The Next Few Years: As a teacher, I recognize and embrace my future of life long learning. It is exciting to know that this profession lends itself nicely to a creative mind and an eagerness for creation, collaboration, and continued learning. As a Physical Education and Spanish teacher, I have short term goals within each of these disciplines. For the sake of keeping focused, my current focus is the development of a “Community Project” for senior level Physical Education. Here is the gist:
What is it: The Community Project is a project designed to get students to know the city they live in and the resources that are available to them that support their health. The idea is that students will understand what factors contribute to good health, recognize what resources for health are in their communities, learn how to gain access to such resources, and plan activities for their peers within the community they are assigned.
Why it matters: If people don’t know what is available to them, they do not have access. When it comes to health, this is of critical concern. When you consider that most people will know where the McDonalds is in their community and how much a hamburger costs, but they do not know where the community recreation centre is and how much a membership costs, it is clear that there is a need to inform them. For the most part, children learn in schools that being active and eating well is important in order to maintain good health, but they do not know what their options are and how they can access these opportunities within their community. Through this project students might realize that they can actually get free fitness classes during certain hours at a local gym, that there is an outdoor pool near their house, or that there is a safe bike route that takes them from home to school. Furthermore, students will have the opportunity to actually plan and deliver an activity in their community including planning the financial cost for the class and arranging transportation. This project allows students to engage in tasks that are extremely practical and relevant.
