As
the school year ends and the students take in a myriad of
experiences, it should also be a time for teachers to reflect
what has transpired during the school year. It is a time to
envision what worked and what didn't. And it's a time to find
ways to change or make adjustments to the curriculum that
will align to the national standards.
With the summer holidays approaching, it is prudent to recollect
what the students achieved, and also to find ways to continue
with activities to keep them healthy over the summer. This
is a time for teachers to not only relax, but also to work
on professional development to keep abreast of the latest
trends and advocacy for our craft.
Depending on the grade level, it would be exemplary to have
a carry over from the regular physical education right into
the summer activities. That is, make sure to inform the students
about water and bike safety, and to alert them of emergency
situations. In each case, there should be information about
the dangers of sun
damage, insect
bites, and first
aid/prevention. This can be highlighted with the end of
school year field days, which is a good time to warn students
of those potential dangers that may occur over summer vacation.
Possibly, many of the students will be involved in YMCA or
camping
activities. All students should be encouraged to remain active
whether it be at their home and neighborhood, or in parks
for recreational activities. For home activity, promote activity
using makeshift equipment, or make up games or activities
that parrallel activity of the regular PE class using equipment
that is free or mostly inexpensive.
For example, the students can make use of skills from a fitness
calendar and track their activity just like the ones they
performed during PE class. These homemade
ideas encourage creativity and fitness, and promote an
understanding of what was done at school; what was learned
at school integrated into activity at home. Hopefully, this
will prove that we are educating the whole child.
Of course, these activities will have modifications for each
grade level to meet their skills and needs. The middle and
high school students can be involved in activities that are
related to arcade activities, such as DDR
and exercise walls or makeshift ones that can be accessed
at Fun
Fitness Resources. With some creativity and imagination,
they can find something to do each day that will promote activity.
During the summer vacation, there are opportunities in parks
and recreational areas for games of Ultimate
Frisbee, hiking, biking, walking, rock climbing, water
sports, such as kayaking, canoeing, swimming, and white water
rafting. Joining agencies like Venture
Outdoors are beneficial for a healthy lifestyle that incorporates
the entire family. This includes geocaching,
orienteering,
dog walks, environmental programs, photography, historical
sites, and wilderness survival. This would be a great time
to participate in local charity walks like the ones for MS,
Diabetes, Heart, and Breast Cancer.
The summer offers many sports activities, other than specialty
camps. Students can participate in miniature golf or on regulation
courses; tennis, racquetball, platform tennis, or take lessons
in something that is available in local or state parks. The
summer brings attention to organized sports and activities
such a baseball/softball, and there are many opportunities
for involvement helping with community events from organization
to participation.
Many hospitals and health agencies need volunteers for occupational
programs and camps for special needs students. Working in
the community is a chance to gain knowledge and skills by
working with people in many areas of education and business.
The older students can work as a camp counselor on summer
break, too. There are job opportunities and activities that
are fun and great ways to meet new friends, and to be active
and healthy.
One of the missing pieces of the puzzle over the years is
what students do during non-school hours, not only during
the summer but during the school year. Gone are the days when
children made up their own games, used makeshift equipment
(rag /socked balls, clothespins, tin cans, and taped wiffle
balls), which are now being replaced by video games or
handheld devices. It seemed there was always a pickup game
on the streets and alleys, and constant playing from morning
to night. There wasn’t much space needed, and the playground
was a perfect solution when an area for more advanced activity
was needed.
PE teachers can help bridge the gap between school and summer
vacation through fitness calendars, field days, appropriate
playground and recess activities, first aid, safety, and injury
protection, water and biking activities, and providing information
for camping at local and state parks. This includes being
a role model and actually participating in charity walks,
races, and volunteering in the community as a recreational
director or board member.
Teachers can establish a working relationship with hardware
stores and make a fitness trail or skateboard park. This will
give students a chance to perform activities and skills they
enjoy along with keeping them active. The older students can
use their swimming skills for jobs as a lifeguard. This carry
over is conducive for preparing the students to be healthy
and active with a lifetime of fitness.
Another way to add interest to summer activities is to include
activities that integrate the intermediate elementary to high
school grades. Include resources for students to see how skills
are learned through scientific exploration. For example, there
is a skate
board science demonstration to learn the principles of
skateboarding. There are articles to demonstrate various moves/tricks
and a detailed explanation through videos and photos. This
web site offers a plethora of ideas for PE classes, and one
that can be used deals with the human body series, which is
noted at Exploratorium
from the start page.
All grade levels will find this interesting, which gives
them ideas on how the body works. This will give them a better
understanding of the skills, whether it is in a regulation
PE class or at home during the summer. The end result will
be a better grasp of the learning process, and at the same
time will have the students prepared to restart school with
a better attitude, which will make them instantly ready to
learn new and exciting activities. All of this can be accomplished
by keeping a blog,
fitness calendar, or notebook to track what was done each
day.
As
the school year ends and the students take in a myriad of
experiences, it should also be a time for teachers to reflect
what has transpired during the school year. It is a time to
envision what worked and what didn't. And it's a time to find
ways to change or make adjustments to the curriculum that
will align to the national standards. 