Here's my Best and Worst Moments in Physical Fitness!

Check out my highs and lows!

Saying Goodbye to St. Mary's in Lab 6

Lab 5 was very sad. It was our last time going there as a class and the kids knew it. They all were very sad to see us go as we were all to know we most likely would never see any of them again. Since our first day there I knew I would become attached to the students because they were all so caring and lovable, but I never knew I would miss them this much! Knowing that I will not see them next Wednesday saddens me, the only thing that makes me feel better is knowing that I will see them next semester when I TA! I feel like I have grown so much in becoming a Physical Education teacher, I am much more confident and have learned many strategies to getting the kids attention, keeping their attention, and thinking of good activities that will not only be fun but also useful in their future life. I am looking forward to 255 to learn even more about being the best educator I can be!
Here's my reflection for Lab 6

My Best and Worst Moments of Physical Fitness!!

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Turkey Day at St. Mary's

At lab 5 I had a blast. It was the first time I have been downstairs with the kids. I got to play Lego's with the boys and build ships, houses, and warriors. We also got to spend time in the gym which I like the most because I feel like that's where I get the most interaction with the students. The theme was thanksgiving and they were all so excited to have their days off and to eat. We incorporated many things dealing with thanksgiving. for example, we had kids during out activities say what they were most thankful for, what their favorite food was, and what they usually do for the holiday. overall it was a great time and I'm looking forward to lab 6!

Here's what I observed in Lab 5

Thank You St.Mary's!!!

Check out our reflex fresh prince of bell-air video!!!

Spider Balls Flying at the Walls!!

This week at St. Mary’s our theme was Halloween. This was one of my favorite labs; the kids loved all of our costumes and seemed extra enthusiastic this week as well. I love that the kids are becoming more and more familiar with us and it’s really helping the connection and helping them learn new games and skills. Wednesday was also my first time I got to go outside, it was a beautiful day and it was really great watching the kids let loose and run around the playground. I personally was a make believe bird the entire time with two other girls, we made nests and flew around; it was actually a lot of fun.

Here is what I observed in lab4

Superheroes In Action!

This week at St. Mary’s our theme was superheroes. I wore a batman shirt and my group members wore capes and had superhero shirts on as well. During my game I decided to incorporate visual aids of each superhero which really seemed to help the students. I also brought in stickers of these superheroes and gave the students them every time their group "won". I rotated who won so all groups had equal amount of wins and stickers. Every week I feel like I am making a stronger connection with the students individually. I can’t wait until our Halloween theme next week!
Here's what I observed in lab 3B

The Crazy Kickers Bye Bye Bye Video!!!

Western Style at St.Mary's!

After lab1 I was very excited to go back to St. Mary's and to see all the students again and to get more involved in the games and to lead some of the activities. Last week when we went back many of the kids remembered us and gravitated towards me by the end of the lab. I was having some what of a dance party with a small group of girls, which quickly grew into a large group. I was in the special projects group and at the end when we did the song cotton eyed joe, Abbey, one of the students, had no idea how to do the dance, by the end of the song I was very happy to see that not only me, but her classmates worked with her and taught her how to do the dance correctly. The girls worked very well together and seemed to be very close friends, they danced together, knew when each others parents were coming, and if one left a game then the others would quickly follow. For our closing game I think it went well, especially for the first time leading here at St. Marys. Our goal was to keep it simple for the kids and something that would enjoy and didn't need to think about too much, and still kept busy and practiced running, hopping, and galloping. Both the boys and girls seemed to enjoy the game, song, and cheer at the end of their day. I am definitely looking forward to the next time we go back to St. Marys!

Here is what I observed in Lab 2

Dodgeball or no dodgeball?

      One of the most controversial topics among physical education teachers is the question if dodgeball should be allowed in PE classes. I've listened and participated in many heated debates with this topic and both sides hold many strong points.
      When I was in high school and even middle school we played the very traditional way of dodgeball, the class splits up into two teams, if your hit then your out, and out means sitting along the wall. Although I did enjoy the game, I highly agree with the hall of shame and others who say it leaves students out and they aren't getting as much physical fitness as they could if they played another game.

      It will soon be my turn as a physical educator to make this decision whether to allow these games such as dodgeball to be taught and played in my classroom. If someone asked me right now for my answer I would say yes, to allow dodgeball to be played. BUT it certainly wouldn't be the traditional way of dodgeball that I was taught along with many others. If I was to teach "dodgeball" in my classroom I would modify it so if you got out, you had to do twenty jumping jacks, or go receive balls for your players, anything to keep them active while being out. Another thing that I know I personally didn't enjoy during dodgeball was the balls that we used, which were kickball's. In my classroom every ball would be the foam small balls, that no matter how hard you throw it, it wont hurt their classmates. I would also make an additional rule that if the ball hits the ground, you are allowed one bounce and if you catch it one of your teammates who are out can come back in, this way it keeps the game upbeat and gets good interaction between students, and less time to be out of the game as well. Another solution would be to simply give the students a choice of what they wanted to do, if you didn't want to play dodgeball, offer to go in the weight room (if you have access) or even go out on the track and run or walk. This way students wont feel pressured to play if they don't want and leaves them options.

      Some people who oppose the use of dodgeball in the classroom say that it is dangerous and doesn't serve any purpose to the students. Not only does dodgeball teach good leadership and teamwork, it also has great motor development skills like catching, throwing, hand eye coordination. Dodgeball also makes you very aware of your surroundings which is not only something that will help them in games or in a physical aspect, but sometime they can carry in many different aspects intheir life. No matter what game you play in class, there will always be a risk of danger, it isn't fair to take away this one game while leaving others as an option. It is our jobs as teachers to minimize these risks and to make sure our students have the best possible experience in any game or lesson we are presenting.

St. Mary's; Take One

I observed in Lab 1.

Assignment Number One Summary ch.1-3

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          In middle school I had a physical education teacher who taught with the "throw the balls out and let them play" mentality. This type of teaching angered me because it didn't teach us kids about any fundamental or basic learning skills to better our health and activity level. As I get closer to becoming a PE teacher myself, I feel that it is my responsibility that I ensure a positive, fun, and affective learning style and develop fundamental skills at a early age. These skills not only will benefit the child at their current age level, but will also stay with them throughout their life and they can use those skills to pass down to their children and others as well. Our job as physical educators is to help all children make adaptive changes towards their motor control and movements. These things can be done through appropriate activities for their age and current skill level and also will benefit the child’s affective and cognitive development. The motor domain deals with movement (locomotion, manipulation, and stability) and health-related fitness. The cognitive domain deals with progressive change in the ability to think, reason, and act to a new movement setting. affective domain is the ability to act, interact, and react effectively and appropriately with others and self in movement situation. Each student is different and these concepts may vary for every child. There is no blueprint on how to each every single child, but it is important that we take the time to assess each child in their skill development and to take note of how that child learns and then to enforce each aspect to each child in a classroom setting and to teach the kids how to use their motor skills correctly and efficiently. Fundamental skills are extremely important to succeed in a lifetime of good health.

The National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity's mission is to unite the strengths of all private and public industry's to inspire and empower all Americans to lead more physically active lifestyles.