Theme: Easter

This was our last day with the students. My group was assigned with the pre-k students. Our group members got into character by wearing bunny ears. They thought we were the easter bunnies. I was able to interact more with the pre-k students during this lab because the classroom teachers split the students up into different stations depending on what they wanted to do. We were also able to switch classrooms this time, giving us the chance to interact with both classrooms. I read a story about an easter bunny who would rather play soccer than paint easter eggs. The students seemed to be really interested in the story and waiting patiently to find out the end of the story. After the story was read our group members put together an obstacle course for the pre-k students. That's all they wanted to do for the remainder of the day. It was neat to see the different stages of development each student was at based on stature.

Theme: Environment

There was no control of the students during this lab. Our group was assigned to teach "kick the can". There wasn't enough equipment available for the students, because we had over 40 students. We had to end the game early because students weren't following directions. The way we had the game set-up wasn't challenging enough for some of the students and it was also too crowded in the gymnasium. We had to use cones for the students to kick and there wasn't any safety emphasized during the activity.

Theme: Favorite Foods

During this lab my group was assigned to work with the pre-k kids. They were well behaved and very imaginative. I helped A and B build a house of bricks to keep an enemy clan away. After the students had finished their snack we read them a story that was based around the lab theme. The story was about a spider that wouldn't help with the garden. We took the story and turned it into a game for the pre-k students to participate in. We had the students stand behind a line of snakes and throw the healthy food (foam balls) into the buckets. We had music to go along with this game but with the sources available in the gymnasium we were unable to use music. Another activity that we used was having the students pretend they were a certain animal and had to tag their classmates and hold a pose. Working with the pre-K students made you think in a more creative/ imaginative way. After this lab I realized that you need to have more activities that keep them engaged and the activities can be simple and they would still find the activity exciting.

Theme: Action/ Movie Hero

During this lab we incorporated the theme of Action/Movie heroes into a game similar to sharks and minnows except we had the bad guys vs the good guys. The bad guys were trying to steal the good guys' capes. (A) would try and hide his/her scarf under in their pocket or cover with their hands, which made it difficult for (B) to steal. All the students wanted to be the good guys' that carried the cape and it eventually became chaotic, causing the game to end quickly.

Theme: Animals, Farm

During the lab my group "the fittastic" incorporated the animal theme into a game we played down in the cafeteria. We had the students that participated grab a partner and decide between being a giraffe or an elephant. The students were actively involved in this game and were given the opportunity to choose which locomotor movement they wanted to do. They really enjoyed playing this simple tag game.

Lab Orientation

We went through VIRTUS training. VIRTUS is the brand name that identifies best practices programs designed to help prevent wrongdoing and promote "rightdoing" within religious organizations. The VIRTUS programs empower organizations and people to better control risk and improve the lives of all those who interact with the Church. This training allows us to identify the risks to children early enough to prevent child sexual abuse from occurring. By successfully completing this training we were given a certification through the Diocese of Syracuse Child & Youth Protection Program. After our training we were given a tour of the school and what rooms we would be in to help out.

Which Sport Are You?

My sport is soccer, especially defense. I love the game and enjoy learning dribbling techniques. I played sweeper at SUNY Delhi and was name all-mountain valley conference my freshmen year and given the honor of being next season's co-captain. I'm able to read the field and have a strong knowledge of the game.