New PE teacher/cross post

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High School Teachers Chatboard

New PE teacher/cross post

by Paloma

Aug 4, 2014

I posted this on the PE board, but see that it doesn't get a lot of traffic, so am posting here as well: In a nutshell...17 years in the classroom under my belt (Spanish). I have an AMAZING opportunity to teach PE, and I am through the roof excited! However, I am feeling overwhelmed. My experience is limited to two years of coaching cross country, and a few years experience teaching adult group exercise classes. I am a fitness enthusiast and avid runner. As a veteran teacher, I know at this point my biggest challenge is to establish clear procedures and expectations, day one (as any teacher would). I know that if I can do that, I can make it through the rest! And now I ask you, the experts. I'll take anything, anything at all! If you only have time to throw me ONE "must have" organizational procedure that you use in teaching this discipline, what can you share with me? Ready, set...GO! And thank you!! Oh, and this is PE, grades 6-12.

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dated opinion On 8/04/14, Paloma wrote: > I posted this on the PE board, but see that it doesn't get > a lot of traffic, so am posting here as well: > In a nutshell...17 years in the classroom under my belt > (Spanish). I have an AMAZING opportunity to teach PE, and I > am through the roof excited! However, I am feeling > overwhelmed. My experi...See MoreOn 8/04/14, Paloma wrote: > I posted this on the PE board, but see that it doesn't get > a lot of traffic, so am posting here as well: > In a nutshell...17 years in the classroom under my belt > (Spanish). I have an AMAZING opportunity to teach PE, and I > am through the roof excited! However, I am feeling > overwhelmed. My experience is limited to two years of > coaching cross country, and a few years experience teaching > adult group exercise classes. I am a fitness enthusiast and > avid runner. As a veteran teacher, I know at this point my > biggest challenge is to establish clear procedures and > expectations, day one (as any teacher would). I know that > if I can do that, I can make it through the rest! And now I > ask you, the experts. I'll take anything, anything at all! > If you only have time to throw me ONE "must have" > organizational procedure that you use in teaching this > discipline, what can you share with me? Ready, set...GO! > And thank you!! Oh, and this is PE, grades 6-12.

Well... the one year I did it I found the greatest challenge is simply that kids hate PE. And most PE instructors respond by treating it like Marine boot camp which only makes the kids hate it more. What's the point of PE? If the point is to torture kids then my school does a good job with it. My organizational suggestions would be - figure out what your goal is. Is it just keeping order?

1 out of every 3 kids are obese - we have a national problem to say the least. It's costly to a society - we're all paying for the medical problems that overweight kids and adults have. So it's just me but if I'd go back to PE these days, I'd try - for the sake of the country and well as the kids - to take the 'hate' out of PE. The 'you have exactly two minutes to change' and grim rigidity doesn't help them to become fit. We don't draw them in with that, we alienate them.

Maybe it's hopeless - maybe there's no way to make PE palatable. I know some schools have put in those climbing walls and bought inline skates etc. to try to spice up PE and make it palatable for kids.

And maybe it's hopeless too to try to get kids to be more fit and to understand the value of exercise. Kids all think they're immortal and despite those like you and me who keep fit, like it, and take pride in it - something like 2 out of every 3 adult Americans are obese. We're a minority.

What's your goal I guess is my question. If it's order above and beyond all other things, take the traditional approach - two minutes to change, shrieking whistle, etc. I think if I went back to PE, I'd swear I'd just take them on walks. I think walking them for a half hour twice a week would be doing more good for them and the country than anything else. At least that way they'd be getting some exercise twice a week which is more than most of them get on their own.

I don't know if I'd do BMI with them - some are going to be very embarrassed. But overall over many years of teaching I've come to believe that what we say as to school being preparation for life is nonsense and the year I spent as a student teacher in PE showed me PE was the same. The curriculum was not directly attached to fitness in any way. Everyone had to do the same number of laps regardless of the level of fitness they came in with. Then we switched up activities so often giving them a smattering of basketball - anyway it didn't make sense to me. Maybe modern PE curriculum is related to reality but it surely wasn't then.

Aug 7, 2014

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