I’ve been thinking about how I can bring physical literacy to the classroom. Even in my practicum classes, P.E. still seemed to be an isolated subject–looked forward to or dreaded by students when the period came. Just like all things done in school, I think it’s important for students to see how what they are learning is applicable to their lives. Instead of learning games and doing activities 3X a week, I wondered how I could bring physical literacy into their daily lives. With many students being inactive at home and eating fast food regularly, I wonder how physical activity and healthy choices might be made a daily part of the school day. I’ve heard of a program that brings a new fruit or vegetable into classrooms each week. Students all have the opportunity to try it. I think this program, maybe along with talking with students about all the good things these vegetables and fruits do for our body, can maybe begin to make students more aware of what they are eating. I also think teaching students how to make healthier choices when it comes to eating would be a valuable lesson. Perhaps helping students find something active they like to do and allowing students to share about their physical activity outside the class would start to build a desire to have a more physically active lifestyle.
2 thoughts on “Julie Russell’s movement journal #4 Nov 18”
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Hi Julie,
I love how you brought up healthy living and healthy food choices as part of physical literacy. My practicum school was part of a program that brings in 2% milk and a fruit for all the students, and they love it! Some students bring in lunches and snacks that are not the healthiest, so for them, this is s a healthy option that is provided for them. At this school, the teacher also makes it a point during snack and lunch time to make sure they are eating their healthiest option first before they have their treats. A school that I used to volunteer at had a program that brought in educators who would teach the students about the benefits of fruits and vegetables, and then create something with that fruit or vegetable that the students could then taste test. Some of the things made were: carrot soup, organic ginger ale, and kale “spinach” gomae. It was a great way to expose the students to healthy types of food that they may have never heard of or tried before! Programs like these are so beneficial to students who don’t have access to healthier foods or even the knowledge that there are alternatives to the processed foods they often eat.
Hi Julie, thanks for sharing your thought about how physical activity and healthy choices can be made as a daily part of the school day. After reading your blog post, I began to think about the school programs and policies to promote students’ healthy lifestyles. I remember that my elementary school had a milk program. Every day before lunch, each student had to drink 200ml of milk. Also, my school had a lunch program designed by the school nutritionist so that every student could have a balanced meal. Back then, I didn’t know why my school had these two programs, so I complained a lot, especially about the milk program. However, I now have realized that these programs were created to support students’ healthy living styles.
I also noticed that P.E. is still being taught as an isolated subject. Therefore, most of the P.E. classes focus on teaching physical skills. However, I was able to observe how physical literacy is introduced and addressed into students’ daily lives at my practicum school. For instance, my practicum school has a morning running program. Every morning, unless the weather is extremely terrible, students run for about 15-20 minutes. Teachers draw a line on students’ hands after each lap they run, so students actively participate in the morning running program to get more lines drawn on their hands. Also, my Grade 2 class learned about the importance of having a balanced meal. After the several lessons about making healthy eating choices, students were able to understand the importance of having a balanced meal. They were also able to analyze their lunch to see whether it is a balanced meal or not.
As you mentioned, I think it is very important to bring physical literacy into students’ lives. By teaching students the importance of engaging in daily physical activities and making healthy choices, they can be more aware of choices they make for their healthy lifestyles.