Give it to the Kids

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Home : 2008 : June : 13

Give it to the Kids
By kbrown

I was the same as you, I HATED PE in school, so I thought about WHY I hated it. I hated it because it wasn't fun and we did things I wasn't interested in. I taught 7th and 8th grade girls PE so I started the first part
of the year going over a routine, how to stretch, how to come into the gym, how to leave the gym, etc. Then I broke the class (about 40) into groups and made them teach the class for a week. They had write me a lesson plan, a list of supplies etc. and that way I could see what they were interested in, and the kids were responsible for their own fitness. It worked well, and while they

were coming up with the lessons, I was taking ideas from them. They did a wonderful job. There are also some amazing ready to go PE books that take you through a lesson, and skills step by step. Just go to Amazon and type in PE books. Another thing we did was a "Travel the US" where each state had a point value and to move from state to state they had to do certain activities. For example 10 push-ups = 1 point. California was worth 34 points so to move to another state they had to complete enough activities to get 34 points. They going really competitive, and that boosted their interest in PE. As for the sports, most of them have the skills by the time they are in the 7th grade; they just need to be refined. If you know the rules to the games you are miles ahead of most. Ask the kids who have better skills to help the ones who don't. I really think that this is a good age to get kids excited about being active, and the more they think it is "their idea" the more they will participate. Good luck, and again check out Amazon on B&N they have some great books ready to go.