P.E. was Thrilling and Chilling in October

This October is a time for change. The leaves start changing, the weather starts changing and the new friends we made at the beginning of the year become our best friends. P.E. also sees some changes in October.

In October we shifted our Awesome Anatomy focus from the cardiovascular system to the skeletal system. As we investigated the make up of bone, we discovered that bone marrow and the circulatory system are interconnected. Another way that our amazing body is interconnected is that our bones are structured to protect our organs. Great example of this are how the skull protects the brain, and the rib cage protects the heart & lungs.

Along with shifting our focus in Awesome Anatomy, October saw us shifting gears physically too. This month Serendipity Students began their study of net and volley games. Volley games are games who's purpose is to keep an object in the air and return in before it touches the ground. Common volley sports are things like Volleyball, Tennis, and Badminton. The first net and volley sport we studied was Volleyball.  For the young students that meant using balloons and exploring how to use our bodies to keep the balloon in the air. Many students came to the quick realization that there was a relationship between force and control. While balloons were all the rage in Kindergarten and First Grade, Our upper grades took a more advanced approach to volley skills and practiced how to bump, set and spike.

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As we progressed through our skills we played a variety of volleyball style games. Most of our students loved "Bump 4 Square" and "Inside Out." I like these games because they require the same skills as traditional volleyball but without any of the restrictions that can box in our thinking. One of my favorite things from this unit was bringing out the Spikeball. This was another great way of letting the students experience the same skill in a different way. It was challenging at first to keep track of the ball and spike it onto the net, but after some practice we got quite good and our games got very interesting. As our skills progressed we eventually became ready for some small sided volleyball games.

Now that Halloween has come we will change gears again and begin to study other net and volley games like clean up your Backyard, Throw & Toss Battleship, Ringo (a polish ringtoss game) and Badminton. As we look at more and more net games we will also put some thought into the similarities and differences between them. What strategies can we take from one and apply in the other? Are there any skills we can transfer between sports? 

I hope you and your family are enjoying the homework challenges. I Hope "No Sweat November" will give you a different kind of challenge and don't forget that October's homework, "Trick 'R Training" is due on November 10th.

In Health,
Mr Will

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