Last Day at Saint Mary's

This past Monday was the last day of Saint Mary's. Since it was the last day, we decided to do something special. As a class, we all did some sort of Winter Wonderland theme. They were all good games because as soon as we said "Winter Wonderland" the kids went absolutely crazy. This was really good because their attention was captured the whole time, and they didn't just wonder off like they sometimes do to play basketball or soccer. All of them were interactive, and involved.

Another reason why these games were really good was because they were creative. One group had a game that involved making a snowman. I think this game was a great idea because all the kids were active, and it did involve a good amount of activity. The way the game worked was their were a bunch of different objects out on the floor. As a team, it resembled a relay race. One member of the team at a time would run out and grab a piece of the snowman and bring it back. The first team with all the pieces to the snowman, were the winners.

My group's game was also in holiday spirit. We had an obstacle course for the kids which they were all really into. They started off hopping on the snowflakes, then skipping through hula hoops. This lead them to sliding under the garland behind a few mats. Then, they had to throw a white soft ball (snowball) at Santa. Then for fun, we had a stocking of stickers that the kids would put on the tree that we had taped to the wall. Finally, for the best part of the whole course, we made a sleigh out of a cardboard box where the kids all got in and walked down to the start of the whole obstacle course. We originally had scooters in the sleigh so it could actually be a sleigh ride, but we figured dragging two kids at a time would be entirely to slow. We just had 6 kids max at a time go in and lift the sleigh up and walk across the gym.

Overall the time at Saint Mary's was a great experience. It taught me a lot about how to handle and deal with children. It also taught me what to do when the kids would get a little out of control, or not pay attention to your game. One of the biggest lessons I learned was that if your not all that interested or excited about your game, the children definitely won't be either.

Saint Mary's memories

We have one more lab day at Saint Mary's and it all has gone by so fast. I like how each week is a different motor skill so that we are forced to find different games and activities that the kids must learn. In my opinion, trying to assess the kids is the hardest part. You have to concentrate on one or two kids the entire time and really really watch them. You must see if their movements are correct, what they are doing wrong, doing right. It is very important do this because in the future they might be problems you will encounter in the teaching field.

It is good practice to know what kids struggle with and what some of them are good at. Some games focus more on motor skills then others. Other times, it is fun just to play with them and do something they really enjoy. The younger kids really enjoy tag games as the older kids are more into sports like basketball and soccer.

Their were also problems encountered with the Saint Mary's children. Some of them were just so energetic we just couldn't control them and it got out of hand. They have been cooped up all day in class and just ready to let loose. One problem, however, is that they just want too do their own game or own sport. Their not very interested in what you have to say or what game you are ready to present but just want too have their own fun. It is all natural though, since I'm sure I was the same way when I was in elementary school. Next Monday is our next and last lab day and we are hoping to incorporate some Christmas themes.

A Rough week at Saint Mary's

It was a rough week at Saint Mary's. The kids were really loud on this particular day, and weren't really all that interested in what we had to say while explaining the games. I think the reason for this was that they had been inside all day and were ready to let loose. In a way, it was good to experience this first hand so you know what you could possibly encounter in the future. How to deal with kids as they get rowdy and loud. Another tip that I picked up was that you should always have a set of rules before you go out their and teach and have a set plan. One group went out and was kind of unsure as to what they were doing. You could tell because the children lost interest very quickly and it was hard to regain their focus

The game that me and Jason did was a tag game that dealt with Halloween. I think it was a good idea because the kids were in the spirit and were in the mood to do something with the holiday involved. The point of the game was that their was a witch on a broomstick (noodle). She/he was the tagger and when you were tagged, you were frozen in place. The only way you can become untagged is if someone with a ball throws it to you and you throw it back, freeing you. Everyone had one of those spider balls and that was what we were throwing back and forth.

All in all, it was a good game to play with the kids and at certain points they really got into it. At times, however, there minds wondered and drifted off to other things and did get loud. If the kids minds aren't captured and involved the interest level drops faster then you could ever imagine.

The PE mini conference

Last Saturday I attended the PE mini conference at park center. I watched 3 different presentations of games. These games weren't ordinary games however, they were new fun games. Games that were exciting and kept people's interest. The first presentation I attend was a game with a gigantic pink ball. I forget the name of it but the object of the game was simple. Their were 3 different teams on the floor: green, black and red. The object of the game was to hit the ball in the air, swinging your arms like a baseball bat. The team color that is called out has to catch the ball without it hitting the ground. This was cool because it was something that I have ever have seen before, and it was a new game that kept my interest and a game I will defiantly keep in mind when teaching my physical education class.

The next presentation i watched was another game/activity that kept everyone moving. There were cones set up in a huge box. The object of the activity was that everyone had one sheet of newspaper. The idea was to run around the cones so fast that the newspaper stuck to your chest and didn't fall off. The faster you ran, the more the newspaper stayed on. This was a great concept because it was a fun game where everyone was laughing and smiling, but it was also health related; trying to achieve a goal. The idea that I was really impressed by was that how everyone their was having so much fun: with a sheet of newspaper. It's just being creative, things I never even thought of before and it really opens my eyes and mind as to what I should think for as games.

The last station I went to was just all about health. It was different and fun ways to do push-ups, sit-ups and relay races. In one relay race we ran back and forth, but while waiting on line, you had to do jumping jacks or sliding. This was a great idea because even the people waiting their turn were still being active and that's the way the game should be played. we also learned a variation of push-ups where u get with a partner and give each other a high five while your arms are extended. It was just good to see the different ways that you can make all the old boring exercises fun for kids, knowing they wont be to thrilled to do them in the first place. They now have something else to concentrate on.

The mini conference really opened my eyes as to what i should be striding for to become a PE teacher. The ideas, the games everything was so great. It was the first one I ever attended seeing that it is my first semester here and i was really blown away. I hope to attend as many as I can and come with as many great ideas and concepts as I did from this one.

Saint Mary's

It was another good week at Saint Mary's. The three skills that we observed were the leap, horizontal jump, and the slide. My group worked with a lot of different ages actually. At first we were working with pre-k outdoors where we played a few different tag games trying to incorporate different movement patterns. Being outside really limited the children because everyone was cold and not really into the games just wanting to go back inside. We actually ran a version of our group activity called the Dora the Explorer Adventure game. We set up different stations along the playground and the the kids had to follow the two leaders. We had fake trees which were just batons covered in green paper to make it an authentic game.

Once we were inside though, we were with a lot of different grades playing the Dora the Explorer game. We had children from the ages of pre-k to 8 playing and enjoying this game. The age difference was obvious seeing that the 8 year olds were stronger and were faster with their movements. The pre-k children were also holding there own in executing the skills once you showed them how to do it and what the exact movement was.

This was a great game to play with the children because it was new and exciting. The children were curious as to how you played this game and could relate because they watched the show Dora the Explorer. I think if they could have, they would have done this game for a full hour if we didn't stop them, that's how much fun they were having. It was an overall great day for the kids and the instructors because we knew we had done our part and succeeded for the day.

Saint Mary's

My first few weeks at Saint Mary's I have really enjoyed. I love knowing at the end of the day I don't have to sit in a classroom but I can actually make a difference in a child's life and be a role model. What we have done is try to take games out of our books and off line, and teach them to the children. While teaching, we also assess and evaluate the skills needed for that day. For example, the first time we watched the motor skills of the kids was when they had them do a run, hop, and gallop. I always think it is a good idea to demonstrate to the kids how to do these skills properly. They may not know how to in the first place, so it is good to give them a good visual. This way, when assessing them, you can get a really good look as to what you need to watch and correct.

My group played a game called Alligator Ally. This is a game with very few pieces of equipment. Hula hoops and yarn balls is all that is needed to make this game fun. The point of the game is to avoid the players with the balls, which are the alligators. If you are on a hula hoop (lillypad in game play) then you are safe. If you are tagged with the ball you then become an alligator. This was a good game to assess because both the taggers and the regular players had to do the movements in the game such as run, gallop and hop.

What I've learned about myself is that I actually enjoy teaching and playing with the younger kids as opposed to the older kids. I feel as though the older kids have seen it all already and for obvious reasons, while the younger kids are so excited to play something else besides regular tag games and they can be their favorite animals or favorite character on TV. All in all it is a great experience helping out at Saint Mary's and making me feel as if seem I have impacted a child's life by making him or her active.