Running head: OBSERVATION PROJECT

Kaur, Satwinder
Education 240
Health and PE Observation Project

HEALTH AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION OBSERVATION PROJECT

InTASC Standards Rationale Page
Standard #8: Instructional Strategies
The teacher understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage learners to
develop deep understanding of content areas and their connections, and to build skills to apply
knowledge in meaningful ways.
Name of Artifact: Health and Physical Education Observation
Date: October, 2016
Course: EDUC 240: Physical and Health Education for Elementary Teachers
Brief Description:
I observed a health classroom with sixth graders and a PE classroom with first graders. I
came to understand that teaching sixth graders are better than teaching first graders. First grade
teachers need a lot of patience, energy, positive attitude to be an excellent professional teacher
whereas sixth grade teachers can focus more on encouraging students to be engaged, peaking
their interest, and developing a deep understanding of the content.
Rationale:
To document my understanding of Instructional Strategies, I have selected to include my
Health and Physical Education Observation Project. Physical Education teacher made her
classroom fun and energetic by getting their students involved in fun games; on the other hand,
Health Education teacher kept her students engaged in class discussions by using examples and
telling jokes.

HEALTH AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION OBSERVATION PROJECT

Introduction
The population in Greenwood is described as middle class, mostly young professionals (25-34)
and well-educated. There is a Start Class Rating which evaluated 1971 schools in Indiana on
several factors including college entrance exam scores, state assessment scores. Isom Central
Elementary School received a rating of 9 which is reasonably high comparing to other
elementary schools in Indiana which have an average rating of 8. The student teacher ratio is
16:1, which is a little higher than the average for all US elementary schools (15.6). 9.8% of the
student population at V.O. Isom Central Elementary School classify as Caucasian. Greenwood
Isom elementary school contains 61.7% Caucasian students, so V.O. Isom Central Elementary
school has a very different ethnic distribution compared to other schools in the city (V. O. Isom
Central Elementary School in Greenwood, Indiana).
Health Classroom Observation Experiences
I went to a middle school to observe for the Health class. First, Ms. Ferguson handed out all the
quizzes that they had taken on Friday. The quiz was True/False and Fill in the blank questions.
She went over all the questions because half of the kids got confused on the vocabulary terms.
After she reviewed all the quiz questions, she asked if anybody have any questions on what we
just went over. There were some students that raised their hands and she tried to explain them in
a fun and energetic way so she can keep all the kids engaged. Then she went over goals and
asked the students if they know what a goal is? And then she wrote a definition of goal on the
board and explained them about the short-term and long term goals. Before she explained then
about the short and long term goals, she asked them what they know about these goals. She kept
her class entertained and engaged in discussions and most of the kids were participating in her
class.
Physical Education Classroom Observation Experiences
I observed the 1st graders for the Physical Education class. The kids were making so much noise
and the teacher kept saying Lowering your voices down but they keep forgetting. She had to

HEALTH AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION OBSERVATION PROJECT

talk so loud because the gym room was so big. First, the Kids were going to play hula hoop
game. Teacher gave clear instructions on how to play this game. She made two groups and asked
the kids to stand in a big circle, slip a hula hoop onto each other`s arm and had them all join
hands. Then they had to move the hula hoop all the way around the circle without letting go of
each other`s hands. One team was following all the instructions but the other team was using
their hands to pass it on the other member. But the teacher gave them instructions again to play
them without touching their hands. Another game that they played was with a big ball. They all
sat around outside the circle with their heels touching outside the circle. She had to explain some
of the kids what a heel is? Then they had to kick a ball using just the palm of their feet. Some
kids were kicking it so hard and it kept going outside the circle. The teacher explained so many
times not to kick it too hard but some of the kids were still repeating the same mistakes.
Teacher Comments
So, when I asked Miss Ferguson about the National Health Standards, she said that they have
only one semester to go over health in sixth grade. So, they break up standards in different grade
levels. So, in 6th grade, they teach standards dealing with emotions, physical, social health, selfconfidence, and self-esteem. In 7th grade, they talk about smoking and alcohol, and drugs. In 8th
grade, they talk about communicable diseases and they get more details in decision making
skills. So, they cover all the standards but at different grade levels. According to The Indiana
Academic Standards for Health & Wellness Support, Learning of appropriate skills for health
promotion and disease prevention has to be followed to enhance health and wellness. They
should be developmentally appropriate and identify what knowledge and skills students should
have and can achieve. They should be applicable to multiple health-related issues and cultures
(2010). Some of the best teaching practices that she told me were that they share with each other
but they have done. They have this website called Shape America where you can write and then

HEALTH AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION OBSERVATION PROJECT

people can response to your questions. For example, what great suggestions do you have if I
want to do badminton game? The gym class teacher mentioned some of the best teaching
practices that they follow are the Red Ribbon week in October which correlates to peaceful
activity. They do a whole American Patriotic game for Veteran`s day, so they take out plans and
adapt them into that theme.
Summary
Most of the population at Isom Elementary School identify as Caucasians, very few AfricanAmericans, Hispanic, and Asian population. But the School rating is very high compared to the
other schools in Indiana. I enjoyed going to the gym class where they played hula hoop game and
kicking game with a big ball. One thing that I experienced observing first graders was that the
teacher must repeat so many times and they kept complaining about their teammates to the
teacher. But she handled it well. For the health class, I went to Isom Middle School and observed
a sixth grade. Mrs. Ferguson seemed so responsible and she knows how to keep the students
engaged by teaching in a fun and energetic way.

Reference
Indiana Department of Education supporting student success. (2010). Retrieved from
http://www.doe.in.gov/sites/default/files/standards/health-andwellness/2010_health_education_standards_literacy.pdf
V. O. Isom Central Elementary School in Greenwood, Indiana. Retrieved from
http://public schools.startclass.com/l/31832/V-O-Isom-Central-Elementary-School

HEALTH AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION OBSERVATION PROJECT