With physical education courses being taught online, teachers and students are exploring ways to have the class take part in activities whilst in a virtual setting.
“Having virtual PE is okay,” junior Ventsislav Yankov said. “We get to learn more about physical health and personal wellness, as well as workout at home. But at the same time, of course I wish we had PE in real-life so we can actually exercise and play sports, but unfortunately we are stuck in our houses for now.”
Students are now required to complete one hour of fitness related activities each week and document what exercise they did and for their “fitness logs” in Canvas.
“This is actually really hard for us because we wanted it to be [real] PE and have it in person and be able to play sports,” PE Coach Rosalie Schmitt said. “I miss the interactions with the girls, but I like that I still get to see them through the Google Meet and so far some students seem to be thriving, while others are really struggling.”
While team sports are not possible through distance learning, PE teachers are instead teaching modules such as Fitness Health & Wellness for all’, Fitness Fundamentals and Heart rate.
“The modules are pretty easy and all you have to do is read the articles, learn the vocab, watch videos and take mini quizzes,” Yankov said. “You also have a driving question that you have to answer in depth and after that you put everything on a Google doc worksheet and turn it in.”
A usual class consists of a quick overview of important information and the rest of the class time is dedicated to students’ finishing work or exercising.
Even though circumstances are different due to the ongoing pandemic, teachers plan to keep students motivated on their physical health.
“For me, PE is all about learning new sports or fitness activities that my students find that they like,” PE Coach Anne Kalenowicz said. “That they are able to continue doing those kinds of things lifelong just to stay healthy because staying active is so important and it’s hard to do [that] during these [unprecedented] times.”
