Sunday, May 17, 2015

The Best Parts of My Week - 5/11/15--5/15/15

Hi everyone,
     As we begin to travel down "Kindness Way" as our Healthy Highway road, our principal challenged us all to perform random acts of kindness.  I saw many of those acts of kindness this week and it was inspiring!

.....We began our gymnastics unit this week and it is always so exciting!  While it is a tremendous amount of work to set up the equipment, it is worth it when students appreciate the opportunity!  So many students arrived at the gymnasium doors with excitement and energy that was hard to contain!  One student asked me if it took a long time to set up.  I responded that it did indeed take a great deal of time to set up.  She nodded in acknowledgement as well as appreciation.  By the way, this was a first grader!

.....During our gymnastics unit, students take off their shoes and participate in socks.  We are so fortunate to have a full gymnastics floor and enough mats to cover most of the gym floor so students have plenty of safe space to use.  As a result, students must untie and tie shoes in a timely manner so that no activity time is lost.  While most students can do this efficiently, there are many younger students who need help.  I was pleased to see kindness in action as students jumped at the opportunity to help others tie their shoes.

.....Many of the adults in the building are equally impressed at the gymnastics equipment we are fortunate to have.  A teacher who brought her students to PE stopped in to look at the set up and told me that in their classroom they had had a discussion about "noteworthy" people and events.  I smiled when she told me that many students mentioned PE because they were grateful for all of the opportunities!

.....Operation Healthy North Park is in full swing and I noticed a random act of kindness when an adult donated her "Coop Car" slips to other classroom totals!

.....As some students were dropping of their "Coop Cars" for Operation Healthy North Park this week they had Physical Eddie in tow.  They were proud to drop off their Coop Cars for exercise and I was happy to see Physical Eddie as well.  I told them that I missed him and asked if I could give Physical Eddie a hug.  They readily gave him to me and smiled when I gave him a big hug and sent him on his way back to his first grade adventure!

.....Our school concert was held this week and students perform in the building as a rehearsal.  Students are always so excited and eager to perform for siblings, teachers, cousins, and guests.  I am always so proud of their efforts and impressed with their talent.  The orchestra, concert band, and choruses all performed and they did not disappoint!  I had a class immediately after the concert and many of the students had been in the performing groups.  I told them how much I enjoyed it and that I knew what it took to perform because I had played the flute and sang in my elementary chorus when I was growing up.  When I told them how proud I was of their performance they all smiled and thanked me.  It was a heartwarming moment for sure!

.....One of the students in the chorus was not feeling well and at the end of the concert several friends escorted her to the nurse's office.  As students arrived to PE class they mentioned that this student was with the nurse and that they had taken care of her......another act of kindness.....they were truly concerned........

.....As students begin our gymnastics unit they learn about the importance of landing on their feet safely.  I told my students this week that their knees are like the shock absorbers on a car and that these "shock absorbers" help you make a smooth landing.  One student made a connection and said that his baseball coach told him that his elbows are like shock absorbers when catching a baseball!  Great connection!

.....While Operation Healthy North Park was started as a school-wide activity it has grown into a community-wide activity.  This week I received more than 100 "Coop Cars" from our high school Crew team!  Many of the names on the "Coop Cars" were from former students!  I also received "Coop Cars" from our Superintendent of Schools, our Assistant Superintendent, and many employees from our district office!  I am so fortunate to have the support of so many!

.....During a warm-up this week a student told me that she was so proud of her ability to do more push-ups.  As a result of our Fitness Challenge she had been practicing her push-ups at home and can now do more than before!

.....I wear a Fit Bit pedometer and regularly share my step counts with my students so that they can see that adults exercise too.  This week a fifth grade student showed me his new pedometer.  He was so proud of his step counts and was excited to see how many he achieved each day!

.....A first grade student told me this week that he was playing golf at a local golf course (not mini golf either......) with his friends after school that day.......He is so mature that I have a hard time remembering that he is actually in first grade!

I hope you enjoyed the "Best Parts of My Week" and the updated look of this blog!  To find out more about the PE program at North Park, visit my website:  North Park Physical Education.