As children excitingly await the end of the school year and the beginning of summer, sometimes they forget that teachers look forward to a break, too! In addition to relaxation and a chance to reconnect with family and friend, summer can be the ultimate planning period for professional development as it allows brainstorming typically not possible during the workday. Some of that brainstorming, we believe, should include designing creative program extensions which serve as a way to showcase our programs to parents and colleagues.

 

Both authors also believe, unfortunately, that physical education teachers traditionally do a poor job of this when compared to our specialist brethren, art and music teachers. Annual elementary school field days held in the spring are one of the few times that physical educators extend their program into the entire school community. Art and music teachers, on the other hand, tend to extend their programs throughout the school year.