Hoops Hoops!!

So, for 2 weeks we honed our skills with the basketball....we talked about the history of the sport, how it evolved, the different sizes of the balls, and techniques to be successful.  Kids worked on dribbling with BOTH hands, not just favoring the dominant hand....AND we worked on shooting stance and form.  Some classes played 4 team shootout while others played super-knockout.

 

Have a little HEART!!

The Heart Course is here!!  I have so many student come back to visit and ask if we still do this unit....they LOVED it!  Students play "red blood cells" in the body carrying Oxygen or Waste thru the heart which is spread out over the floor.  Red means they have Oxygen and Blue means they are carrying waste.  Students navigate around an obstacle course in a slow, medium and fast manner....much like our hearts to simulate different activities.  Then, students check their heart rate to see if they are in the target zone.

Trick Or Treat Time!!!

So, in prep for the halloween season we played a week of "ARMY/NAVY" or "Simon Says", but with halloween words!  Students would act out "Dracula", "Bat", "Haunted House" and so forth as quickly as possible.  Some moves they did alone while other required 2-3 people to complete!

Challenge Activities

Challenge Anyone?

So...kiddos were working on Challenge activities next with a whole class objective to solve puzzles.  The fist of which was "shipwreck" in which students must get their whole class on tires (lifeboats) before the 10 minute time limit ran out.  Some classes did it in under a MINUTE!!
Top times:
3rd grade
:37 Gillespie
:39 Danley/Redmon
4th grade
:37 Wenzel
:35 Sullivan
:38 Wenzel
5th grade
:36 Lamich
:43 Lambert
1:09 Kuhl/Carey
Then we moved on to the river crossing.....classes were challenged to get "across" the raging river before winter fell. They had limited resources and could not touch the gym floor!!!
Top times are:
7:56 Proffitt 3rd
4:08 Sullivan 4th
1:16 Kuehl/Carey 1:16

Heart of Gold Nomination

This year Westgate again nominated Dave Flanagan for the Arlington Heights Heart of Gold award for "volunteer of the year."  Fingers crossed for a win.  This is Dave's 11th year volunteering at Westgate School!!

Walk to school day

Wednesday October 10th was National "Walk to School" day and the Westgate community came out in style!  We had hundred of people walk to school and we even had celebrity walkers on 4 separate routes all converge on Westgate right before school began!

Soccer skills

For the last few weeks we have been working on soccer skills including passing, shooting, and dribbling the ball.  Unfortunately we have had temps form 84 degrees to 38 degrees and getting outside was a chore.  On top of that, battling wet grass and such proved difficult....so we moved inside for some dodgeball soccer....multiball soccer with 2 goals at each end!  How cool is that?

Sight Words

1st and 2nd grade kiddos have been working on their sight words in PE class by finding the word, saying it....then running around the gym finding all the letters and spelling out the words.  Here are some pics of the kids finding the words and running out the letters.

Track and Field

Well, actually, just track, no jumping and discus events!  This year kids are working on setting goals, trying to beat their previous times in the 50,100 relays and mile.  K-2 students run the 3/5 of a mile while 3,4,5 run the whole mile.  The field was a bit torn up, and new sod was laid down, so trying to navigate was a bit difficult.  I also had to mark out a new course for the mile, but in the end...it all worked out!

Orange ruler

This year the PTA is doing the Orange ruler running event to raise $ for the PTA funds!  Check out the assembly in the gym!  How cool is that?  Students learn that they always "measure up!"

Rolling Meadows Westgate night

What a great time at the Westgate School night at Rolling Meadows High school.  The kids had a blast running through the "Mustang" and....like last year,  ran all the way to the end zone....lol.  Dave Flanagan was on hand along with a BUNCH of Westgate students!

Double classes

This year, we have a few double classes in the gym at the same time.  Luckily, the Westgate students can be good leaders and show their knowledge of PE with their younger partners!  Check out Mrs. Carney's helping out some K classes!

Fitness Testing!!

So, we are working on fitness testing for the next 3 weeks.  The 3rd,4th, and 5th grade students have scores recorded for the state of IL, BUT it does not count towards their PE grades.
K, 1st, and 2nd grade students "practice" the tests for fun and so they get used to them!
For cardio we run the PACER test, for strength and endurance we do the sit-up (curl-up) and push-up test and for flex we do the sit-reach.
Hopefully next week, the rain blows thru and we can get some running events in for our fall track unit!
Coach K

WELCOME BACK!!!

Holy smokes, where did the summer go?  Seems like last week we were doing Field day, then summer school, then.....we are here again!
Good news is, I did get a quick (extended) break up north in Minnesota to get some fishing, dirt biking, Yaking, and watersports in!
My daughter finally caught her first muskie - I hooked, she fought, and mommy netted!  It measured in at a whopping 50" BEAST!!  Way to go Emma!

This year we continue our curriculum review with assessment development AND we have abreand new report card!  Woohoo!!

We also have Al Helmann (Greenbrier PE teacher) covering a  bunch of classes this year.

We also have a brand new NSSEO APE helper in gym class AND>>>

A BRAND NEW PLAYGROUND!!

Looking forward to a great year!

Pin Knockdown

Working on Overhand throw, underhand throw, bowling and "bounce shots."  Two teams of kids try to knock out each other by "knocking over pins" on the opposite side of the gym.  Teams start with 10-12 bowling pins and CAN shoot hoops to get one pin back at a time.  Switching from offense to defense is an important Team skill to have!!

March madness

So for a couple of weeks we worked on dribbling, shooting, Lightning knockout, superknockout all in preparation for MARCH MADNESS.  I had Kentucky picked, and was not correct, but how about Loyola!!  Way to go guys!

For St. Patty's day

There is a story behind this photo.....
Ask Coach K how he can dance...lol....

Ship going down!!!!

So, this week 3-5 grade kids have been trying to work together as a team to "Save" all the class by loading them on the lifeboats as quickly as possible....first they have 5 lifeboats, then 4, then 3 lifeboats!!
Great job guys, I think Jensens class had the fastest time with 5 tires and 4 tires.  Hyneks class had the record for 3 tires total!

Parachute time

Kids got an opportunity to work as a whole TEAM to manipulate the parachute into mushrooms, popcorn poppers and a launcher!  We also learned about hear making things lift or rise and cooler air makes things drop or go lower.

Basic Body Skills

These last few weeks we have been working on basic body skills like tumbling, balance, strength training and flexibility.  Students are using the rope, wall, balance beams, tumbling mats and the vault!  Balance is an essential skill for all sport AND is always changing due to student physical growth!!

Daniel Diffy Speed Stacker!!

So Westgate had the US team member of speed stacks come by and teach kids some new moves, demonstrate his skills, and talk about the competitive sport of speed stacking.
We covered the 3-3-3, 3-6-3, and the cycle.  I'm pretty good with the stacks, but Dan is 2 times Faster than my best score!!!  We also played a bunch of cardio/team/relay games using the cups (dan brought some larger cups too.) . Thanks again for a great time!