PE News

2007-08
Welcome Back! We are starting our year in PE with cooperative activities. Partner Shoe Tying '07 These students are working together to tie a shoe using one hand from each partner.










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Crossing the Great Divide '07 These students have to move their group across the gym without losing contact with their neighbor's foot. Much more difficult than they thought!!






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Twisted Sister '07 Students had to hold hands in a line facing the same direction. The person at the end puts their hand against the wall. The task is for everyone in the line to end up with their arms folded across their chest



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Ragin' River '07 Each group of students was given the same equipment. Their task was to move their team and their equipment across the Ragin' River (gym floor) without touching the "water". Once their team was across, they had to build a hut and crawl through to safety.
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Soccer '07 FvHS's girls' assistant soccer coach came over to help us with soccer skills. 3rd and 5th grade students also helped Kindergarten and 1st graders during their recess time. Students worked on dribbling, passing, receiving and juggling.











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Archery 2007 3rd-5th graders had the opportunity to participate in an archery unit. In this unit, students learned how to safely hold, load, shoot and retrieve their arrows. We used a whistle system to know when to approach the firing line, when to load and shoot, when to retrieve and when to stop for an emergency situation. Kindergarteners, 1st and 2nd graders used the same approach - but with tossing javelins.

































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Bowling 2007 Students in grades K-5 learn the basic skills of bowling - the proper hold and delivery. 3rd-5th graders also learn how to keep score. Kindergartners and 1st graders were very fortunate to have 3rd and 5th graders give up their recess to help. We would also like to thank Fairview Middle School and Franklin Lanes for the use of their portable bowling lanes.


































































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Skating 2007 Students is grades K-5 spend approximately 2.5 weeks skating. During this time we learn how to get up safely, how to sit, how to fall properly and hopefully, how to prevent a fall. Students in grades 3-5 learn how to do crossovers and skate backwards. Many, many thanks to 3rd and 5th graders that gave up their recess time to help kindergartners and 1st graders. You may also catch a glimpse of a few teachers, parents, Mrs. Tidwell, and Mr. Walker skating.




































































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Golf 2008 Aaron and Justin from The Little Course at Franklin's Golf House came to teach our students about the full swing. They brought oversized clubs, tennis balls and velcro targets.


































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Climbing 2008 K-5th graders spent 2 weeks climbing. They climbed our traverse rock wall, the cargo net and the vertical rope. 3rd graders also gave up their recess time to help kindergarten students.































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Informative Articles and Links

KidsHealth

PE 4 Life

VERB: It's What You Do

VERB's Parent site

Connecting With Kids

National Association for Sport and Physical Education's Shape of the Nation survey (1999)

Thoughts to Ponder compiled by C. Kerst -Davis, a fellow PE teacher from the state.

Hidden Hazard - be cautious with those cleats

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KidsHealth For current information on your child and exercise

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VERB: It's What You Do

07/16/2002 - Updated 09:56 PM ET

Sedentary kids called to action in national campaign

By Nanci Hellmich, USA TODAY

Hey, kids, "verb" is no longer something you'll hear about just in English class. Today, the government is launching a $190 million national campaign to promote physical activity and other positive activities for 9- to 13-year-olds. It's called "VERB: It's What You Do."

The message is simple: Verbs are active and kids should be too, so pick your favorite verb � run, skip, swim, dance, play, volunteer, join clubs � and do it.

"Too many of our children are sitting around, and their inactivity is leading to serious health problems such as overweight, obesity and diabetes," says Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson. "Our kids need to be kids and be active. We need to get our children away from PlayStation and onto the playground."

Mike Greenwell of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which spearheaded the campaign, says organizers wanted to make it fun for kids. "We learned when we were planning the campaign that kids can smell a lesson a mile off. If they think it's a campaign to tell them what to do and what not to do, they won't be interested."

The project comes amid these startling statistics:

In 1999, 13% of children and adolescents were overweight.
One-fourth of children in America spend four hours or more a day watching television, and only 27% of high school students engage in moderate physical activity at least 30 minutes a day on five or more days of the week.
Three-quarters of overweight and obese 9- to 13-year-olds do not change their habits and remain overweight and obese in adulthood.
Type 2 diabetes is on the rise in young people, a trend unheard of a decade ago.

Although the campaign officially begins today, short TV commercials promoting the VERB campaign started to air in June. The current ads feature action verbs morphing into a child's form.

Longer ads out this fall will show real kids doing activities. Also coming this fall: ads on billboards, the radio and in print, including magazines such as Teen People and Sports Illustrated for Kids.

The TV commercials for kids will air after school, during prime time and on weekends during children's programming. Print ads aimed at parents will be released this fall.

The campaign also includes stops in at least nine cities on Nickelodeon's Wild and Crazy Kids Tour. There will be school-based promotions across the country, with messages on book jackets, school lunch menus and Channel One. America Online has developed a Web site (www.verbnow.com) for the effort. Special commercials and promotions have been created for children from various ethnic backgrounds.

"The part that is most exciting is that we had the resources to compete with the kind of research that companies do to promote commercial products like a new toy or new cereal," Greenwell says.

Lisa Mills of Frankel, a Chicago marketing group that worked on the project, says VERB is a brand.

"This is selling a product, but the product isn't something on the shelf in the grocery store," Mills says. "The product is an invitation to kids to be social and try all kinds of positive activities and decide what they like."

Margo Wootan of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a Washington, D.C.-based consumer group, says, "We think this is one of the most innovative and important programs to reduce childhood obesity." But she adds, "It's a real shame that the administration zeroed it out of its 2003 budget. Now it's up to Congress to restore the funding."

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Connecting With Kids

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Shape of Our Nation's Children

Highlights from Recent Studies

More children in this country are overweight than ever before, about double the number who were heavy in the late 1970s. The latest statistics are part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and show:

13% of children ages 6 to 11 were overweight in 1999, up from 11% in 1988-1994 and 7% in the late 1970s

14% of children ages 12 to 19 were overweight in 1999, up from 11% in 1988-1994 and 5% in the late 1970s

Obesity-related diseases cost the U.S. economy more than $100 billion every year. 1

Inactivity and poor diet cause at least 300,000 deaths a year in the United States. Only tobacco causes more preventable deaths. 1

Almost half of young people aged 12-21 and more than a third of high school students do not participate in vigorous physical activity on a regular basis. 1

Seventy-two percent of 9th graders participate in vigorous physical activity on a regular basis, compared with only 55% of 12th graders. 1

Children are not as active as they should be. Fewer than one in four children get 20 minutes of vigorous activity every day of the week. Less than one in four reported getting at least half an hour of any type of physical activity every single day. 2

About one in four children did not play on any sports teams, either at school or through community programs. 2

Physical activity peaks in 10th grade, at 11 hours per week as the median, and then begins a steady decline that is likely to continue into the adult years. 2

In all grade levels, girls get significantly less activity than boys, yet three-quarters of the girls surveyed felt they get enough exercise. 2

Participation Rates

Participation in Physical Education Class

Nationwide, 56.1% of students were enrolled in a physical education class. Female students in grade 9 (75.6%) were significantly more likely than female students in grades 11 and 12 (36.8% and 29.4%), respectively to be enrolled in a physical education class, and female students in grade 10 (56.6%) were significantly more likely than female students in grade 12 (29.4%) to be enrolled in a physical education class. 3

Male students in grade 9 (82.3%) were significantly more likely than male students in grades 11 and 12 (44.6% and 43.8%), respectively to be enrolled in a physical education class. 3

Daily participation in physical education class

Nationwide, 29.1% of students attended high school physical education class daily, down from 42% in 1991 3

Among students enrolled in physical education class, 76.3% exercised more than 20 minutes during an average physical education class. Overall, male students (82.1%) were significantly more likely than female students (69.6%) to have exercised more than 20 minutes during an average physical education class. 3

About one in four children surveyed did not get any physical education in school. For those who did, 93% said they enjoyed physical education classes. However, physical education classes accounted for, at best, less than one and three-quarters hours of physical activity per week. 2

Participation on a sports team run by school

Nationwide, 55.1% of students had played on sports teams during the 12 months preceding the survey. Overall, male students (61.7%) were significantly more likely than female students (48.5%) to have played on sports teams. 3

1 Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, Guidelines for School and Community Programs: Promoting Lifelong Physical Activity, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, March 1997.

2 International Life Sciences Institute, Improving Children's Health through Physical Activity: A New Opportunity, A Survey of Parents and Children about Physical Activity Patterns, July 1997.

3 Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance, 1999.

Hidden Hazard - be cautious with those cleats

Sure, soccer builds team spirit and provides a healthy outlet for those after-school hours. But now doctors are finding that too much soccer can be a bad thing. Young adolescents, they say, are developing serious heel injuries, mostly because of the shoes they wear while they play. John H. Walter, Jr., DPM, chairman of podiatric orthopedics and medicine at Temple University, says heel pain is an all too common complaint with young athletes, so he conducted a one-year experiment to find the cause. His conclusion: Cleats force the foot into a "negative heel position," which creates pressure that can result in inflammation and pain. Unlike running shoes, cleats aren't designed to absorb the constant pounding they receive. This is particularly troublesome for young players up to age 16, says Walter, as they are still experiencing growth spurts. Nike, a major manufacturer of soccer cleats, is conduction a study to determine the relationship between injuries and soccer shoes. In the meantime, Walter recommends these tips for young players:
*Insert a heel lift into each shoe to correct heel position.
*Remove cleats as soon as possible after the game or practice.
*Consider turf shoes instead of cleats.
*Take heel pain seriously. Sit out a game, if necessary.

--Sandi Kahn Shelton, Working Mother - March 2000

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Thoughts to Ponder

compiled by C. Kerst -Davis, a fellow PE teacher from the state.

"Physical activity is good not only for the heart, but also for the brain, feeding it glucose and oxygen, and increasing nerve connections, all of which makes it easier for children of all ages to learn. Numerous studies show that children who exercise do better in school." (Newsweek, 2/19/96)

Exercise triggers the release of BDNF, a neurotropic growth factor that enhances cognition by boosting the ability of neurons to communicate with each other. It begins the electrical impulse. (Jean Blaydes, 9/99)

What makes us move is also what makes us think (Cerebellum Research)

Bodily Kinesthetic is one of eight Multiple Intelligences. (Gardner)

Repetitive Gross Motor movement balances and produces brain chemicals that calm behavior and elevates self-esteem and self-worth and accommodates ADD/ADHD (Jensen).

Heart-Brain Entrainment - The stronger the heart the stronger the learning. (Hannaford)

98% of all learning happens in the body and only 2% in the brain. (Pert)

Memory is retrieved better when learned through movement (Jansen)

Motor skills are fundamental to learning (Jensen)

Stress reduction - exercise reduces cortisol levels that kill brain cells.

Lifetime physical activity grows new brain cells to live longer. (Gage)

Physical education provides a safe environment to practice individual and social life skills in a peer group.

85% of school age children are natural kinesthetic learners.

Physical activity forces oxygen and glucose to the brain at greater rates to feed the