Time is what we want most, but what we use worst. – William Penn
Being a teacher is exhausting! From the moment you wake up to the second your head hits the pillow again you are constantly thinking about your classes, students, what happened yesterday, today, what’s happening tomorrow, that new activity idea, how to resolve a conflict, meetings, policy changes, after school events, coaching responsibilities, planning, assessment… you get the picture! To add to that there is rarely a second of peace and quiet and if that opportunity arises there are always emails to read, people to talk to, materials to prepare and so on.
For PE teachers, add in always being on your feet, running around immersing yourself in activities, projecting your voice across a large space and the constant noise of shouting, screaming, balls bouncing etc. For the first 4 years in my PE journey I struggled. I was returning home each night absolutely beat, with little to no energy for my family (or myself). So this year, my fifth, I have begun to really examine what systems and routines that I can implement to minimise my energy output and maximise student agency and autonomy.
Whether you’re a classroom teacher or specialist, there are many creative and fun ways to facilitate learning without the common uses of your voice and body. Here is what I have been working on and tips on how to start including these in your classes today.
1. Voice Clips
This idea was actually developed through a great conversation with a grade 5 design team of students tasked by their amazing design teacher Ms. Jo. Their mission: To see how they can make the lives of teachers easier, through design. They came to me with a simple question, ‘What problems do you face daily as a teacher?’. My immediate response was simple…. I’m always losing my voice. They took this ideas and over the course of several Design Classes, recorded 15 of the most commonly spoken phrases that I use to an MP3 file. They then took my beat up old portable speaker, repaired it and installed a bluetooth device, which when synced with my iPad could easily (and loudly!) project my ‘voice’ and the instructions and phrases that I regularly use. Things like: ‘Practice makes…. PROGRESS!’. This has been an absolute gamechanger and the students, 6 months later, still giggle when I lipsync over my MP3 voice.
2. Rest Position
This incredibly simple and effective idea was shared with me by a teaching assistant who had just returned from a sports carnival in Shanghai. It’s a simple command that when practiced, saves an incredible amount of time and energy, when needing to give further instructions, or transition to a new activity. While students are busily engaged in an activity I will blow my whistle and announce ‘REST’ (short for Rest Position). Students instinctively know to immediately stop what they are doing, turn to face me, while leaning over and resting their hands on their knees (imagine you’ve run a 400m sprint and the coach doesnt let you sit down so you have to stand to rest… yeah that kind of rest position). This takes practice and commitment on the teachers side but once familiar, can save so much faffing about. I use this with all grade levels from Pre-Kindergarten (3-4 years old) all the way up to my Grade 5’s (10-11 year olds).
3. OMG Groups
Who hasn’t heard the expression O…M…G…? Personally I am not a fan of this saying but for time and energy saving purposes… it’s a godsend! OMG stands for OPEN MINDED GROUPS and is a practice I use with my students to help them make good choices about where they need to sit and/or working in pairs or small groups. Start with a discussion around what being ‘Open Minded’ means in the context of working with others. Next, create a list of examples. For us this usually includes working with different nationalities, languages, genders, friendships ability levels… you get the idea. Whether we are sitting in a circle or on a bench, it’s their responsibility to organise themselves. This does take a few lessons to master, but it’s a great exercise in collaboration and gets everyone working together to complete the goal. It’s also nice to just say three letters, as opposed to dishing out multiple instructions. After a few lessons the students just do it naturally without needing reminders.
4. Hands Up Pair Up
I can’t take full credit for as I’m certain I’ve nabbed a version of it from somewhere (likely Responsive Classroom – excellent resource that I highly recommend). Basically when you say Hands Up Pair Up students raise their hands which indicates that they are looking for a partner. Linking with our OMG Groups philosophy above, students scan the space for a suitable OMG partner and high 5 to seal the deal as they go off to complete whatever task they are working on. It’s vital to to pre-discuss the importance of being Principled and never rejecting a High 5, as this can make others feel unhappy and certainly is not Open Minded! For this to work optimally, be mindful of your total student number and if needed, throw your hand up too. I tend to do this towards the end of the pair up as a little bonus for whoever is left at the end…. as kids love working with the teacher.
5. Student Choice Board
In my mission to facilitate more student agency, and after a wonderful chat with Ms. Pat in the Early Years, I whipped up a large student choice board. You can find a more detailed description of the board here and how it promotes students agency. In a nutshell, each student has their own card with their name and photo on it, and can select which skill they would like to work on, and track their own progress. Most (if not all) skills are student/co designed, relate to our current Unit of Inquiry, and include three levels, of which the students themselves determine. In basketball for example, if shooting a hoop is the ‘skill’, level one for a less experienced student may be shooting a total of 5 baskets from underneath the hoop, while for a student who plays every day after school, level one may be shooting 5 baskets in a row from the free-throw/three point line.
6. The pen is mightier than…. your voice
We’ve all had those days where we come in not feeling 100%, and probably in need of a sick day. Whether it be a bad night’s sleep, a sore throat, a headache, or all of the above, the last thing you can think of is projecting your voice. More often though, I find myself using this method when it is a particularly noisy day from all the racket of classes going on in other parts of the gym.
On these days I utilize my mini whiteboard and write/illustrate the instructions in real-time. I find that this method, kind of like a real-time conversation, rather than a list on a larger board, is more effective and draws in much curiosity from the students. I do not talk, AT ALL, and instead begin write/draw on the board while the students excitedly try to decode/predict the instructions. If they ask questions I can either nod, or shake my head and it all adds to the fun. The first time I ever tried this I was shocked at how well it worked. The Middle School PE class next door was making it impossible for me to hear myself think, so I improvised and we went through an entire 40 minute lesson without me saying a single word. Not only did it work… the students absolutely loved it!
More ideas to come in PART 2… but in the meantime what ideas do you have? I’d love to hear from you!