As Thanksgiving approaches I am reminded of a quote I heard recently at a
NYS AHPERD conference:
"It is not happy people that are grateful but grateful people that are happy....."
I am grateful for so much in my life. This blog is my attempt to share that gratitude and my happiness......
.....All of my students continue to work hard to learn how to cooperate, play fair, and play safe. I am using the essential questions of "How do my actions affect others?" and "How does my behavior contribute to the success of the group?" I am so impressed at the growth I am seeing during this unit. I spend more time on this unit than on some others because I think it is so important to teach students these values.
.....One of the cooperative activities that students in K-2 participated in this week was Scooter Spaceships. This is an idea from PE Central that I have adapted to meet the needs of my students and the equipment that I have. One of my additions is that I place large cones with earth balls and asteroid balls on top. I was asking students to name some planets that they were going to see as they explored in outer space. Would you believe that kindergarten and first grade students came up with Saturn, Pluto, Uranus, Jupiter, Mars, and Venus? I was floored when a kindergarten student said Saturn! These are smart students for sure!
.....Our PE Password this past week was Quadriceps. Students were learning that Quadriceps are important and powerful muscles in their legs. I asked students where they might have heard the word "quad" before. I expected that student answers would include a comparison to an ATV or 4 wheeler. My intent was to teach them that "quad" means 4 and that there are four parts to the Quadriceps muscle. While I did get that answer, I also heard the following answers: Quadruple, Quadrangle, and Quadrilateral! WOW! Now this is what we call Interdisciplinary PE!
.....Another one of my favorite cooperative activities is Environmental Helpers - also from PE Central. The idea is that students share a scooter sitting back to back and then move about the gymnasium picking up "garbage" (bean bags, balls, etc.) to put in the garbage can. Students have to take turns being the "driver" and the "collector". Students love this activity and it was so great to see such sharing and caring! They knew exactly what to do with the garbage and some even suggested recycling!
.....I had the opportunity to spend some time chatting with a student who was waiting to be picked up after school. This student was helpful in cleaning up some equipment while we waited for her family. The next day she told me that she had so much fun helping while we waited!
.....My fifth grade students were playing a game that involved rubber pigs and garbage bags called "Pigs in a Blanket". This is a Project Adventure game that I learned many years ago. I noticed that one of the students started to put a pig back in the box and choose another one. He stopped and then brought the pig over to me to tell me that it had accidentally torn open while they were playing with it. I was proud of his honesty. He could have just put it away but he chose to be honest and take responsibility. I thanked him for his honesty and told him that I was proud of his choice!
.....As I was getting ready to leave for a conference my substitute told me a story about how what we are teaching in PE is transferring to the classroom. A student in fourth grade was working on a writing piece while this substitute teacher was in the classroom. The task was to decide if pizza was healthy or not and then make a case either way. This particular student was organizing his thoughts on paper using a teacher designed chart. He wrote that vegetables were a "green light" food and if they were on the pizza then it could be healthy! He learned this from our Healthy Highway program. How great is that?
.....At the end of the week I had the honor and privilege of presenting and participating in two conferences in two different states. On Thursday I presented at the CTAHPERD conference in Connecticut, and on Friday and Saturday I presented and was a part of the NYS AHPERD conference in New York. Conferences are always so energizing and revitalizing! I met and interacted with truly amazing professionals, some of whom I had never met, and others who have become my friends. It was an honor to share some of the lessons that we do at North Park as well as learn and get inspired by these fantastic PE professionals! We celebrated some amazing Teachers and Professionals of the Year on Friday night and on Saturday we did not want the conference to end...... I can't wait to get back to school to try out some of the new ideas that I learned! You are never too old or too experienced to learn and try something new. I hope I never forget that!
I hope you enjoyed the "Best Parts of My Week"! Visit my website: North Park Physical Education to find out more about our Physical Education program.
