School Year in Video Review: 2019/2020

2nd Grade with School Spirit doing the MUSTANG Spell Out!!

8th grader setting Crate Climb record of 15 crates!  ALMOST got 16 crates!

Kindergarteners first time on the climbing wall

5th graders team building

2nd grade climbing and tumbling

Parachute Week

Last week, elementary participated in a variety of parachute activities.  This is by far one of their favorite P.E. activities.  They learn to follow directions and work as a team.  They made a tent, a mountain, waves, and popped popcorn with the parachute!  What a fun week!  Below are some pictures of student's in action.

Team Building Unit

Our middle school student's have been participating in team building activities.  This was our focus during the month of November.  We did various challenges such as a Hula Hut activity, River Crossing, and Treasure Island challenge.  The goal of this unit was for student's to work cooperatively with each other in various challenges that required both strategy and team work.  Overall, it was a great success and we are so proud of how MLK student's worked together throughout the challenges.

Equity in P.E. at MLK

Our mission in physical education at MLK is to provide an inclusive and equitable learning environment for all our student's.  We strive to raise the level of achievement for everyone.  We focus our classroom objectives on being inclusive of each student to help them in motor development, physical fitness and health, social collaboration, teamwork, and sportsmanship.  Below is a candid moment of some of our kindergarten student's during a "Workout Wednesday" walk on our school track.  We hope their display of friendship is contagious.

Middle School "Student-Led" Unit Days

Our middle school student's started unit days this week!
To start the year, here are the sport's each grade is participating in:

5th grade: rugby
6th grade: soccer
7th grade: ultimate frisbee
8th grade: flag football


Our middle school student's are in charge of their own learning during unit days. We call this "student-led" learning. We have found that our student's really take ownership in being responsible for their team.  We have so many talented leaders that it was only natural to allow them to shine in designated roles with their peers.

Teams/Roles
Student's are assigned teams (Cubs, Sox, Bulls, Blackhawks, Sky, Wolves, Bears) As P.E. teacher's, we assign different coach's, equipment manager's, and publicist's for each unit day.

Coach's:
Our coach's are responsible for keeping their team on track/organizing their team and practicing the skills/drills for the day. The P.E. teacher's give each coach a "game plan" and it is up to the student coach's to lead their teams.

Equipment Manager's:
Our equipment manager's are responsible for bringing necessary equipment outside to the field for their team and bring it back in after class.

Publicist's:
Our publicist's also play an important role on unit days. They are the "sports reporters." Student's who are assigned to be the publicist's write a brief report about how their team did during the skills/game play for the day. They write down 2-3 sentences about how their team did and what they can improve on for next time. Below are some photos of our student's in action on Day 1!

6th grade working on a passing drill

7th Grade working on frisbee throwing/catching

8th grade "team talk" before starting their flag football practice

The publicist's busy writing their team report

5th grade publicist game report example

Welcome Back!

Welcome back! We are excited to get the school year started! We have had a busy first couple of weeks. Middle school has been completing their Fitnessgram pre-test in class. This includes the sit-up test, push-up test, Pacer, and sit-and-reach test. Our goal is for student's to work towards improving their individual score throughout the school year. Student's grades 5-8 have fitness every other day, where we focus on improving cardiovascular endurance, muscular endurance and strength, as well as flexibility with daily stretches. Our elementary student's, grades K-3, have been working on locomotor skills and spacial awareness. We have also been practicing stretches and exercises. Ask your student to teach you an exercise or stretch they do in class! We will be learning and practicing many different motor skills throughout the year. We also focus on fitness every Wednesday with elementary. We have been using our wonderful outdoor track to get some fresh air and exercise! Visit our blog again soon for more updates throughout the school year!

Mindful Monday

Everyday, at the end of PE class for elementary and at the beginning of class for middle school, student's lay in savasana. It gives student's an opportunity to relax, reflect, and re-focus for class. It also helps them cool down and calm down. What a difference it has made in creating peaceful energy in our student's. With our lives moving so quickly, it gives student's a chance to pause for one minute of their day. Laying in savasanna is similar to "re-booting" a computer. It gives us a chance to rest and re-program our mind and body to take on new challenges we face throughout the day. According to a program called Mindful Schools, it has lead to zero detentions and higher attendance ratings at some schools. Click on the link to learn more: Mindfulness in School

P.E. Elementary News Update

With the school year well underway, elementary student's have been learning and practicing their throwing and catching skills. We have spent the past couple of weeks teaching and practicing our underhand throwing (tick-tock, step, throw), overhand throwing (T, L, step, throw) and catching (diamonds up/hands up). Below is a picture of some student's in action. Check back soon for a middle school update on rugby!

Get the New Mustang Gear Here

Get in the Mustang spirit with the new Mustang hoodie, sweat pants, and baseball tee. Rock this stylish new gear with swagger. Purchasing any of these items also helps support the P.E. department at King Arts. It helps us buy new equipment for our student's to use year after year. Thank you in advance for your support! Please turn in any forms/money to Coach Springer. Order forms are due by September 30th. Click on the link to access the order form: Mustang Gear Order Form

Welcome Back!

We are ready to kick start the 2016-2017 school year! Over the summer, Coach Springer and Coach M. worked at the Y.M.C.A camp in Evanston. Coach M traveled to California and New York on vacation and Coach Springer went to Texas to visit family and friends in Austin. They both continued staying active and work out. Coach Hendricks completed a half Ironman race, learned how to wake surf, and did some dog-sitting. We are extremely excited to teach this school year and to use our new track! A special THANK YOU to our PTA and for all the community support for making this happen. We are excited to get moving!

Parachute Week

Last week, the elementary student's participated in their favorite P.E. activity, the parachute! The parachute is a fun way to incorporate team work within P.E. Below are some pictures of the student's in action.

King Arts 3rd and 4th Learn About Tennis from Special Guest in P.E.

The last two days, Coach Walton has graciously volunteered his time to bring in tennis rackets, nets, and balls as well as his tennis expertise to teach our 3rd and 4th graders tennis skills. The student's all participated in tennis drills as well as a fun tennis tournament. Below are some pictures of the student's in action. A big thank you to Coach Walton for coming in to teach our kids!

Cup Stacking at MLK

MLK student's have been cup stacking in P.E. class! This activity is an excellent way to improve hand-eye coordination. Research shows that this activity activates the right and left brain and helps with bilateral coordination. It is a great way to incorporate fitness into the physical education curriculum and it is a brain-based activity. Both middle school and elementary student's have been practicing how to cup stack using proper form with both hands by doing the 3 cup and 6 cup system. Below are some videos of student's in action.

Cup Stacking from Kristin Hendricks on Vimeo.

Jump Rope for Heart Fundraising Begins Today!

Today MLK student's are learning about how they can raise money to help children with heart disease. This also helps raise awareness to the importance of being heart healthy by exercising every day. Student's are receiving a packet to take home with information about various fundraising prizes student's can earn. Also, there's information about how student's can go online to create a donation account. Last year, we raised over $7,000! Our goal for this year is to raise $10,000. Click on the link to create an account for online donations. heart.org/jump

PolarGoFit used to Individualize Fitness in P.E.

Verizon's Digital Promise storyteller's visited King Art's 7th grade P.E. class last week to run a story on what Polar GoFit has done to transform physical education class.  Student's are able to see live results of their heart rate on the ipad instantly during class.  This has helps self-motivate students to improve their fitness and health.  Below is the video that shows how this technology tool has helped innovate and educate student's on their heart rate and how it effects their body.

Storyteller school: leveraging the iPad to personalize fitness for students from DigitalPromiseStories on Vimeo.

Back to MLK & Physical Education

We are off to a great start this school year at MLK.  Middle school has been learning rugby skills and game strategies, as well as participating in Fitnessgram testing.  Elementary students have been learning and practicing locomotor movements, spacial awareness, new exercises, and underhand throwing.  Be on the look out for more posts, which will include pictures and videos of the MLK student's in action!

Field Day was the BEST!

Last Thursday, MLK student's participated in a fun field day last week. The weather was absolutely perfect! Elementary student's enjoyed the inflatable obstacle course, the hurdles, water relay, three-legged race, steal the bacon, hula hoops, jump ropes, and DANCING! A special thanks to all the 7th grade helpers who worked all afternoon setting up and running the stations. Below are some pictures of the student's in action.