Hi everyone,
When I think about all of the "Best Parts" for this week I wonder how it all fit in just one week!
.....Monday morning my very first class was arriving as the announcements were being finished. As they were listening they heard that their class had won the Big Shoe Award. They were so happy they called out YAY!! The Big Shoe Award is given to the class that has 100% of students wearing sneakers for PE the most. This class has been struggling to get to 100% and it was so nice to see that they were happy about their progress!
.....Fitness Frankie to Go came back right on time on Monday morning and had his first adventures after Spring Break. I have two Fitness Frankie to Go packs that go home on Fridays for a weekend adventure with students. This idea came about after the original Fitness Frankie became so popular that students asked to take him home! This week Fitness Frankie in both packs had scooter riding adventures!
.....It was finally warm this week after a VERY long winter. One of my first grade students had shorts on during PE and commented on it as I was walking by. He said: "I'm wearing gym shorts! It's a perfect day to wear gym shorts!" He was so excited that his outfit matched his specials schedule!
.....I am in my 32nd year of teaching and all of those years have been in the same school. I still absolutely love my job and feel privileged to have been in a school long enough to see students grow up. One of my former students came back this week to meet with me regarding his Eagle Scout project. He wants to give back to the PE program at North Park by creating a project to benefit the health and wellness of our students. I am overwhelmed at his generosity and sense of community and am so excited to work with him on this project!
.....I have some wonderful opportunities to meet other PE professionals as a result of conferences, my website, Twitter, articles I have written, and through friends and colleagues. This week I was happy to have two young professionals from a neighboring district come and visit my program. The energy between teachers who always want to learn and improve is infectious! We had a great time talking about different ideas and lessons and I was proud (and a little nervous to be honest) to have them observe a few of my classes. Of course, I used my disclaimer line: "Every day is not a presentation". While they laughed at the line, I wanted them to know that the reality of teaching is that it is sometimes hard and rarely perfect. They agreed and appreciated the successful but "real world" lesson that they observed. My students had a great time showing our visitors what North Park PE is all about and I hope to reciprocate and visit them soon!
.....While a kindergarten student was working on his striking skill with a lollipop paddle and a small foam filled ball he said: "Never give up!' I asked him what happens when you keep practicing and he told me that you get better. Of course he is right and I am so glad that he knows that at such a young age!
.....My students in the upper grades worked on the PACER fitness challenge this week. Most were very excited and some were a little worried about doing their best. I encouraged students to do their best and asked those who were counting laps to be very quiet so that the runners could hear the beeps. I asked students to save their compliments until the end and they were terrific! When it was time to switch groups the high fives and compliments made my heart smile.......
.....We have a group of students who come to school early and are cared for by an outside agency. This group uses the gymnasium on most mornings so that students can be active. I am happy to see the students beginning the day with activity! Most of the time I am setting up for the day around the activity and very often the students help me with the set up. At the end of the week I had some push-up tester pads out on the sidelines ready for the day. I left to do some work and when I came back both students and their care takers were using the push-up testers to practice their push-ups! It was great to see adults and students exercising together!
.....The week ended with Family Fitness Night on Friday night. Students and their families came to school to participate in physical activity and learn about healthy choices together. It is an annual event that I started a few years ago with a grant from Fuel Up to Play 60. Anything that is worth doing is, of course, worth doing well and so this event takes a considerable amount of work to plan, set-up, and run. I have been planning it for a few months and was excited for the evening to begin. I had so much help! My colleagues, principal, former student teacher, and parent volunteers all came together to make the evening successful. Families bowled together, played a physical activity based board came called Let's Move in School by Skillastics, practiced golf putting challenges, used heart rate monitors and stethoscopes, learned about healthy food with a My Plate Bingo game, and were treated to a healthy snack of sweet potato chips and/or granola that was made by a parent who is a chef at the Culinary Institute of America. As a result of my membership in, and the generosity of, the Southeastern Zone of NYS AHPERD, I was able to send students and families home with a variety of materials advocating for quality Health and Physical Education. It was so great to see families enjoying the activities together. I had some terrific conversations with parents, former students, colleagues, current students, and even a few future students! I am truly fortunate to be able to create and promote this kind of event and have the support of so many. When I got home, I looked at my pedometer......26,177 steps for the day! My sister was visiting for the weekend and asked how I could possibly get that many steps in one day! It took me quite a while to explain!
I hope you enjoyed the "Best Parts of My Week!" To find out more about the PE program at North Park, visit my website: North Park Physical Education
