Lab D: The Final Chapter!!!

Improvement was a key goal for me going into the last lab of the year for EDU 255. The preparation for Lab D which unit was on Table Tennis, while concentrating on Performance Enhancing Drugs was just as organized and creative as my last lab, which unit was Fencing. This time however my presentation was much more organized, hit major elements that needed to be achieved and went a lot more smoothly than that of Lab C.

Although there was less obstacles to be conquered I do feel as if I am headed in a positive direction moving forward after this semester. I directed all my worrying and thinking before hand of what information needed to be distributed to the class for it to be correct and instead concentrated on what it was I was doing at the present time accomplishing the end goal of teaching the students of 255 how to perform a backhanded loop and chop in Table Tennis. All the information that was supposed to be presented to the class came out naturally with flow.

The support I have gotten throughout this class and more importantly this semester has given me strength to accomplish even the most difficult goals. I am beyond excited for the opportunity to be a Physical Educator. Leaving 255 on the highest of my accomplishments after struggling to gain the concept of the labs has left me feeling proud of myself. With hard work and dedication there is no limit to what anyone can achieve. I thank you Dr. Yang and my peers for your support and patience.

Lesson Plan
Progressions
Time Coding
Feedback Analysis
Developing Content
C-9 Form (Teacher's Assistant)
C-9 Form (Self)

NYSAHPERD at Turning Stone!

It opened my eyes to new and improved ways to teach through the physical. The conference refreshed my understanding of how to take simple materials such as small equipment and recreate and event new games and activities that the students of all ages can participate in and most importantly have fun doing.

The dance class I attended was extremely motivating and fun. It had me out of breath and sweating at the end of the class. It is activities like these that are going to help build my professional development and goals of creating a more sufficient environment with effect lesson plans in my classroom.

            Overall it was an amazing event networking with teachers and professors from other schools as well as distributors, health care professionals and activity researchers. I look forward to attending many more of these conferences in the future.

St. Mary's Holiday Carnival

     St. Mary's provided their annual Holiday Carnival on Saturday November 19th, 2011. SUNY Cortland students including myself helped bring fun activities and games to the St. Mary's students for the holidays. I maintained the popular Spongebob basketball shot booth, which was a big hit in the St. Mary's Carnival. I had the opportunity to help instruct the students on the proper way to perform a basketball shot and use both techniques of teaching by invitation as well as intratask variations. Since I was in the giving holiday mood I gave the students other chances as well as one ticket as a reward for attempting the task. I had so much fun meeting the parents and getting to see the students. I know I am where I want to be!

Hockey Stop Assignment

The three different significant elements that contribute to performing a hockey stop are:

1. Knees Bent
2. Hips Turned
3. Lean on Inner Edge of Skate Blades

Lab C: Whatever doesn't hurt you, makes you stronger.

 

The after math of Lab C’s performance left me extremely disappointed. The hard work and preparation that was put into this particular assignment by myself was hidden by a dreadful execution that has led me to believe that there is much more improvement to be done. After viewing the video it came to my attention that nothing will always go the way you want it to.

During my performance a curve ball was thrown to me. It was a challenge that I did not predict out of all the possible scenarios. There was a student in the class who could not speak any English what so ever. Funny, that it should happen to me, for this was one of my biggest fears when deciding to become a teacher. I have taken one foreign language class in the 20+ years that I have been attending school. This one obstacle that was substituted into my lesson ended up hurting the core of my performance.

Although this assignment knocked me down and had many flaws involved within it, I was able to come up with some positive feedback. The lesson itself felt worse than it actually looked when reviewing the video. I seemed in control of the situation as well as on a role up until when the obstacle was introduced. I showed composure and strength to rebound in the final minutes of my lesson plan to try and get something accomplished after freezing with fear and concern. Furthermore, I am grateful that this obstacle was given to me because it gave me an opportunity to learn how to solve such a problem if it were ever to happen to me out in the real world.

At this point in time it would be safe to say that there is nowhere else to go but up.

Lesson Plan

Task Progressions

Time Code

C-9 Form (Self)

C-9 Form (Teacher's Assistant)

St. Mary's: Outside Looking In!

               These past few weeks attending St. Mary’s as a TA for the Motor Development class have been special. I feel more comfortable than I ever have, establishing a leadership role juggling both the SUNY Cortland students and the St. Mary’s students. The goal I set for myself in becoming a Teacher’s Assistant has provided me with the experience I am looking for. This past Monday, my group did a great job establishing an active and fun environment for the St. Mary’s Pre-K. The SUNY Cortland students seemed more comfortable and confident with providing their tasks to the St. Mary’s students. As a group, they need to work on their creativity to the games they choose from a motivating stand point. Looking up games that already exist is great but incorporating your own twist and mark on the game keeps will eventually allow you to make your own games up. The relativity to the themes each week can also use some improving. Again this is all just being able to work on the creativity portion of their lesson plans. Other than that it has been a successful and fun semester with the Motor Development group at St. Mary’s too say the least!

Cortland Mini-Conference

           
           The Cortland Mini-Conference provided many unique ideas to help express Physical Education in our future classrooms. The Conference started off with excitement with a flash mob representing SUNY Cortland, which was created by Dr. Yang. SUNY students in Dr. Yang’s Motor Development and EDU 255 classes including myself, helped structure and coordinate the dance, props, and technology to establish a successful beginning of the conference.

Being a member of APEM, I had the opportunity to work the conference and help presenters with the technical services that they needed to help get there information across to the visitors attending. Listening into some of the presentations, I became interested in many of the topics that expressed technology in there PE programs.

            Most of my time was spent in the Exergaming Room, which provided different ways to perform physical activity while playing videogames. I have had strong interest in this area since the NYSAAPHERD Conference I attended at C.W. Post back in 2008. The motivation that comes with playing these Exergames is extraordinary. It will only be a matter of time before this area of physical activity becomes a huge impact in what PE majors like me are trying to accomplish in this field.

Lab B: Jump Roping

A reality check was presented to me on this particular lab assignment. After viewing my last performance, I worked harder and prepared more in advance to improve my teaching performance. Unfortunately, my nerves had gotten the best of me. Although, I improved some of the bad habits I had in the prior lab, I failed to target the smaller things needed for the lesson. Even though they are considered small they are still extremely important to the learning process. Such things consisted of safety rules, signaling for attention and specific feedback.

I was extremely disappointed with my performance after putting in such time and effort to this lab. I didn’t doubt what I wanted to do with my career but if I was good enough for it. I care so much about the impact of learning I have on future students that it left me with a stomach ache. I was thinking too much about what I should be doing right and what I was doing wrong throughout the performance. The concentration of my lessons needs to be the quality of learning that I establish within the students comprehension.

After watching the video though, it didn’t look as bad as it felt. You could tell of my nervousness but on a positive note my speaking was clear with less slang and at times I showed signs of confidence. The structure of the lesson could have been organized better, breaking down the motor task further. Overall though this lab has shown me that I have come a long way but also have a lot more to learn.


Transcript/Time Code

Lab A: Four Minute Lesson Drill

Preparation, enthusiasm, and confidence go a long way in Physical Education. I learned that through this lesson's experience. There were many differences as well as unfortunate similarities in the second video of the four minute instructing drill that was retaken from the first video made on an ambush first day back challenge.

Based on the evidence from the first video it was obvious that I was completely unprepared, stuttering over my words while looking up at the ceiling as a force of habit for thinking out loud. The introduction was cold and meaningless. There was absolutely no enthusiasm but that was based on the intensity of nervousness. I had given no feedback or positive comments and had trouble explaining and expressing the motor task. I even confused the students by mixing up the rules of the game Knockout and Horse. The positive aspect that I saw in this video was the tool of demonstration to show the students how to shoot the basketball but did not demonstrate it correctly. Furthermore, telling the students they could shoot it anyway they want is not an intelligent request. At that point I felt compelled to hurry the instruction so I could lose the center of attention.

            The second time around was much better although I forgot one of the most important things, the introduction. I was prepared, enthusiastic, and much more confident. I slowed down the lesson a little bit from the last video but would have liked to have slowed it down even more and still felt like I rushed through the processes. I repeated myself a lot trying to teach the lesson and have a heavy slang and New York accent. I need to be clearer on my pronunciation. I was louder which gave me the opportunity to hear the video as opposed to the last video, so if I could hear it they could hear it. Need to keep the approach of teaching the motor skill more simple. It was a long explanation of the lesson. The mind set I need to have going into a lesson is being calmer and slowing down the pace of translating the point I am trying to get across. Rushing gives me less time to think and distracts me when, what I am thinking to say is racing in my head a 100 mph. Composure is a key element. I also need to establish CFU’s and key point cues into my lesson. Overall though, I felt there was much progress made compared to the first video.



Transcript

EDU 255 Chapter 2 & 4 Questions

Chapter 2

3.) Describe what a student would look like who is in different stages of learning a motor skill.

Learning a motor skill is not considered the same as learning or teaching a skill of sport such as hockey. Motor skills can be refined and enhanced by a teacher but for the most part these skills are learned along the way by a particular person. An example of this would be walking, this process of learning may be sped up by a teacher but learning the skill has a lot to do with the person’s environment. Encouragement from a parent to have their child try and walk sets up an environment that allows this, then the child will be more likely to learn quicker. In this particular scenario the parent induced the child's walking but the environment and child's will to walk is stronger. But as teachers this doesn't mean that we can't help to teach to students how to become better at motor movements. Although most kids can run already this doesn't mean a game can't be introduced to allow more running. While teaching these skills teachers must be persistent because we must realize the student has to learn this skill.

 4.) What is the difference between the way closed skills, open skills, discrete skills, and serial skills should be taught?

Open skills and closed skills should both be taught differently because they both propose different situations. For instance open skills shouldn't be taught in closed situations because it is unrealistic. It would be a waste of time to practice a foul shot in a situation where a defender can block the shot, just like it would be irrelevant to scrimmage and so nobody can play defense. The skills must be taught in a certain manor otherwise they are a waste of time. A discrete skill is something that is performed, and has a clear start and stop to the skill. For instance the book gives an example of throwing javelin, you begin by running down the run away and then throw the javelin. That is the entire skill and then it is over. A serial skill is a little different. It is a few skills combined into a sequence. In baseball fielding a ground ball is considered a serial skill. You must field the ball, come up with it and throw the ball to the first baseman. All of these skills must be taught separately because in game situations if they present themselves the student must be prepared.

Chapter 4

2.) What are some things teachers can do to improve communication with learners in task presentation?

Being a physical educator is very difficult to communicate with students because our job does not take place in a quiet classroom, but a loud gymnasium. The key component of communication is getting the students attention. Gaining this is also difficult because of the environment the gym is an easy place for a kid to get lost mentally especially once they get their mind hooked on playing a game. To get this factor out teachers should lay down clear rules that students can easily follow and understand. Another great way to eliminate students not being attentive is by saying what must be said quickly and talking minimally. Get everybody in a huddle and right back out into an activity.




 
3.) What are guidelines for using demonstration effectively?

Providing a demonstration is key in Physical Education because many people must be able to see the skill that they are asked to perform and can't just hear an explanation. Some keys to demonstrating are to make sure that a demonstration is accurate and what you are looking for. Another tool to use is let students demonstrate, this keeps everybody interested because they could be asked to demonstrate next. While demonstrating it is pivotal that the teacher is not only showing the skill but talking through it as well. Be sure to have cues to emphasize the important aspects of the skill.
 

 

5.) What are the characteristics of good learning cues? Design a set of learning cues you would use with young beginning learners and then for older advanced learners for a closed skill, open skill, and movement concept.

A good cue is a clear and sequential description about the movement. It is important to be sequential while teaching the skill so that the students understand how to do the skill. While teaching a closed skill verbal cues are very important rather than just a demonstration. Having cues in their memory would be effective because when they are in the moment the student can talk themselves through the situation. Open skills is a little bit different because demonstrations are very important to learning them. This happens in a more active setting where people are running around and moving therefore mental cues may be hard to remember. If you are playing basketball and a defender is in your face it is hard to think rather than just react.

EDU 255 Chapter 1 Questions

1.      What is meant by the idea that teaching is a goal-oriented activity?

 The idea that teaching is a goal-oriented activity implies that the teacher designs a process in which a goal is supplied regarding what the student will learn. If the goal is not met then the student did not learn the proper material.

5.   Why is the movement task- student response unit of analysis so important in physical education?

The movement task – student response unit of analysis is extremely important in physical education because it sets up process in which teachers can observe, help, and assess students on the task that is trying to be achieved. It also gives teachers the ability to redesign the task once the task is completed properly or the students are having trouble completing the task. The ability to observe the students response to one significant task allows teachers to concentrate on what problems have to be worked out to help that student reach his/her goal.

7.   What is the relationship between teaching functions and teaching skills? List two teaching functions teachers must perform, and describe two alternative behaviors teachers can choose to perform these functions.

Teaching functions and teaching skills are relative to each other because a teacher’s responsibilities are influenced by the proper teaching functions established in a classroom and the skills are a teacher’s tool that helps achieve responsibilities. Teaching functions include being able to demonstrate, analyze, and most importantly teach but without teaching skills none of those are possible. An example would be getting kids to listen and have them quiet. Phrases like "criss-cross apple sauce" or clap three times if you can hear me help teachers get the students attention. All of these skills enable us to teach more proficiently which in the end results in the students being successful.

First Day Back and Teacher's Assistant Experience!

The first week of a new semester brought past memories back from PED 201. In professor Yang's EDU 255 class we were put to work right where we left off, having to instruct a 4 minute session of any particular skill of sport to the rest of the class. I was extremely rusty and had realized the confidence I had gained last semester had evaporated. I have many things to work on in this upcoming semester. Touring the new group of SUNY Cortland students, which are in line to experience what St. Mary's has to offer, I passed the torch of important knowledge I had learned in the previous semester. The comfort ability and ease of being able to instruct a group almost felt natural the second time around. This was and will be my continuing goal throughout the semester to try and gain as much experience as possible through the Teacher's Assistant position.

Lab 6: May the Force be with St. Mary's

The last lab at St. Mary’s school was a memorable one. The Cortland students associated our last assignment with a Star Wars theme. This was a great success with the majority of Cortland and St. Mary’s students being big fans of the epic movie/story. It was great to have an opportunity to introduce the historic characters and story to the pre-k. Brittney Olsen, team member of the Shimney Crickets has shown amazing creativity towards the arts and crafts for the pre-k the last couple of weeks. It showed in the children’s faces filled with excitement. The difference between observing the pre-k and the older kids is very interesting with the gentle kindness, innocence, and a sense of possible potential to be great learners. The Cortland students finished the day off with Beyonce’s Lets Move dance and some fun Star Wars games using the parachute. The children loved this prop and it was the easy favorite of the day. It has been a great pleasure attending St. Mary’s school this semester and look forward to seeing more of the children and faculty in the near future.







Lab 6

Highest Achievement Presentation

 In December 2002, I was able to perform a remarkable feat that I had only dreamed about growing up. I am a skilled bowler who established the first two 300 perfect games in Lynbrook High School history. The ability to be able to bowl a 300 is rare but with the time and effort I put into this difficult task I had accomplished a goal with the probabilities not in my favor. The sky was the limit for me after the success I had worked hard for. This presentation demonstrates the importance of this successful achievement.

Bowling a Perfect Game in High School on Prezi

SUNY Cortland Bouncing Support for Let's Move Program

 Today, SUNY Cortland students bounced their support of the new dance created by musical icon artist, Beyonce who has given her support to the Let’s Move program established by Michelle Obama to help children become more active and nutritionally healthy. Take a look and join the fight against child obesity.

St. Mary's 5k Run!

SUNY Cortland students had all hands in on St. Mary’s 5 k run, Saturday, April 9^th, 2011. The run consisted of different distant runs for different ages. Delicious pancakes were served throughout the morning. The streets were filled with eager children and parents running around the path provided by St. Mary’s school. The Cortland students helped entertain the children of St. Mary’s with games and activities; protected the boundaries of the run and supported the children and parents as they ran.

Lab 5: The Easter Vibe

            St. Mary’s students had our class hopping with excitement. I had a great opportunity to experience significant time with the pre-k. The atmosphere was amusing and fun. The ability to interact with the children through reading Easter bunny books and having them participate in arts and crafts, creating Easter bunny puppets, made the time spent enlightening.

In the beginning of the after school activities at St. Mary’s I was able to properly assess the motor skills of dribbling a basketball and kicking a soccer ball into a net. This was exciting and interesting to see the different areas and levels of movement each student performed. The motor skills being related to sports was also a nice change of pace do to my interest on the matter.

I finished off the day establishing a creative game of musical dribbling with the pre-k. The objective was to have the pre-k dribble in different ways when the music was playing and have them run to any available poly spot once the music stopped. The interest in the children was promising and the group all together looked to be having an energetic and enthusiastic experience.

           The educational value that I had personally learned through this activity was how much more of a comfortable approach instructing students can be once you get to interact with them in a class setting. Through expressing positive feedback and encouragement, the children will be motivated to continue the game or other kinds of activity.

Lab 5

Group Skit Project !!!

The Motor Development group project was a success. The Shimney Crickets created a music video associating 50 cent’s original rap “Disco Inferno” and altering it with our own lyrics that were relative to an infant’s motor development.  The group each played a vital role and it could not be done without everyone’s hard work and ideas. There is a clip below, don’t hesitate to post a comment.

Thank You St. Mary's !!!

The Students at SUNY Cortland would like to thank the faculty staff and the students of St. Mary’s school for giving us an opportunity to work with them. Personally, I have learned so much in such little time and look forward to continuing to work with St. Mary’s. This experience is the true meaning of people helping other people.

Lab 4: A Dinosaur Roar!

This week at St. Mary’s school had the Cortland students roaring for more. We concentrated on the hit TV series Dinosaur Train and associated it into our activities that were presented to the St. Mary’s students. The assessments of the St. Mary’s students continued with evaluating their throwing and catching techniques. The Shiminey Cricket’s finished the day with the popular wiggle’s dance, a St. Mary’s huddle for a shout out to Dinosaur Train, and created and provided posters for the 1-5k run that will be taking place at St. Mary’s school this Saturday at 8 o’clock in the morning. Hope to see everyone there!

Lab 4

Lab 3: Effective Teaching Strategies

YEE HAA!!! This week’s theme had St. Mary and Cortland students experiencing western civilization. The cowboy’s and cowgirl’s of Cortland associated games, activities, and the Cotton Eye Joe dance with western civilization. Our groups continue to concentrate on assessing the students of St. Mary’s with motor skills such as a leap, horizontal jump, and a slide. Teaching strategies helped us to grab the attention of St. Mary’s students as well as help successfully accomplish the activities and games prepared for the students without confusion or disinterest. The expressions on the student’s faces were memorable and everyone had a great and fun experience.

Lab 3  

Inspiring!!!

Stories like this one are the reason I dedicate myself to becoming a Physical Educator. I know I am where I want to be.

Chapter 4 Slide Presentation

This slide presentation summarizes Chapter 4 of our Motor Development textbook. The information provided is not only important for the future of physical education but enlightening for the detailed knowledge of physical fitness provided to help better the process of motor development.

Lab 2: Learning to Observe and Assess

The second week at St. Mary’s school had the Cortland students experiencing how to affectively assess the children using the motor skills that were associated with the activities and games provided by our groups. Although at times it was difficult to observe the students due to the excitement they had over the games and activities, most of the motor tasks that were performed by the St. Mary’s students were accomplished successfully. One of the most common problems noticed of the observing of the students was not being able to know whether or not they could use both the dominant and non-dominant limbs while performing the motor tasks. The best experience I had with this lab was being able to dress up as a cartoon character and see the curiosity as well as the ambition to learn. 

Lab 2 

Lab 1: Learning to Teach, Teaching to Learn

The official start of my career in physical education began this week with a teaching experience that left me wanting more. The students of St. Mary’s school are filled with happiness, creativity and ambition. I had an opportunity to create and modify a game of my own while associating the subject of nutrition to help the students of St. Mary’s school become more knowledgeable about healthy eating habits. The activity was performed by the K-1 grades. The activity was instructed by myself which was truly scary because not only was it my idea but my instructions. I was in unfamiliar territory. The confidence of what I had created and how I was going to present it just kicked in. The activity itself and the way I instructed it was a success. The body language of the students told me they enjoyed the time they spent with our group. That to me made me realize I am right where I want to be. The most productive lesson and I learned from the students as well as myself is I should not be afraid to fail, people learn from their mistakes, it will only make me stronger.

Lab 1

Enhancing Activities with Modifications to Help Nutrient Knowledge

The new guidelines that are being established into the modern physical education programs concerning health plans for our younger generations are of the upmost important. Personal experience involving lack of nutrient in my physical education in the past gives me a great opportunity to express new ideas. Enhancing games and locomotor skills by modifying them with cognitive excercise skills to help develop the knowledge for nutrient. An example of this would be:  Red Fruits, Green Fruits, 1-2-3 - The materials needed for this game are (4) 8 foot long jump ropes. There could be more or less depending on the size of the class and the area or space needed. Place the jump ropes on the floor on opposite sides of the gymnasium. Join the jump ropes together to form a big box so that there is a big box on both sides of the gymnasium. One box will be the donut penalty box, which is where the students will start. The box at the far end on the opposite side will be the fruit bowl. There will be a student chosen as the fruit police officer. His/her job is to stand on the fruit bowl side, turned around facing away from the students. The fruit police officer is not able to turn around or see them until saying out loud red fruits, green fruits, 1-2-3. If a student is caught moving toward the fruit bowl for safety, he/she will be asked a question on a specific color that is a fruit. If they get the question wrong they must go back to the donut penalty box and start over. If they get the question right they are safe. The objective is to have all the students reach the fruit bowl safely without getting caught by the fruit police officer.
Modifications - Variety of locomotor skills including running, hopping, skipping, sliding, and walking from one end to the other. Game can change as well. Instead of just asking a student right after being caught a question, you can have other fruit police officers chosen to try and tag the person who was caught moving. That person who was caught has the opportunity to run to the fruit bowl for safety before being tagged. If tagged though then he/she must answer the question given by the instructor.

Chapter 1

Fundamental skill development and assessment is extremely important to our professional career as well as the health of our students. Although, the most obvious answer an individual would come up with would be, without these things we wouldn’t have jobs. There is more to it than that. The fundamental skill development for a child helps them learn how to move and learn through moving. Motor development, cognitive learning (concept learning), and affective growth are all key aspects of what is involved in fundamental skill development. The goal is to have progressive enhancement physically by motor tasks and mentally by activities and games. This will become a snowball effect as the child grows into an adult and environmental obstacles although differ will be associated with what is learned at developing stages. The health of our students will also be more successful. This is important because of problems like obesity and early puberty, which could lead to health issues and bullying. These are problems that could end up affecting children in their development of becoming an adult cognitively as well. Assessment is important for the skill development of a child in measuring the progression of their motor skills, cognitive learning, and affective growth.

Picture Source 1

Picture Source 2

Day 2: Preparing for St Mary's and creation of team Shiminey Crickets!

The information provided today in our second lab classes although an abundant amount was very helpful in preparing to face the tasks we will have at St. Mary's School. I am excited to start. The games we learned and played today were fun and effective at the same time. The thing that surprised me the most is how much you could do with such little equipment and a lot of creativity. The second part of our lab class today involved creating a team in which we will be working with that team for the semester. I look foward to learning from, as well as providing my own personal knowledge and experience to my new group of Britney, Corey, and Austin. Let's Do This Team Shiminey Crickets!!!

Im in the Real World Now!

Today was an extremely exciting and enlightening eventful day. Although scary at times, I had the opportunity to have hands on experience with young children at St. Mary’s School. The interaction with such young children showed me just how different learning through a text book in my field of study and actually being a part of something so surreal gets me wanting more interaction. I am happy with what I have accomplished today and looking forward to the days ahead in my lab classes.