Last Friday’s group did a great job on physical literacy! Both the warm-up and the cool-down were really memorable! They were able to have consistency with the animal theme; something that I think is a great strategy for a Grade 2/3 class, for any class! It was a great way to get us students to use our creativity and imagination; something we should all be striving to do in our lessons. I think we can get lost in the content of what we have to teach that we have a hard time getting creative. Although, using the new curriculum, we will have more opportunities to be inventive with our lessons.
I thought the main activity was also a great way to teach us physical literacy! Liz, Rob, Cheryl and Mary were effective educators in giving us the Bingo task. They told us we did not have to complete it and that we had the choice to go to any of the stations as we pleased; just as long as we were moving and completed at least 2 of the stations. It was a great way to show us students that it was more important to be moving, exploring and having fun with it. I think that is what physical literacy is all about, being able to apply the different aspects of movement into every day play and being able to balance the different bouts of knowledge, in our daily routines. For example, there was a station to create a healthy routine and a healthy plate; giving us the option to have fun with the food options and while educating us. I personally enjoyed the cheering station! I love the rhythmic gymnastics ribbons, they are so much fun to run around with and it was very fun to cheer for our classmates!
Well stated Clarissa! Last week’s PE lesson was a really strong one. I agree that they did a really good job laying out clear expectations for the class. They recognized that students would not finish all the activities and that they would have an opportunity to play the games again. I was really impressed with how the activities tied so well with physical literacy and positivity. I think that the mix of movement and non movement stations allow for lots of choice, especially for students who may not enjoy being active for an entire gym class. I actually liked the daily schedule station (or whatever it was called) the best! I think this activity is so important as it allows students to think about physical literacy and plan some kind of day that supports a healthy lifestyle. When I was doing this I was thinking about how to create a healthy day and I think part of my motivations to think this way were because the learning environment was in a gym! These types of activities get students thinking, moving and planning. I like how it moved away from the traditional gym class that only supports the athletic students. This lesson with its choice is also easily modified for ELL students as well as students with disabilities and allows for whole class participation. Great job team!