This category focuses on how to effectively teach middle school, junior high school, and high schoolers. Learn more about how best to connect with and instruct students who are transitioning from childhood to adulthood, and how to motivate them to be physically active and make healthy lifestyle choices.
pelinks4u is delighted to share a perspective on the state of today’s physical education by George Graham. As one the profession’s most innovative thinkers, George categorizes the different teaching approaches of our teaching colleagues and tells us what he thinks of them. Shared with you courtesy of PE Central
Click this link to download a PDF file. Be patient, it might take a minute or so!
(Editor’s Note: This is the second of a three-part series in which Angela shares the strategies that she has used to get her students physically active and healthy. Be sure to check the other issues of pelinks4u to learn about additional strategies.)
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends that children and adolescents aged 6-17 participate in 60 minutes or more of physical activity each day (CDC, 2015). In recent years schools have been called upon to expand their efforts to increase physical activity opportunities. In the last issue, I shared some of the ways that I helped my school reach these goals. I gave details about events that took place in my physical education program, which helped motivate my students to be more physically active. Although I found success in my physical education program in getting kids more active, I realized to help the children I taught reach the goal of 60 minutes a day, they would need more time to be physically active outside of my physical education class. Here are some examples of the ways I achieved this before, during, and after school.
Physical Activity During School
(This essay was originally published on SHAPE America’s member Exchange [August, 2015] and is reprinted with permission.)
Last month I suggested the best way for us to achieve SHAPE America’s goal of “50 Million Strong by 2029” was for each of us to ask ourselves, “What’s my number?” Instead of letting the immensity of changing the physical activity and health habits of 50 million students overwhelm us, let’s focus on how you personally can contribute. If we all do our part, we will succeed.
Not long ago, Mark Zuckerberg, the young Facebook creator, set about wiring the world — or more specifically, getting every person on the planet connected to the Internet. A 7.325 billion-person challenge! As you can imagine, he had some immense problems to overcome. But he saw it as doable and convinced others to join the enterprise. If interested, you can learn more at internet.org. It’s an interesting project but what I found especially intriguing is the approach being taken. The problems that need to be solved have been clearly identified and strategies are being developed to resolve them. In other words, the way to solve big challenges is through taking small steps and not giving up.
This is exactly how the health and physical education profession can succeed. It’s not only about getting every school-aged student physically active and healthy, but also about earning public respect for what we contribute to public education. But we need evidence! It is not sufficient to talk about the value of health and physical education. We need to prove it. And this is why it is so important for each of us to seize the opportunity that “50 Million Strong by 2029” is offering.
Hopefully this finds you well and enjoying a well deserved vacation. It’s a relief to have a respite from the stress that hits teachers and coaches from so many directions. Instead of creating an environment that works for everyone, administrators, parents, and students are too often more focused on outcomes. Schools that use a collegial approach to education rather than a competitive one are great. Hopefully you are in one. Having said that, it brings to mind an idea that can start you on your next school year differently. Let me explain.
During my teaching career, I came to realize that with students at all different skill levels and having vastly different experiences in what we teach, it was simply not enough to grade them on participation, whether they were dressed for class or not, if they were great athletes, or if they got a good grade on a quiz or two. I wanted to teach. I wanted my students to want to learn. And, I knew if they learned and became productive citizens in class, they would LOVE being there. And, yes, I wanted that too.
Achieving this vision while I taught in junior high was easy. I still have fond memories of how each unit ended with everyone, me included, on such a high that we almost hated to move on to something new. Why? Because the energy, the level of teamwork, and the outpouring of enthusiasm had blossomed over the course of the unit. The resulting crescendo was so great that starting from square one on something new was a bit of a let down. Truthfully, even the non-athletes were involved and excited by the end of the unit. They had learned to become solid citizens on their teams making whatever contributions they could, and had been praised for it by teammates who were supportive and helpful. My classes had learned to accept individual differences, respect the effort of the less athletically gifted, and were there applauding each improvement they observed. I was so proud of them that I could burst.
As we all enjoy the warmth and sun of summer days, we also know that before too long our thoughts will need to turn to September and our plans for the new school year. So, now is probably a good time to begin thinking about the upcoming months and what we might do a little differently this year!
Unfortunately, we are living in a time when research indicates that children and youth are not as physically active as they should be. As physical education teachers, it’s vital that we continue to seek out and try new strategies that not only encourage our students to live physically active lifestyles but actually achieve this aim. This is a big responsibility and, to succeed, we need to enlist the support of the whole school staff.
Recently, one of the authors had a discussion with a Grade 4 family member about the past school year. The child was asked, “What were your favorite subjects in Grade 4 this past year?” The response was one that resulted in a bit of a surprise as the young child stated, “Umm, my favorite subjects were Math and PE. No wait. PE is not a subject, so Math. Uhhh, I don’t know why I said PE, it’s not a subject!”
(This essay was originally published on SHAPE America’s member Exchange [June, 2015] and is reprinted with permission.)
Some time ago, Kevin Costner starred in a movie called “The Guardian.” He played Ben Randall a legendary Coast Guard rescue swimmer admired for his success saving lives. A new recruit, determined to better Randall’s achievements, repeatedly asks him for his “number.” How many lives has he saved? Randall avoids responding, until close to the movie’s end when, pressed again for his number, he responds, “Twenty-two.” The rookie life saver is surprised because it is a rather unimpressive number for a legend. But then Randall explains, “Twenty-two is the number of lives I failed to save!”
Jim Perry, familiar to many of you as one of SHAPE America’s longtime sport advocates, reminded me of this story after my recent presentation at the Southwest District/Utah AHPERD conference in Park City. He’d listened to me talk about “50 Million Strong by 2029,” SHAPE America’s goal to get all kids entering preschool this fall physically active and healthy in 14 years (or sooner). At the end of the session, audience members began personalizing the challenge. They described their unique piece in the puzzle. As K-12 health and physical educators they were responsible for two, three, or four hundred kids. The numbers varied by level but the point was clear. The way to reach 50 million is for each of us to focus on what we can do. None of us can change the behaviors of millions, but each one of us can take responsibility for changing the physical activity and health habits of all of the students we serve in our schools. After listening to this exchange, it was Jim who in his usual quiet and deliberative manner suggested that each of us should focus on answering the question, “What’s my number?”
Today, school walk and jog-a thons are becoming more popular fundraisers than cookie drives. Schools using Orbiter equipment to record lap counting during jog-a-thons are successfully raising between $20-$70,000 in 2.5 hour events. Described below is how the basic setup works. For more information on the equipment referred to in this article please visit the Orbiter website.
Recommended Orbiter Set-Up for School Walk/Jog-A-Thons
Students are brought to track by grades, and allowed to run for 20 minutes to 40 minutes. After they are finished they go back to class. One or more grades will run at the same time. Event starts at 9 AM, and ends at 11:30 AM.
