6 WAYS TO WEAVE HEALTH EDUCATION CONCEPTS INTO PHYSICAL EDUCATION

written by Christopher M. Ledingham and Phillip K. Conatser

Phillip Conatser

Chris Ledingham

The physical education classroom is a great place to incorporate a number of health education concepts, but we want to be careful not to take away from the physical activity component of the class. This means we need to get creative in the ways in which we link the activities we do in the classroom with real world applications which our students need. Below you will find a list of suggestions and resources for six broad areas in which we can incorporate health education concepts into our adapted physical education classes.

NUTRITION
Physical activity and nutrition are two topics that must go hand-in-hand in regard to our students. Proper engagement of our students in physical activity is dependent on their nutritional intake, as students who are not eating well don't perform well. But, that's only part of the problem. We also need to incorporate nutrition education into our PE classrooms. Here are some suggestions.

• Develop a nutrition scavenger hunt:
• Over the course of the week take some time each day (5 -10 minutes) to discuss a food group using information taken from the US Department of Agriculture or other sources.
• After you have made it through all the food groups, take 20 minutes and have students perform a scavenger hunt in the gym. Take pictures cut out from magazines or food replicas, and scatter them around the perimeter of the gym or large open space. Using the center as a home base, call out different foods or food groups and have the students race to find the foods and return them to home base.
• You can call out foods and have each student build a healthy meal. This concept can be easily modified for students of all ages and abilities.

DRUG USE
Teaching students about the effects of drug abuse is a challenge even with the best tools. However, a little creativity and we can incorporate some simple lasting concepts into our physical activity classes. You don't have to be an expert on drugs that are abused, but a little refresher on them can be accomplished by visiting National Institute of Drug Abuse website.

After you've reviewed a bit, you can introduce some of these topics to your classes. Don't base the discussion on the drugs and how they are abused, but you introduce students to the side effects that some of these drugs have on performance. For example, to simulate the effects of alcohol abuse have the students take part in a dizzy bat relay where they have to spin around 10 times, and then have to complete a series of tasks, like shooting a basket or tossing a ball to a friend.

CHRONIC DISEASES
Students today are familiar with the terms cancer, heart disease, and diabetes, but do they always understand the link between physical activity (the lack of) and these terms? To enhance your students understanding of these conditions you could select one disease each month, and put up posters and have mini-discussions on the topics, linking the activity of the day to how it helps prevent the disease. Here is a list of select National Health Observances. More can be found doing a simple web search.

1. January - Thyroid Awareness Month
2. February: American Heart Month, National Wise Health Consumer Month
3. March - National Nutrition Month
4. April - STI Awareness Month, National Facial Protection Month, Sports Eye Safety Month
5. May - Arthritis Awareness Month
6. June - Men's Health Month
7. July - Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month
8. August - National Immunization Awareness Month
9. September - National Cholesterol Education Month, National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month
10. October - National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
11. November - American Diabetes Month, Lung Cancer Awareness Month
12. December - National Hand washing Awareness Week

INJURY PREVENTION
To emphasize injury prevention in physical education we often talk about the importance of proper warm-up, stretching activity, and cool-down. But how can we take it a step further, and beyond sport safety? First of all, start with sport safety. Instead of immediately handing out equipment, take some time to explain the safety features and rules associated with all types of sports equipment - from the materials used to make the equipment, to their proper use and care. You can then 'work in' concepts of personal injury prevention in the home by explaining how being fit can impact movement, balance, and personal safety.

MENTAL HEALTH
Mental health concepts are usually taught briefly in the health education classroom. Working in the positive effects of exercise on mental health, into your description of the importance of being active, is a great first step in teaching students the link between the mental health and exercise. Students can also be challenged to modify games to accommodate persons of different abilities.

CONSUMER HEALTH
One of the most important components of physical education is knowing how to properly use the equipment. For most of us, when we think of equipment our thoughts go to bats, balls, gloves and other tools, but what about the shoes or clothing we wear? How much time do you spend in your classes talking about the importance of clothing? Or what about sports equipment in the home? Taking a few minutes to cover a consumer myth of the week can be a great way to broaden your students' outlook, and teach them the importance of making smart consumer choices.

SUMMARY
Health and Physical Education go hand-in-hand and today's students need exposure to quality physical education, which teaches them not only the skills involved in physical activity, but the benefits and health implications associated with these skills. This need therefore requires that the physical educator move beyond the teaching of sport skill and emphasize the life skills that are critical to lifelong physical activity.

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