School initiatives come and go as communities seek to address the needs of their students both now and in the future. Recently, my school launched an initiative that, along with implementing restorative practices, will foster a sense of school community and ensure that all students are supported. The initiative will help our students become better …
At the heart of every conference lies an opportunity to share knowledge and ideas and foster a sense of unity and connection among diverse individuals. When we step into these spaces to exchange insights and experiences, we have the opportunity to recognize the historical context in which these gatherings occur. One powerful way to achieve …
Continue reading From Inspiration to Action: Writing My First Land Acknowledgment as an Educator
This week's blog post comes from Kate Macmorn, the Communications Director for the American Medical Resource Institute (AMRI) where they’ve trained over a million healthcare professionals to study for, earn and maintain life support certifications that allow them to better respond to cardiac emergencies. Have you ever been in a situation where someone suddenly collapsed …
Continue reading CPR Training: Why You and Your Teenage Students Need It
Now that Summer gets its own branding each year - Barefoot-Boy Summer? Side Chick Summer? - may I suggest that this Summer is coined "Our Summer," a chance for each of us to personalize the next few months. A chance for us to give our bodies exactly what WE need to get the most from …
Food can be a tricky subject. I will not claim to be a nutrition expert. Of course, I want my students to eat fruits and vegetables. At the same time, I don't want them to feel like terrible people just because they eat chips or cookies. Nor do I want them to judge someone based …
At the SHAPE America national convention in Seattle, I finally had the opportunity to meet, and participate in a session with Dr. Brian Culp. Alongside John Strong and Dr. Brandy Lynch, their presentation titled 'Keys to Unlocking a Diverse and Socially Just HPE Space' shared resources, provided space for deep self-reflection, and reminded attendees that …
Continue reading Physical Literacy, Inclusiveness, and The Spatial Imaginary: A Summer Challenge
I quit…. being the positive encourager. I quit being the positive encourager. I have chosen to go to the dark side. I will allow my critical nature to fully take hold and spend my career calling out malpractice and positioning myself to take down every teacher employed to teach who fails to meet the basic …
Bringing the school year, and our #Microblog event to a close, I'm delighted that the effervescent educator who is Chris Walker, AKA, @CoachWalk has recorded a personalized message for us. Chris shares his #teachingreflection videos regularly on social media, and I always look forward to these upbeat and insightful recordings. Chris' reflections are full of …
From all of us @meaningfulpe In our most recent work around Meaningful PE, we have tried to focus our attention on pedagogies that teachers can use to support them in prioritizing the meaningfulness that students experience in their physical education classes. The two sets we have identified are democratic and reflective pedagogies, as these often …
When I ask my middle school students to think about what they want to do, be, see and achieve throughout their lives, athletics are often a large part of their goals for the immediate future. But at this age, many tweens and teens also see athletics (especially professional sport and extreme sports) as a career …
In recent years, school communities across the country have taken a considerable interest in the whole lives of their students. While we truly believe that educators have always considered the lived experiences of their students outside of their 4-walls of higher learning, heightened circumstances have increased the stress of students and the educators who pour …
“What curriculum do you use for [fill in the blank]?” is a question you’ll regularly see posted by health educators on twitter and facebook.The general consensus (as judged by the comments) is that a “home-grown” curriculum is best and while I don’t completely disagree; I’m pretty confident it’s not the answer people are looking for. …
This post uses the recommended ‘Best Practices’ from the Educate US “So You Want to Speak Up For Sex Education” Claim your power: Before becoming a licensed Health Educator, I worked for Planned Parenthood for five years. My work as a ‘Clinic Assistant’ in the health center included delivering ‘pregnancy tests and options counseling’ visits, …
Continue reading Teaching about Abortion Access – With the National Sex Education Standards
Field Day is not just for Elementary students!!! I teach high school students, and this year we are having our 2nd Annual Field Day for all of our 9th graders. Why? Because high school students are still KIDS!! To help prepare for our first year, we asked our 9th graders what their favorite games were …
Continue reading Field Day is not just for Elementary Students
Most school courses are content-based, and assessing students’ knowledge through formative assessments is simple: solve the equation, define the vocabulary word, and list the facts. In a Skill-Based Health Education classroom, how do we ensure students are progressing toward the learning target, and what do we do if they are not? The goal of formative …
Continue reading Assessing Students’ Progress in a Skill-Based Health Education Classroom
When I was an undergrad, we were instructed to make friends with the school custodians and secretaries, because they are the ones who really make a school tick. I would like to add one more person to the list - the Occupational Therapist. I am blessed that my best friend, Deb, is a pediatric Occupational …
When my students enter our classroom on the first day of the nutrition unit, they immediately see two tables covered in cookbooks. Lots and lots of cookbooks. Tap here to access an interactive version Sarah's Cook Book List We usually start class with a conversation starter. My students sit in groups of three, and their triangle …
According to the National Association for Children of Alcoholics, “one in four children lives in a family impacted by parental addiction.” Hidden from most people is the chaos and uncertainty these children go through on a daily basis. When I think of alcoholism I often think of the common portrayals in movies of a physically …
Have you ever looked back on your journey to and through your teaching career and realized that there were some moments you almost missed “it?” “It” being the pivotal moments that pulled you closer to being where you are today in your teaching career. A magnetic moment in which if you would have given up …
Ever find yourself having to go to sleep because your eyes hurt so bad from staring at a screen? Or maybe you have been playing video games for countless hours and your back is hurting. Well, turns out video games can have quite a negative health effect on individuals who play too much! One study …
