Have you heard the news? Puberty, that period-of-time when children begin the wild ride into adulthood, is beginning earlier and lasts longer than the puberty you likely experienced. Over the last several decades, studies have challenged the long-standing pubertal benchmark created back in the 1940s by pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Joseph Tanner, who identified the average age …
Continue reading Puberty is Beginning Earlier; Will Your Students be Prepared?
Hey there! As a health teacher at Chestnut Hill Middle School, I’ve had the chance to work with some amazing students and watch them grow, learn, and figure out the many things that make up their health—both social, mental and physical. It’s a fun, but sometimes tricky time in their lives, right? With everything going …
I woke up to what I thought was a normal Tuesday morning in October, only to open my phone to a flurry of texts and DMs. “Watch this vid! Shawn came out last night!”. My heart exploded in my chest. “No f***ing way”, I screamed. My crush. My obsession. The muse for my ‘#ShawnSundays’ IG …
Continue reading What Shawn Mendes Can Teach Us About Sexuality
Teacher Appreciation Week at my school is quite the affair. This year our Student Council decided to make it 'Cruise Ship' themed. On Monday they're providing us with stickers, Tuesday all staff are entered into a prize draw to win breakfast for their department, Wednesday we have snacks provided, Thursday they will be distributing appreciation …
Being intentional with how and where we allocate our focus can be challenging and overwhelming in our hectic, busy lives. It is easy for me to experience cognitive overload … so many books, articles, blogs, workshops; so much to learn and think about! It’s exciting and daunting at the same time, often resulting in an …
One of my favorite traditions/rituals, both with students and colleagues, is sharing what I'm currently reading, watching, and listening to. I think there’s significant value in these exchanges — they build connections, spark conversation, and remind us that we’re always growing, always learning (and always looking for a good new show, book, or album). As …
This year I was offered the opportunity to do something I had always wanted to do: teach a PETE class. My first reaction was “Wow! I am so honored and excited to do this!” Fast track to: “There is no way I can do this! I know nothing about teaching college kids! I will fail …
“I’ve been dreaming about this big idea…” Recently the last few big ideas have become realities. I started to wonder about why. Because when they hit just right, the impact is deeper than surface level. I’ve been writing microblogs for the last couple years about a few subjects that have shaped my career, but none …
For years, I carried the weight of a dream that was never fully realized. Not because I lacked talent, drive, or love for the game, but because I let toxic male coaches take it away from me. I let them chip away at my confidence, make me question my worth, and convince me that their …
Launched in 2020, over 200 educators and authors have joined in with the last five #microblog events here on slowchathealth.com. All five have been a huge success, lasting a whole month and featuring voices from across the globe. Sharing bite-sized blog posts of approximately 500 words, there have been submissions from experienced bloggers, first-time writers, …
The early educator experience can be a tangle of novelty, excitement, fear, hope, support, and if you’re lucky, naysayers. Let me explain. At 23 years old, after sixteen seasons as a football player, I was ready to shift my attention to coaching. I was thrilled for the opportunity. The football field was an environment I …
Continue reading Early Educator Leadership: Navigating Crabs in a Bucket
Bringing the school year, and our 5th Annual #Microblog event to a close, the effervescent educator Chris Walker, AKA, @CoachWalk is back with another personalized message for educators. This one gave me chills! Chris shares his #teachingreflection videos regularly on social media, and I always look forward to these upbeat and insightful recordings. Chris’ reflections are full …
We build on serotonin filled moments not just fueled by physical movement,but by the social and emotionalthat transforms the actions to magical.Magical moments like a potion wash over thememotionally and physicallyif we let it bewhat it can be.It’s what happens when our teaching transcends the boundaries of lessons and block plans.Where classmates become allies and …
Being intentional with how and where we allocate our focus can be challenging and overwhelming in our hectic, busy lives. It is easy for me to experience cognitive overload … so many books, articles, blogs, workshops; so much to learn and think about! It’s exciting and daunting at the same time, often resulting in an …
Losing my husband unexpectedly shattered my world. In the midst of my grief, I found myself grappling with an unfamiliar sense of emptiness and confusion. Yet, within the depths of despair and the need to brave up for my children, I discovered an improbable source of strength and resilience. It is then that my perspective …
Continue reading B.A.M. An Educational Journey of Empowerment
Oh the gut, that precious thing we have to feed and water constantly in order to survive. It is also the place many of us have a time that we wished we would have trusted it. For me that time has evolved into a tradition I share yearly with my 4th graders in our last …
As I look back on my teaching journey, specifically teaching physical education, I find it helpful to observe how I view the subject, which has changed. I started out with the view of having students love physical education as I loved it. I then went through a sports education phase, a fitness phase, that evolved …
Continue reading Finding The Real Purpose of Physical Education
As human beings it is easy to get tunnel vision and only see the world through our own lens. We take in information, compare it to what we already know, and then create meaning out of it. The problem when teaching is that our experiences and abilities are not the same as our students and …
I became a Health and Physical Educator to help make a difference for everyone I come into contact with. There are times when you do not think you are making a positive impact on your students; however that is far from the case. You get to serve so many roles with your students, from teacher, …
According to an article from Edutopia; Brain Breaks are “planned learning activity shifts that mobilize different networks of the brain.” (Willis 2016) A while back I was scrolling through social media posts and saw a response from Andy Milne. He suggested that brain breaks should be called brain boosts. This perspective helped me see a …
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