Cooperation vs. Competition

     Cooperation is an important part to our well-being. Unfortunately it has been overcome by the need for competition by all ages. In an article by Perry W. Buffington, he describes the studies done by psychiatrists to back up this idea. I agree with the concept he is trying to get across and I believe that as adults, we should be enabling children to use this concept with one another. Even though competition may be good in small doses, the lack of cooperation among individuals is causing a huge decline in people's self-esteem and can have a negative effect on them both physically and psychologically.

 
 To be better is to work with others and not against them. This means supporting one another, working as a team and sharing leadership. All of these things in combination, can create a "better" being and can have a positive influence on others lives. As I stated, competition may be needed as well. Competition is the force that can drive people to work hard towards a goal. However, too much of this causes people to do whatever it takes to get there, even if it means stepping on other people to get there.


      Competition can decrease your self-esteem which can affect grades,our social interaction and our overall mental being whereas cooperation can raise this and create a mental "high" in which we feel good about ourselves and towards others. Games played by children should not be based on competition or include elimination. Working well together is what they should be based on. In order to create that drive caused by competition, you may want to play games with them where you can win or lose as a team. That way children are not winning or losing as an individual, but rather cooperating and working well together in order to win.

     The same goes for elite sports in school. It singles those out who may work well with others but not necessarily scoring goals or winning. Not making this team after trying so hard can harm their self esteem greatly. Any sports teams should be more about cooperating in order to do well AS A TEAM, even if you don't win.

     All together, cooperation is key in providing our children with a great future, not only for them but also for others. They will achieve higher grades in school, participate more in activities, be more social, and be happier on a day-to-day basis.  If we start out while they are young, they will mature with this concept and do very well throughout high school, university, in their career, and in life.

Try using these methods of cooperation today. 

It's never too late to start!

Physical Education Links!!

Finding Games for Children to Play

     Mr. Gym is a website created in 2004 by a teacher for other teachers as well as those who are interested in forming group activities. The purpose of the website is not just to serve as an information base for others to view but also to allow other teachers to give their input on activities and add more games to the website. It is continuously growing and acting as a great resource for physical educators. If you have found or created a game that you believe should be shared with others, you are able to contact the site and have it put on for others too see. For those of you who are interested in using this site, it is very well-designed to be user friendly. Games are located on the left hand side of the screen and are grouped into different types. There are also categories by grade which can be useful if you are working with a specific age group. The games introduced are very fun looking activities and include descriptions as well as the age group they are geared for. Overall, this site is useful for those physical education instructors who are looking to organize a fun game for children.

                                                                                                                          http://www.mrgym.com/

     PE Central is a more professional site than the previous. It is not created by one teacher but in fact a board of managing editors and advisers with experience in game creation. It is not as user friendly but it sets itself apart from other physical education web sites by stating on games how to adapt the game if you are working with children who may have a disability. I think it is a great way for teachers to find games where everyone may be included no matter the circumstance. There is also a larger list of games in comparison to other cites. PE central is not only a site containing lesson plans for physical education classes but also ways of assessment  adaptation ideas, class management, and an online shopping link to buy equipment that may be needed.

http://www.pecentral.org

     


     Fun-Attic is a unique website. It has games that are not commonly played as well as original equipment that has an icon next to each item that is able to be used by disabled children. they are very customer-orientated and post emails with comments/concerns regarding their website. They are geared towards creating a fun and interactive gaming environment for children. Instead of their readers being mainly PE teachers, they are also trying to get parents interested and involved as well as the children. They have an interesting idea in order to keep people coming back to their site by creating a "game of the month" for educators or parents to check out! 

http://www.funattic.com

     

Using Your Creativity

     Creativity is important in your everyday life, no matter what it is that you are doing if you cannot be creative, you cannot succeed. In the classroom it is important to teach children skills they will need outside of class or outside of the gym and having them be creative is good for their train of thought. 

     I was taught a very interested method of doing this just this past week. By putting children into teams it allows them to be creative as well as participate and share thoughts and ideas with others which is also a great skill for them to have, to be able to work as a team. This game is built off of teamwork and working together will make your group stand out from all the rest. So how it works is in your teams, you go around to the stations that have been previously set up (number of stations depends on number of teams), and at each one there is a random grouping of equipment. Within your group you must come up with a game that is both fun and something everyone can play, as well as agree on, and do so in the time allotted.

     One of the stations set up had hula hoops, hockey sticks, and small rubber balls. Our goal was to create a game for ages 6 and up. As a team it was important that we all put in our two cents and were happy with what it is we were choosing, it took three or four game ideas before we came up with something. One hula was placed in the center and four were in each corner creating a box around the original hula. As a spin off of "Piggy in the middle," four of us stood in the hoops that were in the corner with hockey sticks and were passing each other one of the balls. The fifth person was to stand within the hula placed in the center with a hockey stick while trying to intercept the ball flying past. For the duration of the game, nobody was allowed to step outside the hoop or they were to be the "Piggy." You could also end up in the middle by hitting the ball too hard or completely out of direction of another player. The rules put in place were to make sure people respected others and helped others participate more as opposed to trying to get people out. Instead the goal of the game was to work as a team and communicate without your ball being intercepted. If, as we found, you are finding it too hard for the "Piggy" to reach the ball, you may have to bring in your corner hoops a little bit closer or else allow the center person to pivot outside of the hoop but always having at least one foot remain inside. Like any group activity it may become frustrating for some when other people don't necessarily want to cooperate or else are to shy to communicate with the group on what it is they would like to do, or think would be fun. You may be able to cure this by continuously asking them their opinion and making them feel included.

     Another station used had potato sacks, paddles, a small ball and two hula hoops. Split your group into two (in our case we chose boys vs girls) and hop into the potato sacks. The paddles were to be the only things allowed to touch the ball and the hoops were put on either side of our allotted gaming sections acting as nets or goals. You are then to pass the ball to another player and eventually try and get it into the hoop on the opposing end to score a point. Team with the most points when the time is up wins. The rules implemented were that the ball was not to touch any body parts or you are to forfeit it to the other team. This was to keep people from cheating and playing in a soccer-like fashion or throwing to their partners causing an unfair advantage. It was also implemented that each player must touch the ball prior to scoring so that everyone has a fair chance at playing and one person is not just running down to the other end on their own to score all the time. These rules helped the teams to communicate a little better than the previous ones because both teams showed some competitiveness and in order to have everyone touch the ball and score, communication was primitive. The group worked really well on this one and everyone seemed to agree on a fun level as well as something that would be a great lesson both inside the gym and out for anyone older than the grade 2 level.

     If given the chance I highly recommended doing this station activity with a large group of young children, you may need to imply the rules for them prior to them playing as they may not think of them on their own but it is definitely a great activity to teach them a few things that are important when playing games and that its not JUST about fun, but also about how others experiences are when they walk away from it.

              

HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!

Will your teaching philosophy change a life?

When teaching games to young children, what is worth teaching? What is going to truly make a difference in their lives? How do you create an environment that is fun for all?

Prior to planning a game based on fun, it is important to dig deeper and force ones self to think about your philosophy for teaching. It is a system of principles that are always considered when creating games and concluding what it is the children need to be taught. My philosophy is based on the fact that each child is an individual with emotions, reactions, and thoughts. Each is unique and the interactions they have at a young age, and the way they are taught, shapes them into who they are and what they demonstrate to others.

To children, games are all about having fun. Though it is 

very important that they enjoy themselves, it is just as important that they use teamwork, follow rules, and are respectful to other children. Those who grow older and base their lives around competition may be hard working, but are also doing anything they can to win. This includes cheating, lying, and even knocking down others to get to the top. Is this what we want for our future? What about those who were the ones being knocked down, cheated, and lied to? Well they are the ones with no sense of self-worth, do not typically like to participate and perhaps are lacking in social skills. This is due to fear. FEAR of losing! FEAR of being the butt end of the joke! FEAR, of what life has to offer.

My philosophy is to show children that you can have fun when playing games as well as making it fun for others. The inclusion of other people, trying your own personal best, following rules, and being positive is what makes a day enjoyable whether it be playing games, out on the playground, or in the classroom. With everyone working together and including one another, no single child is left behind and it is an extremely useful life lesson to be learned.

There is no perfect world, where everyone plays together in harmony, where teachers all have the same philosophy, or where each student is raised in a similar household. However if you are able to teach this philosophy to at least one student and make a difference in their lives.......why wouldn't you?

WHAT IS YOUR PHILOSOPHY?