (or day off work) and all your alarms keep going off? Make an iOS Shortcut that disables all work alarms then reminds you later to turn them back on (bonus: there's another shortcut for enabling them with the push of a button).
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