Monitoring Fitness Levels: RPE

Shout out to a great blog post titled "Heart Rate Monitors Bulletin Board" and  "Using Rate of Perceived Exertion in Elementary PE", that inspired me to make my own anchor chart of the Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE). 

My students seem to need a better understanding of what warm-up means vs. continuous moderate to vigorous physical activity vs. high-intensity all-out sprints!  I am definitely going to try red and green post-its, having students calculate their heart rates at various times to show resting-heart rate and active heart rate.  Click here for RPE BLM.

Primary/Junior RPE: 

Primary PE: Rate of Perceived Exertion Anchor

 Junior/Intermediate RPE:

Intermediate PE:  RPE 

Going old fashioned!  I made a heart-rate calculator chart (using Grade 7 Maximum heart rate then shaded off 60-80% training zone) to allow students to monitor how hard they are working.

Gr.7-8 Passport for Life Pilot Letter to Parents

Attention Lawfield Parent/Guardians of Ms. Merritt grade 7/8 students (Mrs. Fallon's class) (letter from Passport for Life Website):

Your grade 7/8 Students will be participating in Passport for Life.  This initiative, developed by Physical and Health Education Canada (PHE Canada), supports the development and advancement of physical literacy (explained in link) among students. The goal of physical literacy is to support all individuals in their ability to move with competence and confidence in a wide variety of physical activities and environments. 

Passport for Life is an online program which will be used to gather information about your child’s level of physical literacy. Passport for Life is an online program which will be used to gather information about your child’s level of physical literacy. To learn more about Passport for Life and strategies to help your child improve their physical literacy visit the Information for Parent section of the website. 


Your child’s Passport for Life results are not equivalent to their Physical Education grade, however, the teacher will use this information to provide individualized help for students to set goals and work towards continued improvement. Parents play a critical role in helping children develop physical literacy. As your child uses Passport for Life, you can expect your child’s teacher to involve you in helping him or her to set realistic and achievable goals. 

The Passport for Life Program includes: 
 tools to assess student levels of physical literacy, 
 guides to help interpret results, 
 ideas and resources to help your child’s teacher improve the physical literacy level of your child, 
 connections to the mandated health and physical education programs in your jurisdiction, and 
 resources and connections to further knowledge and competence. 

The program is divided into four key areas: 
 Active Participation: Includes involvement in activities within school and beyond, both 
organized and unorganized. Children and youth should experience activity in a variety of 
environments, such as on land, on ice and snow, in water and in air. 
 Living Skills: Those skills associated with making healthy active choices that are both beneficial to and respectful of their whole self, others and their environment. 
 Fitness Skills: Include balance, muscle endurance and cardiovascular fitness (stamina). 
 Movement Skills: Include throwing, jumping, and running—the building blocks of more complex skills used in games, activities, sports and leisure pursuits. 

The information collected will also inform overall regional and provincial levels of physical literacy in order to monitor improvements over time and to assist in understanding what other resources or interventions may be needed. Please be assured that all data collected through this initiative will be anonymous and will reflect a compilation of all data (not individualized). 

Please feel free to contact me should you have any questions or concerns. 

Sincerely,

Ms. C. Merritt

"T.A.G. You're It" Peer Assessment

Another way to encourage students to be accountable in H&PE through peer assessment.

Junior and Intermediate Lawfield students found a partner to work with at the start of class.  We introduced a variety of activities that promoted small group (pairs) work.  We also introduced some Physical Literacy Charts from Thompson publishing and discussed how to give feedback when viewing their partner performing the Perfect Practise: Learn to play charts

T.A.G. You're It Peer Assessment Anchor Chart

***Found this amazing idea on Pinterest and can be found at "Classroom Freebies Too"

I adapted the wording to work in Health and Physical Education!  Fun way to get them thinking!!!

F56 Peer Evaluations

Click Here for BLM of T.A.G. You're It! 

T.A.G. EXIT CARDS: Students will eventually fill out an Exit Card: Self Evaluation (see below for BLM).

T.A.G. You're It:  Self Evaluation

Merritt Bucks! Celebrating Living Skills and Character Ed. in Phys-Ed

Students in Ms. Merritt's Phys-Ed classes are earning Merritt Bucks for demonstrating the character trait of the month, promoting positive Living Skills (see below), and/or demonstrating positive learning connected to the daily learning goal.

I will update each month, the character trait and Living Skill we are focusing on!

(Purchased "Sport Money"from TPT from Michelle McElhinny then made my own back that says "Merritt Buck $1)

September Character Trait:  Responsibility

Living Sills in Health and Physical Education: 

Personal Skills:  Some daily learning goals are...

• We are learning to listen to and follow instructions (classroom routines).  
• We are learning to participate actively.
• We are learning to monitor how hard we are working.
• We are learning to change into proper gym attire (Gr. 5-8).

Interpersonal Skills:

• We are learning to work cooperatively in small groups.
• We are learning to encourage others in a positive way.

Critical-Creative Thinking Skills:

• 
  

Yoga Tag - Angry Birds (YOGA) Tag

We have taught our students two different sets of  'standing' yoga poses using the Thompson Publishing Chart "Yoga 1: Begin to Explore" Physical Literacy Cards.  We have then adapted a variety of games where students have to freeze in a choice of yoga poses.

Yoga Tag.  Select 3-4 "its".  If tagged by an it, students selected 1 of 4 yoga poses below, and froze in this position.  They are freed by 1 student mirroring their pose for a "3, 2, 1 done" count and both re-entered the game.

Angry Birds  (YOGA) Tag:  

• Cut up pool noodles in to discs (or use another soft object) and hand TWO out to each student (see picture below).  I called the noodles "rocks" as Angry Birds 'crash' into rocks. 
• Select 4 Yoga Poses (above) and attach one coloured noodle to each (I used pink, yellow, purple, green noodles).  
• Select 3-4 "Angry Birds" to be the "its".  
• If tagged by an angry bird, students explode ONE "rock" (coloured noodle) into the air.  They still have one "life left".
• If tagged by an Angry Bird a second time,  the tagged person freezes in designated Yoga Pose (according to the colour they exploded into the air).  
• They can be freed by non-its  picking up an exploded 'rocks' .
• (Could call non-its the "green piggies")

Welcome! You've Got Merritt!

Welcome to Health & Physical Education at Lawfield!  Looking forward to a great year of learning, growing, and inspiring one another to become health and physically literate!

Click here for Ontario Health and Physical Education Curriculum.

Ontario Health & Physical Education Curriculum 

For those looking for a black lined master of this, download WELCOME! and T.E.A.M.!

Quotes To Live By: Toronto Marlies

With MLSE ShapeUp Crew, (Maple Leaf Sport and Entertainment), Ophea, a film crew, and 4 patient youth...I am always inspired and humbled by the expertise surrounding me and given opportunities for learning - an endless gift I'm thankful for.

I love 'quotables' and inspiring moments...Had to share this!

"We are what we repeatedly do.  Excellence is not an act, but a habit"

"Sweat more in here...bleed less on the ice"