The Best Parts of My Week - 5/9/16--5/13/16

Hi everyone,

     It was a great week but someone starting counting down the number of days left in the school year.  We are in session until the end of June but we have a number of days off due to some days off for unused snow days.  The number of days left was 27 and I thought – “oh no….that is not nearly enough time to get done what needs to be done with all of the year end events coming up!”  It is the time of year that seems to fly by when I want it to slow down!

…...I was struck by the creativity that my students have when I saw a first grade student use a noodle sideways to accomplish a goal in a way that I had not thought of!

…..As I was encouraging students to exercise so that they could turn in “Coop Cars” for Operation Healthy North Park I had many students eager to share their weekend activities with me!

…..A first grade student was sharing a story with me about his younger brother and an adventure they were having together.  A vacuum cleaner that was in the gym reminded him of a snapdragon and the adventure they had had recently at home.  He said:  “he’s my sidekick!”  How great is that?

…..During an activity using a springboard during our gymnastics unit one second grader complemented a friend after he had taken his turn.  He said:  “You’re a natural!”  This pleased the friend of course and he began to say to others:  “hey!  I’m a natural!”

…..Our Fuel Up to Play 60 Student Ambassadors organized a Veggie Taste Test Day this week and during our meeting this week we organized all of the veggies that students would be trying.  Students had decided on kohlrabi, red cabbage, radishes, and cauliflower.  My colleague and I bought and cut up the vegetables and the students counted out servings and organized surveys, napkins, and bags of vegetables.  They were very excited about the event and since we had some time and some leftover veggies we asked students to try them out prior to the actual taste test.  The reactions were priceless!  Some students said:  “I loved everything!” and others were surprised by the taste of some of the vegetables.  They were very thoughtful in their taste testing!  I told them to keep their results a secret until their peers had a chance to try them too! 

…..During the Veggie Taste Test Day I happened to be visiting a class when the event was happening.  The students were so excited and could not wait to try the new veggies.  It was very encouraging to know that students were indeed open to trying new things.  This particular class has a guinea pig named Truffle and he was invited to the taste test too!  Students had surveys to fill out based on their like or dislike of a particular vegetable.  One student created a survey just for Truffle by drawing a table on her own survey.  She took care of the results.  Truffle liked the red cabbage, did not like the kohlrabi or the radishes, and was not sure about the cauliflower at first but warmed up to it later!  It was so cute to watch Truffle try everything and to watch his friend write down the results! 

…..We had a Healthy Highway assembly this week and we are now traveling down Leadership Lane.  It was a special assembly as we imparted the message of leadership and the concept of being the ‘first follower” of good leadership.  We reintroduced our lions – Courageous Cassie and Courageous Carlos.  Students are earning Courage Cards by showing the courage to do the right thing and Cassie and Carlos are now sitting on the main office counter to see who is earning the Courage Cards! 

…..My week was extended a bit as I attended the 51^st Annual SEZ of NYS AHPERD Elementary/Middle School Awards Ceremony.  As the president of the SEZ it was my job to make some opening and closing remarks, and to congratulate each honoree as they received their award for outstanding participation and leadership in Physical Education class.  What an honor it was to meet over 400 honorees and their families and congratulate them on their achievement!  It was a special privilege this year as my first year as president since I was able to congratulate several of my own students who were honored as well!  It is a truly amazing group of young people who have much to offer and are terrific role models for their peers.  It was a proud moment for their families for sure and I could not help but smile back as I greeted each one and saw the pride and happiness on the students faces as well! 

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.  

Follow me on Twitter!  @mrobPE

The Best Parts of My Week - 5/2/16--5/6/16

 Hi everyone,

     It was Teacher Appreciation Week and there were so many reasons t o feel appreciated! 

…..Monday began with a lovely breakfast provided by our PTA.  One of the many nice things about this breakfast was that there were many healthy options to choose from!   We have worked hard to teach our students about the value of healthy foods and it has been nice to see the changes reflected in what we choose to eat as adults too!

…..We started gymnastics this week and we are so very lucky to have a beautiful gymnastics set up to use for our unit.  No matter how many times I begin this unit, I am still surprised at how excited students get!  They could not wait to take off their shoes and get started!

…..It was a VERY rainy week here in the Northeast so our outdoor plans for our Project ACES event on Tuesday had to be changed.  Our plan was to have our Student Ambassadors for Fuel Up to Play 60 be the “bus drivers of the day” and have them lead bus groups of buddy classes to different “bus stops” to do different exercises.  It would have worked better outside for sure but we made it work inside despite some wrinkles in the plan.  I asked one of our ambassadors at the end of the day what she thought of the event.  She said:  “It was tough” then she paused (which made me nervous) and smiled wide and continued with “but it was SO MUCH FUN!”  It was a relief to hear that she enjoyed it!  Fitness Frankie helped too!

…..I have been using the idea of a Tabata (interval type exercises) as a warm-up with my students.  This week I used noodles and taught students a noodle tabata that I learned on Twitter and modified for our classes.  It was super fun!  Students really liked the music and the warm-up!  One primary student said:  “This is like going to the gym!”  Another remarked: “This is a workout!”  Still another said:  “I Iove this music!”  I smiled and thought…..that’s the idea!

…..A teacher stopped by my office to tell me that her students were choosing to eat apples for snack instead of the unhealthy foods that some had brought in to school.  Apparently there are some leftover apples from breakfast that come her way each day.  She shares them with the students who need a snack.  Some students began to ask her if they could have one too and put away their unhealthy snack.  How great is that!  I was so happy she shared!

…..Wednesday our PTA put on a delicious luncheon to continue the celebration of Teacher Appreciation Week.  While some parents were getting the luncheon ready I had a chance to chat with some of the moms who were volunteering.  One of the moms is my former student and we had a nice time reminiscing.  Our school will be celebrating 50 years next year and we were talking about the history of the school.  It turns out that I am one of the few, if only, teacher who has worked for all three principals of our school since it opened…..wow!   

……Physical Eddie spent some time in a second grade class recently and he learned all about the parts of plants.  Students and Physical Eddie also learned that different vegetables are actually parts of plants and part of the lesson involved trying some new vegetables like broccoli, which is the flower of a plant.  The class contributed to a journal entry in Physical Eddie’s journal and many said that they learned so much and now like vegetables that they had not tried before!  I had a chance to compliment the class and talk to them about the project.  I love it when Physical Eddie’s adventures (and the other bears too of course) involve cross-curricular experiences!

…..One of the best parts of my week unfortunately involves a tragedy that happened to one of my co-workers.  While I will not get into the details of the sad event, as a result of it I was able to witness the strength and resolve of those involved, and the outpouring of love and support from my work family to all those affected.  North Park is the absolute best!

…..Friday was “bring a flower to your teacher” day as a culminating event for Teacher Appreciation Week.  The idea is that students bring a bunch of flowers and hand out one or two to many different teachers that they appreciate.  I received so many beautiful flowers from my students and I feel loved and appreciated.  I am truly fortunate and the smile never left my face on Friday as flowers kept arriving! These beauties are just a few of them!  

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.  

Follow me on Twitter!  @mrobPE

The Best Parts of My Week: 4/25/16--4/29/16

Hi everyone,

     It was a short week due to two snow days!  Well, not actual snow days but unused snow days that our district gives back in the nicer weather!  School was closed on Monday and Tuesday and so we had a nice long weekend to relax and recharge!  The remaining three days of the week were packed with “Best Parts”!

…..The first day of the week was Wednesday and we had a special CPR/AED event planned for our fifth grade students during the afternoon.  I find myself saying “Another day, another event!” quite often and after finishing last week with Family Fitness Night and beginning this week with CPR/AED I was saying that same phrase again!  Due to the generous support of a local paramedic unit as well as the support of our building principal we were able to provide Hands Only CPR training as well as training in the use of an AED for our entire fifth grade class.  I was so proud of how seriously the students approached the event as well as how hard they worked to learn the skills.  Students shared their own experiences and one student remarked that she is a “mother’s helper” and is getting ready to be a babysitter.  She needed to learn CPR to take on these important responsibilities.  Another shared that she is a volunteer at a nursing home where her mother works and she is required to know CPR in order to volunteer.  Others told me about their Scouting experiences and how they need to learn CPR to earn badges.  What amazing group of young people I have the privilege to work with!

…..On Wednesday night I was part of an event sponsored by the Southeastern Zone of NYS AHPERD called the Meeting of the Minds, which is an event where professionals get together and share ideas in order to grow professionally.  A very enthusiastic PE professional started this event and I was privileged to be a part of it this year!  We had a great time sharing ideas and discussing programs and policies in our different districts.  I truly believe that we make our profession stronger by sharing and this was a wonderful opportunity to do just that!

…..My primary students are finishing up a unit on balancing and one of my second graders said to me last week:  “You know why I’m good at that?  I went to the park and practiced!”  I love it when students take skills that they are learning in school and find ways to practice them outside of school!

……As May approaches and we focus on celebrating National Physical Education and Sport Week as well as National Physical Fitness Month I was telling my students about the special project that we do called Operation Healthy North Park.  This is our fifteenth year doing this project and it is a way to encourage families and students to exercise outside of school.  Every time students and families exercise outside of school they can fill in a coupon of sorts and send it back to school.  Since we are a Healthy Highway school we use “Coop Cars” which are the theme car for HealthyHighway.  All cars are displayed on a bulletin board and I count them as the month goes on.  This week I was showing a second grade class the bulletin board and pointing out their class car and racecar bag for the “Coop Cars”.  One of my students said:  “I bet I’ll get a lot because I’m athletic!”  I hope so!  Stay tuned for updates!

…..At the end of the week my fifth grade students were taking a PE vocabulary test.  This test is an assessment of vocabulary words that students have been learning for some time and is a district requirement.  As I watched the students taking the test I was impressed at their perseverance (Our Healthy Highway road is Perseverance Path!).  They stuck with it and were quiet and respectful while others finished.  My heart was smiling with pride!

…..In my district we share gymnastic equipment so that we can have a significant amount of equipment to use for our gymnastic unit.  It is definitely a favorite unit and my students get so excited when they know that this unit is approaching.  Setting up the equipment is no small task.  I hate to admit it, but it was easier when I was younger!  We have the good fortune to have our varsity cheerleading team practice in my gymnasium and as a result the cheerleading practice floor is stored in my gymnasium as well.  We have a great relationship and when it comes time for gymnastics we use the practice floor for our unit.  On Friday afternoon, the team arrived to help me set up the floor.  It is such a great group of young men and women and they were only too happy to help!  Led by their coach, they set up the floor in no time flat!  Last year I tried to do it by myself, which did not go so well!  Earlier this year the coach reminded me to ask for help when it came time to set it up.  I did, and I am grateful! 

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.  

Follow me on Twitter!  @mrobPE

The Best Parts of My Week - 4/18/16--4/22/16

Hi everyone,

     It was such a fantastic week on so many levels!  In fact, this entry might be a bit longer than usual so I hope you have a few extra reading minutes……

…..As I watched my fifth grade students completed the PACER challenge this week I was struck by the maturity and improvement that students showed from just two years ago when they first learned to do the challenge.  They approached the PACER with a resolve to do their best and they demonstrated that they definitely know how to pace themselves!  If you have third graders do this challenge you know that it is sometimes hard to convince students to slow down and pace instead of racing.  As a result, their efforts paid off and they truly did their best!

…..One of my fifth graders told me that he practiced the PACER with his brother who is in third grade.  What a great big brother!

…..A second grader was having so much fun during a balance challenge that he told me he couldn’t keep his laughter in or he’d probably hurt something!

…..I take pictures often and I was letting a kindergarten student how well he was balancing by showing him a picture of himself on a balance board.  He smiled wide and said:  “Oh my goodness!”  He was so proud!

…..I use a “conflict corner” which is a technique I learned from Ben Landers - The PE Specialist - on Twitter (@thepespecialist).  My students use this strategy when they are having a problem during PE class.  Students go to the corner with another student and work out the problem using the steps outlined on the “Conflict Corner” card.  I was watching a few students who were in the “Conflict Corner” and it was so great to see them taking responsibility for their actions and working things out!

…..I watched a student achieve a goal this week and saw  the excitement on her face when she was able to complete a “double-under” jump rope trick!  She never gave up and showed perseverance!

…..When students are given the time and opportunity they can be incredibly creative.  Students were working on building a balance walk using large blocks and one of my first graders told me he was going to build a freight train.  He explained every part and then proudly walked across it!

…...Our gymnasium has undergone a transformation this year.  I am so grateful for the support and effort of my principal who spearheaded the campaign to renovate and improve the gymnasium.  While it has been planned for a few years, this year everything came together and this week it was finally finished.  In August our gymnasium was painted, in December the floor was refinished with newly painted lines that I designed, and this week all of the wall mats were replaced.  Each time a section of the project was finished we all "oohed" and "aahed" but this week it all came together.   Mere words cannot express how I feel but I am truly grateful for a beautiful teaching space.  The changes have not gone unnoticed by our students of course and one student remarked that the wall mats made everything come together and a kindergarten student decided that the gym is now “bluelicious”! (The wall mats are navy blue and a section of the wall paint is light blue…..)  While that may not be a real word, it is a very real description!

…..I love it when students provide me with a perspective or an idea that I have not thought of.  I was talking to a class about how I was going to have to come up with a different way to hang some pocket charts because of the new wall mats.  One of the students had a great suggestion and I am looking forward to using it!

…..Family Fitness Night was scheduled for Thursday and while this event takes much work to plan and the actual event passes by in the blink of an eye, it is worth every second!  We had wonderful parent volunteers, a delicious healthy snack made by a volunteer family, fantastic family participants, and so much fun!  The intent of this evening is to provide a variety of fun activities for students and families to exercise and play together.  There were so many families that were doing yoga, Go Noodle, racket activities, exercises, and playing a PE trivia game together that I just had to take a step back and watch.  I commented to one of the families about how great it was that they were really enjoying the evening together and they said that they were having a great time!  Fitness Frankie had a great time too!  I also set a one day record on my Fitbit that day - just over 36,000 steps! 

   

…..Friday was a Teacher Training Day and I had the opportunity to do some training in the morning and then provide a professional development session on Technology to some PE professionals in a nearby district.  I had such a great time meeting a group of K-12 PE professionals who were eager to learn something new!   They participated enthusiastically in the activities, had thoughtful questions, and listened intently to the presentation.  It was an absolute pleasure and fun too!  I always enjoy sharing ideas because I know that we can only make our profession stronger when we share!

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.  

Follow me on Twitter!  @mrobPE

The Best Parts of My Week - 4/4/16--4/11/16

Hi everyone,

     It was nice (although a bit hectic) to get back into the school routine this week after spending last week at the SHAPE Convention in Minneapolis.  The weather is beginning to warm and Spring is actually in the air!

…..Fitness Frankie came back after having two weeks of adventures!  He continues to have some amazing healthy adventures and this week his picture was taken with his second grade friend as they worked out in a home gym!

…..It is nice to be missed!  Students definitely noticed that I was back this week and I got quite a few hugs and smiles and even a few “yay’s!”

…..I was delivering PhysicalEddie to a classroom early in the week and I walked by a student who was on his way back to his classroom with breakfast in his hands.  I reminded him to be careful as he was carrying it precariously down the hall when he looked up at me.  He seemed very surprised (I thought it was because I was back in school.) and he said:  “Hey!  I know you from the gym!”

……NYS Math Testing was on the schedule this week and that always means that the master schedule changes to accommodate the testing schedule.  I have learned to be flexible over the years and just go with the flow.  This week the schedule changes meant that I would have a second grade class that I don’t usually have because they are taught by my co-worker who travels between buildings in the district.  While I see the students on a regular basis, I am not their PE teacher and I definitely miss them!  Now, of course they love their regular PE teacher, but when they arrived at the gym door and I told them that I would be their teacher for the day I saw many smiles and was greeted with lots of hugs!  That greeting made my heart smile! 

…..I began a unit on balance with my students in grades K-2 and on the first day I asked them to do a series of balance challenges using various body parts and differing numbers of body parts so that the balances would be progressively more difficult.  I preceded each challenge with a question asking students if they were ready for the next challenge.  I smiled and giggled a bit when my kindergarten students answered with “Easy Peasy!”  I love that expression!  Students were ready for the challenges!

…..After discussing the need for strength when balancing and then having students practice I noticed a kindergarten student checking to see if her muscles were stronger.  She immediately came over to me and said with a smile:  “Look at my muscles!”

.....One of the balance challenges included a mat balance beam, a bean bag turtle, a bean bag frog, and a playground ball.  Second graders were allowed to use the equipment to find a way to balance and walk across the beam.  One of my students came over to me after taking a turn and said:  “I didn’t think I could do it but I did!”  I gave her a high five and she left with a smile a mile wide!

…..Another balance challenge included using peacock feathers and balancing them on different body parts.  I always underestimate how popular this station is and how excited students get when using the feathers.  Of course, feathers are very fragile and excitement + fragile sometimes = broken feathers!  I learned from a National Circus Project artist recently about using the idea of the “feather hospital”, which is where feathers go when they break.  I was reminding students to be careful with the feathers and told them about the “feather hospital” and asked them if they knew that I was indeed a “feather doctor”.  Some students giggled out loud because they thought that was the funniest thing ever! 

…..I have been experimenting quite a bit this year with student choice.  I love doing stations and I have used what I call “freedom with responsibility” (I learned this phrase from another PE teacher some years ago.) as a treat at the end of a unit.  However, this year I have been using that on a regular basis with the expectation that students must be working on the goal for the day in order to have the freedom.  I have found this approach to be very effective but this week I wanted to know what the students thought about it.  I asked my second grade students what they liked about being able to choose.  They were incredibly thoughtful and had some great conversations when I asked them to “turn and talk” about it.  They shared that they liked it because they thought it saved time and they could do more of the activities.  They are absolutely correct because time is not wasted on transition from station to station, especially when one group is not ready to move on when the others are ready to go.  They also said that they liked being able to do what they wanted to do when they wanted to do it.  Don’t’ we all????  What is interesting to me is that in the end, most students tried most, if not all, of the activities.  They played fair, played safe, and worked hard on the goal of balancing.  It also put the responsibility on the students to make good choices and gave them the ownership of the activity.  I am planning on expanding this idea of student choice as the year continues.  I’ll let you know how it goes!

…..My students in grades 3-5 are beginning the “Fitness Challenge” as I call it.  I stopped calling it a Fitness Test last year because of the number of tests students take and the negative connotation of tests in general.  I want students to do their best and use the information gained by participating in the challenges to make healthier choices going forward.  This week we worked on the PACER Challenge and I was proud of how hard students worked to meet and exceed the goals set in the Healthy Fitness Zones!

…..Friday was a beautiful day and students were outside for recess.  The playground is right outside my office window and I was working at my desk as a third grade group was outside.  I was happy to see a hopscotch game drawn in chalk on the blacktop and several students actually playing it!  Sometimes the “oldies” are the best!

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.  

Follow me on Twitter!  @mrobPE

The Best Parts of My Week - 4/4/16--4/18/16

Hi everyone,
       The "Best Parts of My Week" have nothing and everything to do with school!  Well, let me explain.........

.....I had an amazing opportunity to be at the SHAPE America (Society of Health and Physical Educators) National Convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota this past week!  My district and school were generous enough to provide me with the opportunity to go and spend the week with some of the best PE and Health Educators in the country!  In and of itself, that chance qualifies as a "Best Part", but of course there is more!

.....The week started off with a general session with Tom Rath - author of Fully Charged, How Full is Your Bucket?, The Rechargeables, and many more wonderful books.  During his keynote address he talked about so many ideas that resonated with me but the one that stuck out the most made me think about the reason I write this blog.  He talked about how we need to charge ourselves up in our daily lives and one of the ways that we can do that is by experiencing what he called "small wins".  These "small wins" create meaning in our lives and help us to "charge".  I truly believe that this blog is about all of the "small wins" in my life and they definitely keep me charged up!

.....I also had the chance to participate in some training regarding SHAPE's National Standards and Grade Level Outcomes.  During this training I learned so much and I met some fantastic professionals that I will hopefully get a chance to work with in the future!

.....During a second general session I was afforded the opportunity to sit in the front of the auditorium based on our designation as a "Let's Move Active School".  It was wonderful because Koo Koo Kangaroo was going to perform and I would be able to see them up close!  If you do not know who Koo Koo Kangaroo is I would suggest that you check them out!  They are a duo and perform songs that provide activities for children (adults too!).  They are a big hit on a website called Go Noodle which provides ways for students to have activity breaks at school.  My students absolutely LOVE Go Noodle and Koo Koo Kangaroo!  I can't wait to tell them that Fitness Frankie and I saw them in person when I get back to school!

.....Later in the week we had some time to go to the Mall of America with some family that lives nearby.  Fitness Frankie found home plate from when it was Metropolitan Stadium!

.....Fitness Frankie made a new friend!

.....At the end of the week we celebrated the newest Teachers of the Year at the Hall of Fame Dinner.  We had a great time celebrated with so many amazing teachers.  It inspired me to go back and do the very best job I can do!  I am ready to return and hit the ground running!  

.....At the convention I went to so many sessions and learned so many things that my head is full and I will need some time to process all of the things that I learned.  So many ideas.....so little time.......

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.  

Follow me on Twitter!  @mrobPE

The Best Parts of My Week - 3/28/16--4/1/16

Hi everyone,
    After a wonderful Spring Break it was time to get back to work!  Well, work yes, but the "best part" of course is that I LOVE my job so as I headed out the door on Monday morning I had a smile on my face for sure!

.....Not only was it the beginning of the week as we started back from Spring Break but it was also "A" Day.  We work on a six-day cycle:  Days A-F, so sometimes Monday is not really Monday.  Every "A" day a new cycle begins so it is always nice when coming back from a break we are starting a new cycle.  This means that I began a new warm-up as well as a new unit.  Our new warm-up was an activity that I created using play money.  I have seen many lesson ideas using play money and I have always wanted to try some out.  I finally got the play money I needed and one thing led to another as I created this warm-up for students in grades K-5 that I call "Money Madness".  The basic idea is that students must "earn" the money they pick from the center of the gymnasium as they work to solve a money math problem.  Students "earned" the money by completing an exercise based on whether the coin or paper bill was greater than, less than, or equal to $1.00.  I explained that adults have jobs to earn money and I asked students what my job is.  I got the most wonderful responses!  Some students said that my job is to keep them safe, others said it is to help them get stronger, and still others said that my job is to be a PE Teacher - all correct!  I also had the pleasure of saying that I have the best job in the world because I get to teach them!  When I said that the students smiled! (me too...!)

.....I posted a few pictures of my Money Madness warm-up on Twitter and was so happy at the response from my PE learning community!  Many wanted more information to try it out.  I was happy to share!  

.....Since March is National Nutrition month, I began some lessons this week teaching students about healthy choices and good nutrition using active games.  We are a Healthy Highway school and focus on health and wellness quite a bit but still, I was impressed with the knowledge that students already posses about nutrition.  When I asked a third grade class to give an example of a food in the protein group one student answered:  "duck"!  I was also proud of my kindergarten students who remembered food that they learned from one class this week and transferred that knowledge to the next PE class.  They let me know that they learned about the differences between fruits and vegetables and told me that asparagus was a vegetable that they learned about!  

.....Sometimes students randomly share their healthy choices with me as I am walking by them in the hallway.  This week I saw a student who was happy to share that she had eaten an apple that day!  I am so glad that they know that I am interested in their healthy choices!  

.....As a part of the Healthy Highway philosophy we teach students about Red Light, Yellow Light, and Green Light foods.  We played a game using paper plates and food cards based on the idea that food is fuel.  In one round of the game students try to give away Red Light foods and take healthy foods to fill up their plate.  I chuckled at the reaction one of my students had when she returned to her plate to find a Red Light food (brownies).  She said:  "UGH"!  

.....Even Physical Eddie learned about healthy foods this week!

.....Fitness Frankie to Go came back to school after a long Spring Break with one of my second grade friends.  He had such a great vacation!  He went to NYC, went to the doctor to make sure he was healthy, played outside, and had some healthy food!  All of this great adventure was documented with a beautiful photo collage and a story to go with it.  It was great fun talking with the student and her mom about the adventurous week!  

.....One of the nutrition activities that I do with my students is all about creating a healthy plate of food.  The idea is that students work in small groups and must choose bean bags matching the color of each food group on My Plate.  When a group has a plate with five bean bags (one of each color) they shout:  "We have a healthy plate!".  Each time they create a healthy plate they receive a tower piece.  Their goal is to create the tallest tower possible and at the end of the activity I make the connection between building a tower and growing healthy bones and muscles.  Students in first and second grade are allowed to get their own tower piece but I deliver the tower piece to kindergarten student groups.  It was fun to run around and deliver the pieces as groups shouted that they created a healthy plate.  At the end of the activity I showed students how hard I worked by showing them how fast my heart was beating.  They were impressed and I had the chance to make the point that it is important for adults to exercise too!  

.....During bus duty one day this week I was putting away some equipment while waiting for students to be called.  I lifted up a rolling cart that my goal chart hangs on.  (Idon't want to scratch my beautiful new floor!)  One of my kindergarten students exclaimed:  "You're strong!"  I thanked her and said that being strong is healthy but I also confessed that the cart was lighter than it looked.  She was surprised and still thought I was pretty strong to have carried it across the gym!

.....I am a proud member of NYS AHPERD.  Our state organization is divided into zones and my zone is the Southeastern Zone.  We sponsor an Elementary/Middle School Award ceremony in May to honor students nominated by their PE teacher.  These students are leaders, physically literate, good sports and good citizens.  They display courage and are great role models for their peers.  This week I had the honor of nominating my students for this year's award and sharing the news with them.  I am so proud of them and can't wait for the ceremony in May!   

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.  

Follow me on Twitter!  @mrobPE