Skill Development

In today's lab we worked with the students on developing motor skills. We used the game "sharks and Minnows" as a tool to teach movements such as the gallop, run, and hop. By using games we are able to teach students different skills and movements in a fun and challenging situation. To students learning can sometimes be boring, by using games we are able to capture their attention and keep them on task. Although we are doing the majority of the teaching, the students at St. Marry's are doing a great job in showing us what it takes to become successful.

Teaching and Learning

Today we played a game in which the students picked an activity card out of a hoola hoop and acted it out. On the cards were animals and a sentence telling the students how they were to move around. This activity was a lot of fun for everyone. The students enjoyed doing silly movements and we all enjoyed participating. This was a good strategy to teach students balance and help them discover new ways to move. Not only was this a good activity for the students to be active it also helped them work on their reading skills. I loved watching the way students would interpret their instructions and go about their task. They have such great imaginations and they are not afraid to be silly and creative. It is rewarding to see the students have so much fun with the activities that we bring in for them.

More Fun at St. Marry's

Today at St. Marry's was a lot of fun. The theme for the day was circus and we worked on the overhand throwing and catch. Most of the students seem to be at the elementary stage in their development of throwing and catching. Some of the students I worked with surprised my with their ability to catch. I challenged them by throwing some tough passes at them and for the most part they were able to pull them in. They challenged me at as well by throwing balls back to me at the same time to see how I would react, they thought that was funny. When it came time for free play two students taught me how to make houses out of hoola hoops. I guess they didn't trust me much because my job was only to hold the hoops as they constructed their houses. Today was a lot of fun, not only was I able to help them practice catching and throwing, they were able to teach me a thing or to as well.