Setting the Stage

I am getting tired of hearing "can't we do anything fun?" during my morning physical education classes. I view it as a simple frame of mind. But obviously what I find fun isn't the same thing as my students. Never mind that overweight/obesity statistics have continued to rise and the prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes is increasing throughout the adolescent population. "Fun" is such a relative term. "Fun" to me, is a realization that one's life will drastically change after high school and team sports will falter to individualized workouts whenever they can be fit it between pizza and studying or working. As a secondary physical education teacher I believe that one must leave school with a wide variety of "tools" to utilize to prevent problems from arising. Stability balls, medicine balls, resistance bands, resistance training, circuit training creation, etc. are all things one can fall back on to meet the recommended daily workouts. Or if one's tools have gathered rust or broken, to be able to access valid information to better their livelihood. Who am I to think that in today's 4G world, kids have the patience to properly plan and participate in an approved individualized workout? To those who are, I thank you!

"Fun" to me is taking steps to prevent disease from setting in, instead of reacting to it once it rears its ugly head. Physical education has transformed since I was in high school, mid-late 1990s. Gone, or modified, are the traditional team sports and individualized personal fitness is king. Don't get me wrong, it is easy to play kickball and dodgeball and rationalize how it meets NASPE standards. Not much prep time there. It has been my mission to bring a non-traditional approach to my physical education classes, but it has been met with resistance.

In future posts I will share my thoughts on what I have been doing for the past five years, and where I believe my classroom should be headed by combining scientific research and best practices. It might mean that all I know to be is wrong. But until recently I have been scared to face that possibility. It is time to stop thinking I know a lot, what I do know and implement is backed by science, but is that enough to prevent one of my students from becominmg a statistic?

Who have I impacted lately? Those who have applied anything I have taught them, and for those who just might in the future.