If you ask students in Mineola about what their favorite subject in school, they may tell you that it is physical education. They will say “gym.”
For physical educators in the school district, gym is the location of the class, but the true meaning of teaching a multi-faceted curriculum through movement is one that is described as physical education. For the last two years, Mineola teachers have been achieving great results with students by infusing a curriculum developed by district physical educators Christine Gayson (Meadow Drive School), Hilary Pavels (Meadow Drive School), Bill DiGennaro (Jackson Avenue School), Suzanne Vitale (Jackson Avenue School) and Joe Cerulli ( Hampton Street School).
This curriculum was developed by infusing current math and ELA common core standards into physical education planning. Interdisciplinary education has always been a goal of physical educators as they develop lessons that contain content specific vocabulary, movement-related games that require students to solve and consider math concepts and understand verbal and written direction during instruction.
The advantage for students comes in being able to learn these concepts in different ways. A child that doesn’t understand angles in math may understand those angles when we describe them as an running an “out” or “slant” pattern in football and relate it back to those same math concepts, officials say.
Students that are not interested in reading may find a spark when they listen to the teacher read snippets from books about sports, then play the game. Illustrations in these books are used to reinforce proper mechanics when students are taught skills. This is only a small example of the power of movement education.
As students move through the elementary program they build a base of ability and knowledge that progresses into a team sport and skill-based curriculum at the secondary level. Students engage in activities that require fitness, understanding of strategy in games and sportsmanship. Along this progression an understanding of fitness concepts such as body composition, body awareness and lifetime fitness are woven into movement activity.
This past November, Gayson and Pavels along with Ralph Amitrano, director of health, pe and athletics, presented the Mineola Elementary PE Curriculum at the New York State Association for Physical Education, Recreation and Dance State Conference. The presentation offered an opportunity for other districts throughout New York State to understand whose thought process as they attempt to adapt their standards in physical education to match the current needs of their students.
Gayson and Pavels stood out as professional leaders in their field as they discussed and demonstrated aspects of planning and use of equipment with an audience of Physical Education Directors from all over New York.
