TEACHING UPDATE! It’s been a couple months since I have posted. Last time you really heard from me was when I was teaching summer school PE for high school during the Coronavirus lockdown. Now, I wanted to give a teaching update as to why I have let my blog go unbothered for so long. If you have been following my journey, THANK YOU! If you’re just tuning in, I have lots of great stories, tips and resources about teaching to tell so stay tuned.

For the last 2.5 months I have been teaching at my current K-8 school remotely. I will be giving more detail into my teaching update, and the resources I am using in another post so keep following.

My Day to Day PE schedule

The way my school has set up specials (PE, Art and Technology) is as follows:

Monday: K-2 (30 minute classes)

Tuesday: 3-5 (30 minute classes)

Wednesday: 6-8 (30 minute classes)

This means that I only see each class once a week. But for the days the kids don’t see me on our Google Meet, I have physical activity assignments for them to do in their Google Classroom. I put a lot of time and effort into making my classes fun, but simple so the kids can do their work with limited help for the parents.

Work Students are Assigned

When it comes to turning work in K-2 are only responsible for a PA reflection that asks them how they felt while performing the activities I assigned.

For 3-5, they have mini reflections (one per week) to tell me what they worked on or how they felt during specific exercises I assigned.

And for 6-8 they always have a health and physical activity reflection to complete, as well as getting extra participation points during our Google Meets on Wednesdays when they are actively engaged in class.

My Weekly To-Do

So the main reason I stopped blogging for a bit was because I was so consumed about giving my students a great virtual PE experience. As one of the specials teachers I understand that my content is important, but everything has to change in order to accommodate all the kids. This means I have to put more effort into providing resources they can understand to make their online school experience better.

One of the main things I have been working on was adapting with how the kids are responding to my work or our Google Meet sessions. Since it’s new to EVERYONE, daily adjustments were being made.

I was also spending so much time creating activities that were doable in the homes of my students, but also had to consider who the work was targeted to. Having the parents do the reflections for the kids was something I wanted to keep to a minimum. It is going to happen, but if I could keep the K-2 repetitive enough it would help the little ones automatically know what was expected. Limiting the work load on the parents who may have multiple kids in different grades or schools.

Then there is Thursday and Friday where I don’t get on Google Meet with my kids.

I have set my Google Classroom up where all work is due for the hundreds of students I teach on Thursday night. That means that Friday is spent grading and entering grades in the gradebook, emailing parents about missing work and making sure my upcoming weeks are prepared for the students to access when they log on. Thursdays are spent reaching out about 6-8 missing their Google Meets with me if they do, answering questions on assignments and making sure our the weekly attendance matches the 3 different ways I have to take it.

Throughout the entire week, I check in with the students who have already turned in work. I leave comments back either telling them they are doing great, or giving feedback on how to get full credit if they did not answer the questions correctly. One of the main things my students struggle with is not reading the directions to the question and not answering it properly. I don’t want them to get low grades on the work they are doing, but I do want them to be accountable for producing great work I know they are capable of.

Getting Back into Writing

Now that my work is getting consistent and I feel like I am excelling at the virtual teaching, I know I need to get back into blogging and fitness. Personal training has been my passion for over 10 years so it only makes sense that I get back into training, and writing about it. So here I am!

Over the next few posts I want to get into what’s working for me and what’s not. So keep on reading and leave comments on your own teaching and fitness journeys!

Printables Below:

Check out my self-care printable that helps you stay accountable for taking care of yourself, or my Yearly Weight Loss Planner to help you get into the best shape of your life!