In October, we concluded our study of (but not use of) quadrupedal movement. We will continue to use these ranges of motion to unlock greater upper body and core strength, especially when we approach acrobatics and tumbling. However, in the nearer term we will be spending more time on our Seattle Marathon training, basketball, and also falling and returning to our feet.
Classes are accumulating kilometers. I tally the distance each student runs in PE, and chart the totals for each class (individual distances are not displayed). At the end of November, students who are tallying "home" kilometers (soccer practices, hikes, bike rides, even swim lessons!) will add "home" kilometers and "PE" kilometers. Students participating in the Seattle Kid's Marathon will each individually accumulate 40km (or more) before running the final 2km on Nov 26th. We are supplementing pace running with shuttle runs, sprints that frequently stop and restart.
Shuttle runs emphasize changes of direction and shifting of weight. This allows me to in turn emphasize weight distribution in the foot, but also allows us opportunities to experience gravity and inertia, which it turn give us opportunities to practice falling safely. Falling is common to us all. I remember reading somewhere that most of us fall hundreds of times simply learning to walk. So why should falling give us hesitation, anxiety, or fear? Somewhere in our development, we learn to associate falling with failure or mistake. I suspect this is unproductive, unwarranted, and unsafe. Indeed, falling itself is fun (weee!) and informative (where's is my weight, equilibrium, stability, center, etc), it is just the abrupt impact interrupting the fall that is problematic. But if we understand our design and momentum, falling can be just another means of moving forward. Falling will not be associated with failing, but will be a confident, comfortable, safe part of our movement vocabulary. When we trust ourselves to fall, we can challenge ourselves to fly, or at least to bounce back and keep going.
Students are getting a rather literal lesson in bouncing back. This week students started learning about dribbling and controlling a basketball. Just as running gives us an excuse to examine the foot and ankle, dribbling gives us a reason to study the hand and wrist. K-1st students will start to examine a variety of ways to manipulate a variety of balls and 2nd-4th students are already starting to pass and will drill shooting skills next week before learning about the game itself (basketball) after the skills are introduced and drilled. Emphasis will remain on body mechanics, coordination, and skill development; competition will be almost an afterthought.
Keep Moving, Stay Healthy,
Matthew Smith
