St Marys Lab 3

For this lab, I observed two preschoolers in the gym. I watched Sage and Maddy, both age 4 years. I notice the preschoolers usually have a difficult time with some of the locomotor skills, but these two did very well. Both were able to leap from one foot to another when reminded. They did great on the horizontal jump and were able to land on two feet simultaneously. As far as the slide, Maddy had a little problem when going to the left side. We played a game today that consisted of an obstacle course in a Dora the Explorer jungle theme. The kids really responded to the activities and did a great job. I think one of the main reasons things went well today, was because we got right down to their eye level and made sure we had their complete attention before explaining the directions. The activity was very motivating and because it was a little different, they were very interested. We had some props to make the kids feel like they were in the jungle. Once we came inside, we played this game with the large group of students. Because of the way the game was made up, all the students had fun and enjoyed playing. I wasn't sure if the older kids would feel the theme was too kiddish, but they really loved it.

Lab #2 at St. Marys

During today's lab I observed students ranging in age from K-3, Focusing on three locomotor skills in particular- running, hopping and galloping. While in the gym, I observed two students engaged in these skills. Julian grade 3 age 8 and Isabella grade 1 age 6. Julian performed all skills exceptionally well. It is obvious to me he is a future athlete. He loves to participate and catches on very quickly. Isabella is less capable and had a more difficult time performing the skills in the context of the game. I felt the kids seemed much more comfortable using only their dominant foot, but when I reminded them to try both feet they seemed able for the most part. This seems to be true of most observations. As soon as the kids are reminded about what is expected of them, they do better. This shows me how much reinforcement kids need to stay on task. Sometimes I feel as if I am constantly redirecting them, but I guess this is what they need. I am amazed at the different developmental levels as I glanced around the gym. The levels vary depending on age for the most part. The kids played Capture the Running Flag today. They seemed to enjoy the game alot and listened well to the directions. I remembered to keep the directions simple, and this kept them more focused.