World Sleep Day 2025 falls on Friday, March 14, with the theme "Make Sleep Health a Priority." Organized by the World Sleep Society, this annual event raises awareness about the vital role sleep plays in our overall health and well-being. The science is clear—quality sleep strengthens both body and mind, while poor sleep takes a …
Continue reading Rest, Recharge, Repeat: 31 Daily Actions for Better Sleep
Baltimore, nicknamed 'Charm City' in the 70s, is a city I've visited many times, and even plays a minor role in my relocation to America. So you can guess that I'm obviously thrilled to return in a few weeks for the 2025 SHAPE America National Convention and Expo. Running from April 1st to 5th, it's …
Continue reading Conference Like A Pro: Essential Tips For #SHAPEBaltimore
I'm thrilled to feature Matt Hagedorn's guest blog post, where he shares how embracing AI transformed his teaching and helped him conquer the chaos of organization. His journey is a must-read for anyone looking to streamline their work and focus on what truly matters: his students. Matt was the 2023 Ohio Health Teacher of the …
Continue reading From Chaos to Clarity: How ChatGPT Helped Me Find My Missing Piece
Recently, Philadelphia Eagles star wide receiver AJ Brown was caught doing something unexpected during a football game: reading a book on the sidelines. The moment went viral, and so did the book he was reading, Inner Excellence by Jim Murphy. The book, which focuses on clearing your mind to perform under pressure, quickly shot to …
It’s that time of year again, a time with so much promise as people look forward to a fresh start and new beginnings. The start of a new year is a natural time to reflect on the past and plan for the future, and many people see the new year as a chance to start …
Continue reading The Power of One Word: A Simpler Way to Start the Year
Drum roll, please! It’s that time of year again when we reflect on the highlights from the blog. As always, these posts resonated with readers for a variety of reasons—some were the most-read, others sparked thoughtful conversations, and a few are timeless classics that just keep inspiring. Whether you’re revisiting old favorites or discovering them …
Continue reading Top 5 Blog Posts of 2024: A Recap of the Year’s Best Reads
As educators, our journeys are defined by growth, reflection, and transformation, and each stage of our career tells its own story. In my NYSAHPERD keynote speech, I explored six stages of teaching, drawing on my personal experiences and insights from nearly three decades in education. I labeled the first stage, “Aspiration and Entry,” which will …
Continue reading Where It All Began: Navigating the Early Stage of Teaching – A Keynote Excerpt
One constant during my 29 years of teaching is that the break from school at the end of the calendar year – winter for me and summer for my Southern Hemisphere friends – comes at just the right time. Leaving for school in the dark, arriving home in the dark, the end of a long …
Continue reading Looking Back, Moving Forward: Meaningful Year-End Reflections
Happy Friday, teachers! We've made it through another (long) week, and before you rush (or in my case, wearily stroll) into the weekend, let’s take a few minutes to pause, reflect, and recharge. Fridays can be more than just a countdown to the weekend; they’re a chance to reconnect with ourselves and the people who …
Continue reading Reflect & Recharge: A Friday Ritual for Teachers
A positive school culture creates an environment where students feel safe, respected, and encouraged to take risks in their learning. Establishing a shared school mission, values and behaviors focused on academic and social-emotional success for every student. Building and maintaining meaningful relationships among teachers and staff and creating an environment where all members feel safe, …
Have you ever cooked a meal that was fine but lacked that spark? It got the job done but wasn’t exciting or memorable. Teaching can feel the same way. Sure, you can throw together a lesson on the fly, and it might cover the basics. But if you really want to engage your students, you’ve …
Continue reading Spice Up Your Lessons: How Meaningful PE Ingredients Transform Teaching
With World Mental Health Day upon us, it's a good moment to reflect on how our mental well-being is connected to movement. In a world where stress and anxiety levels are rising, we often look for quick fixes, but one of the most powerful tools to support our mental health is something we already know …
Continue reading World Mental Health Day: Moving for a Healthier Mind
What if I told you that I taught an entire PE lesson without telling my students what to do? Inspired by a conference session from Lisa Smith and Sarah Gietschier-Hartman entitled Reinventing HPE Teaching, that asked attendees to 'grow with our students' and DiSrUPt our teaching practices, I was determined to try something new with …
Continue reading Empowering Students: How I Led a PE Class Without Giving Instructions
Mantra? Do the right thing (thank you Spike Lee). How long have you taught? Since 1994, with a two year break after seven. I think that means this is year 29. Guilty pleasure? Taking a leisurely breakfast of oatmeal and plenty of coffee whenever time allows. Favorite foods? I love to cook and have an …
Three years ago, our district took a deep dive into Disciplinary Literacy. We had the opportunity to learn from and with renowned disciplinary literacy expert and author ReLeah Lent, who led our professional learning at Brecksville-Broadview Hts. MS. Teachers were divided into three cohorts with a mix of disciplines. As an encore teacher in education, …
Continue reading Ignite Deep Learning in Skills-Based Health Education
It will come as no surprise that the book that will continue to guide me and my teaching of PE over the coming year is Meaningful Physical Education from Tim Fletcher, Déirdre Ní Chróinín, Doug Gleddie, and Stephanie Benni. The theme of Meaningful PE is eloquently defined on page 4 of the book. The primary …
Continue reading Meaningful PE Starts Here: Listening to What Students Find Relevant
I was first introduced to the concept of empathy walks/runs in William Pullen's book Running With Mindfulness. One of my #summerreads back in 2019, the book delves into the positive effects of running therapy, including anxiety relief and reduced stress by focusing on the meditative nature of exercise. There's a wealth of carefully tailored thought …
This blog post comes just in time for #BackToSchool and is being shared due to the interest in a tweet/X of mine that proved to be quite popular. I'm not an 'Icebreaker' kind of person, more of a 'Community-Builder', and as such, each of my initial activities with a new group of students is purpose-driven …
Sifting for Gold in a Sewer Are you tired of navigating endless feeds filled with irrelevant content? Are you feeling frustrated by platforms that prioritize trends over meaningful connections? In a recent conversation with Amanda Amtmanis, she described her experience on X as “sifting for gold in the sewer.” Her quote deeply resonates with us. …
When I was younger, back to school shopping meant buying new school shoes, a new pencil case, and maybe a lunch box. Now that I'm a veteran teacher, my back to school shopping looks a little different. Here are a few of my favorite things that are in my in-box or have already arrived in …
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