VERB. It's What You Do—Student Handouts — English

Student Handout: English (PDF - 318K)

VERB. Why you do it. 

It’s about playing. It’s about helping. It’s about having fun. VERB. It’s about action. It’s what you do. There are VERBs all around you just waiting for you to get into them. Here’s why you should get active . . .

It’s about Fun! 

• You’ll have a good time. 
• You can forget about tests, homework and everything else for a while! 
• There’s no right or wrong—you make the rules. The possibilities are endless! 

It’s about Friends! 

• You can get moving with your friends, family or the neighbors next door. 
• You’ll find people who like to do the same things for fun that you do.
• Show someone what you like to do, and they can show you a thing or two that they like! 

It’s about Discovery! 

• You might discover that you’re awesome at passing a soccer ball, or can dance in front of a crowd or can roller blade to the park without falling. 
• If you try new things all the time, you’ll find out a lot about yourself . . . even skills you never knew you had. 
• You can find something that you love to do!

It’s about Expression! 

• What you do to get active expresses who you are—your interests, qualities and abilities. 
• Show others what you are made of! 

So, get energized, get moving and show everyone what you love to do!

---

What's your VERB?

Want to know how to find your VERB? Keep these things in mind . . .

Go for a Goal!

Decide what you want to get from being active. Do you want to . . .

• try new things?
• find an activity that you’re good at?
• have more fun?
• spend more time with friends and family?
• meet new friends?
• express your interests?

Get Going! 

Figure out how you’re going to spring into action. What activities will you try? With whom will you do them? When will you do them? Where will you do them?

Track It! 

Keep track of what you do and how often you do it. What activities do you like best? Why? Are you being active at least 5 days a week for at least one hour a day?

Mix it Up! 

Keep things fresh. Try something that you’ve never done before and see if you have fun with it. Try something new at least once a week.

Be Proud of Yourself!

Congratulate yourself because you had the courage to try something different. Be proud that you encouraged others. And be proud that you’ve found your VERB or VERBs.

What’s in a VERB? 

Get moving with these ideas . . . 

• Dance fast with your family or friends.
• Join a youth group or team.
• Jump rope with your family or friends. 
• Play basketball with a group.
• Volunteer to help clean up your neighborhood park. 
• March in your school band. 
• Roller blade to the park after dinner while your parents take a walk. 
• Take the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator. 
• Walk to the store or to the park with your family. 

---

VERB. Where you do it.

Now that you’ve thought about which VERBs you like to do, find out where you can do them in your community. There’s action all around you, you just have to find it. Look up local team sports, volunteer organizations, religious groups, after-school programs and other cool groups in your neighborhood. Give the scoop on those places below, including where you got the information. Be sure to include community events like a walk or run, or even a martial arts class. List them here:

---

---

---

---

Don’t forget—you don’t have to plan ahead to get moving and have fun! Try out these ideas. 

• Grab a soccer ball and some friends and play a game of soccer. 
• Grab a basketball and head out to a neighborhood court to shoot some hoops with a group of friends. 
• Get a piece of rope and make your own jump rope to play outside or at home. 
• Get together with some friends and dance to your favorite music and try out new moves. 

Remember to have an adult with you when playing outside. They can play with you, cheer you on and supervise your play to make sure everything’s safe.

---

VERB. It’s what I do.

Ways I like to get moving

---

---

---

---

Cool, new activities I've tried recently

---

---

---

---

Activities I'd like to try

---

---

---

---

Five active things I've done this week

1. 
    
2. 
    
3. 
    
4. 
    
5.  

©2003 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Created by Weekly Reader Corporation.