Grde 4 students have been wearing pedometers in PE class this past week to see how many steps we do in a PE lessons. We have been doing between 1000 and 3000 steps per lesson. It is amazing to see the increase in activity levels once we clipped on the pedometers! They can be a great motivational tool for some. If you wear a pedometer a daily goal is to complete 10000 steps per day from the time you wake up until bedtime. We also participated in activities that develop strength, flexibility, muscular endurance and cardiovascular endurance. The strength one was fun because we had friends sit onto scooters that were connected together and tested our strength by seeing how many classmates we could pull along on scooters. It turns out that most 4th graders have enough strength to pull 5-7 classmates! We also discussed the recommended daily activity guidelines for children (one hour on most days of the week) and reflected on our own personal levels of daily physical activity.

ES Sports Day

The elementary school annual sports day is Friday February 24^th. All families are invited to attend.  Students will bring home a program for ES Sports day the week before on Friday February 17th. Students will participate as a class in a variety of activities that promote an active lifestyle, teamwork, and developing physical skills. Our focus is understanding that physical activity provides opportunities for enjoyment, challenge and social interaction. We also expect students to display good sportsmanship. Outlined below are some of the sportsmanship issues we discuss with children. As parents you can play a significant role in helping your child become a good sport. 

We also ask parents to assist at each station with your child where appropriate. Please ask the staff member in charge at each station how you might assist.  

We look forward to seeing you on Sports Day 2012. If you have any questions e-mail me at pekina@ismanila.org

What parents can do to promote good sportsmanship.

1. Be a good role model for your children. Children learn by example, so show them how to practice good sportsmanship by not always expecting to win. Explain that winning is not always an option, but that it is always appropriate to be a good sport.

2. Good sportsmanship is a side effect of having good character. Teach your children how to interact with their elders, coaches and peers with a positive attitude, one that shows respect for all involved in the game.

3. Keep your ego out of your children’s game. Some parents, never having had the opportunity to play a sport (or play it well), live vicariously through their children’s sports success. Stay focused on your children’s best interests and get over your own high school insecurity.

4. Healthy competition is great, but make sure to emphasize other aspects of the game. Friendship, skill, exercise and good sportsmanship are major factors that contribute to a successful experience. After games ask your child “Did you enjoy that?” rather than “Did you win?” or “Who won?”  Remember the number one reason that children consistently give as to why they participate in sport, is to have fun and be with friends. Emphasize this aspect in your post game conversations.

5. Acknowledge and praise other team members and members of the opposite team. Likewise, address and correct negative behavior immediately.

6. Mind your sideline behavior. Do not try to coach the coach, your children or other members of the team during the game. Regardless of how bad the call, refrain from yelling at the official.

7. Teach your children how to take personal responsibility for situations. If your child made a bad play, so what? Don’t point fingers or pass blame on to someone else – or encourage your child to do so – to prevent your child from having a hurt ego.

8. Good sportsmanship involves sharing. Even if your child made the winning basket, teach him to include the whole team in the glory. Remind your child that it takes teamwork to win a game.

Losing – On Your Own

Sometimes kids lose on their own, like in a neighborhood game of basketball. These situations can be extra-hard if there are no grownups around to be the referees. Then it’s up to kids to decide among themselves whether something counted as a basket or a foul. It’s good for kids to learn to play without a grownup deciding everything but it also can lead to a lot of arguing. Each kid wants his or her team to win and may feel very strongly about plays that don’t go the team’s way.

How do you solve these disagreements? It’s best if everyone tries to be fair. Some kids still might cheat or bend the rules, but you can do your best to be fair. That might mean giving the other team the benefit of the doubt. Maybe you thought a basket shouldn’t count and the other team thinks it’s OK. If it’s close, you might say, “OK, it can count.” Hopefully, the other team will be just as sportsmanlike when one of your calls could go either way. Even if they’re not, you certainly can’t be accused of cheating or playing unfairly. You’ve done your part to bring good sportsmanship to the game.

Kids who are good sports – and don’t freak out when they lose – will become known as kids who are fun to play with. Kids might not be as eager to play with someone who gets angry all the time and won’t ever give the other guy or girl a break.

10 Ways to Be a Good Sport

Here are some ways that you can show others what good sportsmanship is all about:

1. Be polite to everyone you’re playing with and against. No trash talk – which means saying mean things while you’re in the middle of a game.
2. Don’t show off. Just play your best. If you’re good, people will notice.
3. Tell your opponents “good game!” whether you’ve won or you’ve lost.
4. Learn the rules of the game. Show up for practices and games on time – even if you’re the star of the team.
5. Listen to your coaches and follow their directions about playing.
6. Don’t argue with an official if you don’t agree with his or her call. If you don’t understand a certain call, wait until after the game to ask your coach or the official to explain it to you.
7. Don’t make up excuses or blame a teammate when you lose. Try to learn from what happened.
8. Be willing to sit out so other team members can get in the game – even if you think you’re a better player.
9. Play fair and don’t cheat.
10. Cheer for your teammates even if the score is 1,000-1! You could inspire a big comeback!

Reviewed by: Steve Sanders, PhD
Date reviewed: August 2005 http://www.kidshealth.org/PageManager.jsp?dn=KidsHealth&lic=1&ps=307&cat_id=20070&article_set=22069

AFTERSCHOOL ACTIVITIES (AFAC) for KINDERGARTEN

After School Activities for Kindergarten will begin on January 25, 2012 and will end on May 23, 2012. It will be held every Wednesday from 2:20 to 3:15 pm. The program is strictly for Kindergarten students only.

There are going to be 6 sections of students and each will be supervised by teacher assistants. They will assist the activity coaches and escort students to their activities. They will pick up/return your child to/from the Kindergarten Hallway every Afterschool Activities day.

Your child will stay with their section and attend all activities described below on a monthly rotation (a different activity every month) and it is free of charge!

TRANSPORTATION:

• After the activities, Bus riders will be picked up by their respective bus mothers from the Kindergarten Hallway
• Other students must be picked up by their parents/guardians at 3:15 from the Kindergarten corridor; students who are not picked up by 3:20 will be taken to the ES office   
• Teacher Assistants will remain with your child until he/she gets picked up.      

The after school activities program aims to expose Kindergarten students to the following activities: Dance, Swimming, Art, Wall climbing, Gymnastics and Games.

Please be advised that the LAST WEEK of after school activities for first semester is on December 5-9. Students will have to register again if they want to participate in any after school activity for the second semester. Registration for the second semester starts on December 5. Student will be bringing these hom Friday Dec 2nd.

Each year in ES we celebrate being active with SportDay. Our focus is on having fun being active, cooperation, and sportsmanship. This is a fantastic full day event. There will be no regular classes or specialist classes on the day. Classroom teachers will take their classes to a variety of challenging and fun activities throughout the day. All parents are invited to attend and support your child on the day. Students will also be given the opportunity to design a team logo and name to be printed onto their own ‘class t-shirt’ over the next month. These shirts have a huge visual impact and promote great team spirit (and it also makes it easier to keep track of each class!). Although it’s not compulsory, we strongly encourage you to purchase one in order to make this day even more memorable. You will receive more information about the specific activities and facilities closer to the event. Your child will bring home a t-shirt order form this week. Please return this to your classroom teacher before Dec 2nd.

 ————————————————————————————————————————————

T-SHIRT ORDER FORM

Name of student: _______________________      Grade: _____     Homeroom teacher: ________________

Please be advised that the price of your child’s T-shirt for Sport’s Day is Php380.  Sizes will be allocated using sample shirts at school (the PE Teachers will organize t-shirt sizing for during PE lessons). Check below the appropriate option for you and return this form to homeroom teachers on or before December 2nd (Friday) orders will be sent to the supplier immediately after this day. 

Thank you,

PE Department

____ YES, I wish to buy a shirt for Sport’s day: (please check)

0  Will pay fees directly to the Cashier’s Office

0  Please include fees in my child’s school account

____ NO, I do not wish to buy a shirt for Sport’s day.

Reason: _________________________________________________________

Parent’s Name/Signature: __________________________            Contact no: _________________

If your child is a beginner swimmer, who is not yet able to confidently imitate the teacher by putting the face in the water, fully submerge their head, or float on their back with either an aid such as a lifejacket, kickboard or with teacher assistance, then read on for some useful tips

You can play a vital role in helping your child progress from a timid beginner swimmer to a safe and confident beginner by joining us in the pool in the swimming lessons at school and also continuing to work on the above skills outside of school swimming classes. Your child will benefit from as much time spent as possible playing in and around shallow waist depth water preferably with a parent in the water to help relax and develop some water familiarity and confidence.  Children need to feel comfortable and relaxed in and around water before they can learn to swim – this important stage is called developing aquatic readiness or water familiarization. The easiest way to achieve this is for the child to swim (play in water) with someone they know and trust well – such as a parent.

The first milestone to becoming a safe swimmer is the ability to relax in a front/back float position with an aid. If a child falls unexpectedly into water, the ability to float on their back and grasp an aid thrown to them could save their life. We spend a lot of time teaching young children to roll onto their back and float and kick to the edge.

Here are some useful tips for timid swimmers.

• Use lots of toys and most importantly be in the water with your child
• Be prepared to do everything you ask them to do, i.e. get you own face wet first, blow bubbles. Lead by example.
• Use lots of songs and games to help children relax and distract form a fear of the water.
• Goggles and fins and floats are fun to wear and help students relax in the water. It is however important that students can swim without goggles and not be overly dependent on wearing them.
• Arm floats and float belts are a great confidence builder however it is very important that these swim aids are not heavily relied upon as they can lead to a false sense of security. A healthy balance is needed.  For example, if a child spends 10 minutes in the water with arm floats on, they should also spend 10 minutes without floats, even if this means an adult needs to be in the water with them for support.

You can best support your child in learning to become a safe swimmer by playing and swimming with your child on a regular basis. Time spent playing in the water with a parent is one of the biggest factors in enabling your child to develop water confidence and stroke readiness.  Children 4 years of age and under will trust a parent and take your lead a lot quicker than a swim coach (who is often a stranger or at best somebody they only meet once a week). Please contact me anytime for a list of games and activities to play with your children in the pool to build aquatic readiness skills.

Watch the video and join us next week at ISM!

On the last day of term , ISM ES  teachers did an unexpected dance on stage during the assembly in the Fine Arts Theater. This then spilled out onto the playground during recess time. Dancing is a fun way to get some physical activity into your day! Being physically active is not always about playing competitive sports – there are many ways to be active – what are your favorites?

Grade 1 students are developing and refining their stroke techniques in the pool. They are also learning the vocabulary of swimming with words such as back float, front float, sculling, treading water, reach rescues, throw rescues, dry rescues etc.  We learn a lot of skills through games as well as drills. One of the most important skills is that of self preservation both in and around water.  Children learn the 3 rules of the Aquacode.

1. Go together           (never swim alone)

2. Float and wave    (if in trouble in the water, roll onto your back and float and wave one arm to signal for help)

3. Reach to rescue   (never get wet to rescue someone in trouble – unless you are a trained lifeguard – instead reach with a rope, noodle, broom handle etc or throw an object that floats such a s kick board or life jacket)

Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Flash video.

In PE we are swimming and learning skills both in and out of the water. Apart from learning strokes and safety skills in the water students are also develop an understanding of the potential dangers around water and how we can lessen any hazards. This includes reading and obeying Danger signs that are sometimes found near beaches, rivers and swimming pools. Watch the slide show and see if you can name the dangers that each sign is warning potential swimmers. The last few are named for you.