The Best Parts of My Week....1/31-2/4

Hi everyone,

Would you believe another week of multiple snow days????? It has been an exceptional winter here in the Northeast but Punxsutawney Phil predicts an early spring so..........

I hope you enjoy the best parts of my week! (I certainly did!)

.....While we are coming to the end of our gymnastics unit the enthusiasm from our students is still in full force! When I watched the students enjoying the activities of rolling, balancing, jumping, and hanging (I use the Kidnastics approach to gymnastics), I thought about the benefits of these activities. Our school is so fortunate to be able to provide this kind of wonderful activity for our students!

.....My students continue to impress me with their compassion and their willingness to help each other. Every week, there are students that instinctively reach out to help by tying shoes or demonstrating activities, or genuinely encouraging classmates with words of kindness and support!

.....Fitness Frankie attended PE this week with the students who are taking care of him for the week. They were so excited! I asked what they had done with him so far and in addition to feeding him healthy snacks, they read him a story! Fitness Frankie's popularity continues to grow! Read his blog at The Adventures of Fitness Frankie!

.....During our gymnastic unit, we stretch at the end of class using a technique that I call "Share Count Stretching". It is so much fun! The students and I choose a stretch to complete and we "share" the counting. I count "1" and the students count "2" - I count "3" and the students count "4" and so on. I vary the count by changing my voice and the students follow and change their voices too! I count in Spanish sometimes and they follow in Spanish too! I recently taught them how to count in French and some of my students who attend Karate class taught us how to count in Korean. They were so proud of themselves! I was too! This is always a great opportunity for me to create an interdisciplinary activity that is fun and accomplishes multiple goals!

I hope you enjoyed the "Best Parts of My Week!"

Visit the North Park PE website to learn more about our program!

E-mail me with comments or questions at: northparkpe@yahoo.com