Friday was a wonderful day, albeit cold – so cold. If I had a choice, I’d be wearing my jacket during most of the time in class. In any case, I must give thanks to Mr. Rogers for that crazy shuffle warm up he made us do for what seemed like a very. long. time. That really got my heart pumpin’, my blood boilin’, and the heat risin’! A great start to the day.
The main goal of the day was going through the group lesson on volleyball! Oh, volleyball. If you asked me what my least favourite sport of all time was, I’d respond with that. Anyhow, I really enjoyed the activity presented, and it might have made me reclaim my liking for volleyball. We were split into four sections; each group focused on a specific skill: setting, bumping, serving, and free play (focusing on either or all three skills mentioned earlier). The amount of time spent within each section allowed everyone to develop good form and a range of skills – it was perfect.
I also thought Clarissa, Amanda, Terence, and Rylan executed the lesson impeccably. The energy they brought to the gym floor was great; it was clear that the energy level was then transferred and shared to the rest of the class. I was also impressed by their time management, and planning skills. As mentioned earlier, there was ample time to practice and perform well, individually, within the sections. Despite the fact that I thought the warm up at the beginning seemed a bit long (though, that’s probably because I have low stamina), the warm up did its job. As well as the stretch at the end was a good way to cool down. Anyways, great job guys and gals!
Elissa, I agree with you THE GYM WAS SO COLD, and I also thought last Friday’s PE class was awesome! I Even though I did not hate volleyball as much as you did as a student, I certainly did not love it. I hated the feeling of pressure when the ball came my way and I would always feel bad if I missed it. Whenever we had volleyball, I would be standing there and praying that the ball would not come my way. Therefore, I also really liked how the teaching team “scaffolded” volleyball into the four stations. This way, we not only got to practice and build confidence, but we also didn’t feel the pressure of needing to hit the ball or being afraid of letting the team down.
I completely agree with you that Clarissa, Amanda, Terence and Rylan did super well in teaching this lesson! They were enthusiastic, the activities were well planned, the discussion was interesting, and their voices were clear! Lastly, I also felt their upbeat energy transferred to the rest of the class so everyone was very engaged. The shuffling got us all warmed up and it was fun. I am really enjoying the peer teaching lessons and how much we learn from them.
I agree with both of you. The gym is very cold. I have to remind myself to bring a sweater next time. I enjoyed Rylan’s “shuffle monkey” warm-up as it also got my heart pumping and my body ready for the next activity. It was fun, active, and had intentionality with the purpose of teaching us the correct position to move around a court, applicable to various sports.
I loved volleyball growing up and played it in school, though I was never very good. It was such a good idea of breaking down the skills into sections so that we could focus on learning each one. It was inclusive and gave everyone a chance to practise and hit the ball without being put on the spot, as Pamela mentioned.
The group’s energy and enthusiasm definitely made their entire lesson a lot more fun and entertaining. I agree that it was well timed and thoroughly planned out to keep us moving and active in PE class. They provided a good example of showing us how PE can be instructive and fun!
Hi Elissa!
I, too, must also agree with you. In elementary and high school volleyball was my least favorite sport! It seemed to be the most exclusive and only those who were “athletic” seemed to be the ones who played volleyball. The teachers also seemed to focus most of their time on the star volleyball players, and spent very little time with those less familiar with the sport comfortable or assisting them with how they could improve.
I really felt that Terence, Clarissa, Ryland, and Amanda did an excellent job of modeling how a PE teacher can make volleyball, or any sport for that matter, fun and inclusive! Their enthusiasm definitely helped me to feel more energized and excited to play and learn about volleyball! I really liked the way they divided the class up into four stations, and to focus on a different skill at each one. It was a great way to get us to keep moving at all times, and this was definitely the most I have sweated in PE class thus far!