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I wrote this when my son's el ed school lost their pe teacher. I felt there may be some tips in here for martial arts instructors
Hints for Nonphysical Educators Who Teach Physical Education by J. Richard Kirkham
For those educators forced into a situation wherein you must teach a discipline such as physical education, as a physical educator my heart goes out to you. Here are some hints and tips for teaching physical education to a large class I've picked up over the years of teaching physical education, martial arts and tutoring students with behavior challenges.
Hints for Nonphysical Educators Who Teach Physical Education
For those educators forced into a situation wherein you must teach a discipline such as physical education, as a physical educator my heart goes out to you. Here are some hints and tips for teaching physical education to a large class I've picked up over the years of teaching physical education, martial arts and tutoring students with behavior challenges. I'll try to cover as many ideas and techniques as I can to improve both the students and your experience to an even greater degree.
Warming Up
Calisthenics may be a good idea in the beginning especially for elementary children to teach them these basic exercises, but the actual best way to warm up for any activity is to execute that activity at a slow controlled pace. Furthermore due to students fast metabolic rate, up to teen years, do not technically need to warm up for an activity. Warming up is, however, a teaching opportunity by having the students execute basic movements of the activity they'll be doing that day.
Choosing Sides
Picking captains always leaves the child with the lowest self-esteem for physical activities last. We want all students to grow up with a good feeling for physical activity. Instead of picking captains to call names and leave one child left to be last, have students line up in a straight line (don't tell them what you're going to do or they'll line up accordingly) and have them count off by twos. Now one's are one team the two's are the other team. This has the advantage of students possibly making new friends and developing their social skills.
Correcting a Student's Technique
Start with a compliment so the student feels good about his/her attempt and the student's peers notice as well. Then continue with
“It would be even better if you did this”
Lines and Waiting
Lines are a fairly normal part of school. My son learned to stand in line and wait his turn even in preschool. Now, however we're talking about physical education. The less time a student spends in line “waiting his/her turn” the less physical activity the student will have. If you absolutely must have lines, make the lines shorter with more teams or more activities. One of the worst activities for this I've witness is Kickball. Waiting to kick the ball, waiting for the ball to come to them in the field, the student who needs to do physical activity the most is the least likely to go after the ball to avoid being chastised by peers. If you must play games such as Kickball have more than two teams. You can even assign students numbers and allow for activities such as kicking balls in a circle while the student waits his/her turn to play the game when his/her team is up. When it's the student's turn to kick the ball, call his or her number. Notice I said balls earlier by the way. Who made the rule it had to be one ball or one circle?
I was substitute teaching elementary school in Illinois, a school with no physical educator. The teacher's note said play soccer. I had about 20 minutes and about 20 students. Do the math. That's about one minute per student to get the ball. You could tell these students were ready to socialize just like it was recess. So I made a very simple change, I threw in two balls. I still remember one little girl screaming in surprise when a ball came to her and her little group that had already formed to chat. Every student was involved in that game including the goalies. They ended their 20 minute physical education class huffing and puffing as though they weren't used to physical activity. Remember this is Physical Education not Waiting Education. Think outside of the box to get all your students involved.
Special Guest for Physical Education
Have a guest demonstrate and teach an activity under your supervision. As a martial artist naturally I'd love to go to schools and teach a nonstrike self-defense course. There is a whole classroom of parents with special talents from hacky sack to gymnastics. Getting parents involved not only gets the parent involved in his/her child's activities which could then carry on in the home but would also give parents an idea of how tough it is being a teacher. Heck maybe they'll donate more to their school after that.
Conclusion
You've been thrown into a tough job. You have teaching skills already. Don't be afraid to think outside of the box. Hopefully a qualified physical educator will take over for you soon. Since 25% of children are now at a level of obesity all parents, teachers, administrators, and concerned school board members will be addressing your issue shortly.
About The Author
J. Richard Kirkham graduated from Eastern Illinois University as a dual certified teacher, Physical Education and Special Education for Physical Education. He is the author of Tutoring and Positive Reinforcement Techniques and Methodology for all Parents and Teachers and How to Exercise Throughout Your Day
He's also a martial arts instructor with over 30 years experience in martial arts and self-defense. He has expertise in alternative teaching methods and positive reinforcement methodology. He currently resides in Honolulu with his wife Jan and son Rylan. Feel free to visit Mr. Kirkham's website at http://KirkhamsEbooks.com or you may email him at help@kirkhamsebooks.com . This material is copyrighted but may be printed and is available upon request in its entirety.
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Hints for Nonphysical Educators Who Teach Physical Education by J. Richard Kirkham
For those educators forced into a situation wherein you must teach a discipline such as physical education, as a physical educator my heart goes out to you. Here are some hints and tips for teaching physical education to a large class I've picked up over the years of teaching physical education, martial arts and tutoring students with behavior challenges.
Hints for Nonphysical Educators Who Teach Physical Education
For those educators forced into a situation wherein you must teach a discipline such as physical education, as a physical educator my heart goes out to you. Here are some hints and tips for teaching physical education to a large class I've picked up over the years of teaching physical education, martial arts and tutoring students with behavior challenges. I'll try to cover as many ideas and techniques as I can to improve both the students and your experience to an even greater degree.
Warming Up
Calisthenics may be a good idea in the beginning especially for elementary children to teach them these basic exercises, but the actual best way to warm up for any activity is to execute that activity at a slow controlled pace. Furthermore due to students fast metabolic rate, up to teen years, do not technically need to warm up for an activity. Warming up is, however, a teaching opportunity by having the students execute basic movements of the activity they'll be doing that day.
Choosing Sides
Picking captains always leaves the child with the lowest self-esteem for physical activities last. We want all students to grow up with a good feeling for physical activity. Instead of picking captains to call names and leave one child left to be last, have students line up in a straight line (don't tell them what you're going to do or they'll line up accordingly) and have them count off by twos. Now one's are one team the two's are the other team. This has the advantage of students possibly making new friends and developing their social skills.
Correcting a Student's Technique
Start with a compliment so the student feels good about his/her attempt and the student's peers notice as well. Then continue with
“It would be even better if you did this”
Lines and Waiting
Lines are a fairly normal part of school. My son learned to stand in line and wait his turn even in preschool. Now, however we're talking about physical education. The less time a student spends in line “waiting his/her turn” the less physical activity the student will have. If you absolutely must have lines, make the lines shorter with more teams or more activities. One of the worst activities for this I've witness is Kickball. Waiting to kick the ball, waiting for the ball to come to them in the field, the student who needs to do physical activity the most is the least likely to go after the ball to avoid being chastised by peers. If you must play games such as Kickball have more than two teams. You can even assign students numbers and allow for activities such as kicking balls in a circle while the student waits his/her turn to play the game when his/her team is up. When it's the student's turn to kick the ball, call his or her number. Notice I said balls earlier by the way. Who made the rule it had to be one ball or one circle?
I was substitute teaching elementary school in Illinois, a school with no physical educator. The teacher's note said play soccer. I had about 20 minutes and about 20 students. Do the math. That's about one minute per student to get the ball. You could tell these students were ready to socialize just like it was recess. So I made a very simple change, I threw in two balls. I still remember one little girl screaming in surprise when a ball came to her and her little group that had already formed to chat. Every student was involved in that game including the goalies. They ended their 20 minute physical education class huffing and puffing as though they weren't used to physical activity. Remember this is Physical Education not Waiting Education. Think outside of the box to get all your students involved.
Special Guest for Physical Education
Have a guest demonstrate and teach an activity under your supervision. As a martial artist naturally I'd love to go to schools and teach a nonstrike self-defense course. There is a whole classroom of parents with special talents from hacky sack to gymnastics. Getting parents involved not only gets the parent involved in his/her child's activities which could then carry on in the home but would also give parents an idea of how tough it is being a teacher. Heck maybe they'll donate more to their school after that.
Conclusion
You've been thrown into a tough job. You have teaching skills already. Don't be afraid to think outside of the box. Hopefully a qualified physical educator will take over for you soon. Since 25% of children are now at a level of obesity all parents, teachers, administrators, and concerned school board members will be addressing your issue shortly.
About The Author
J. Richard Kirkham graduated from Eastern Illinois University as a dual certified teacher, Physical Education and Special Education for Physical Education. He is the author of Tutoring and Positive Reinforcement Techniques and Methodology for all Parents and Teachers and How to Exercise Throughout Your Day
He's also a martial arts instructor with over 30 years experience in martial arts and self-defense. He has expertise in alternative teaching methods and positive reinforcement methodology. He currently resides in Honolulu with his wife Jan and son Rylan. Feel free to visit Mr. Kirkham's website at http://KirkhamsEbooks.com or you may email him at help@kirkhamsebooks.com . This material is copyrighted but may be printed and is available upon request in its entirety.
Get Kwik Self-Defense and Fitness Tips and Share Your Own
Self_Defense_Tips-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
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EducationProblemsNSolutions-subscribe@yahoogroups.com