Reflective Teaching Log #2

What specifically did you teach:

Our group taught a variety of locomotive, non-locomotive and cognitive skills that were directly related to striking and fielding games such as; throwing, catching, running, kicking, cognitive flexibility, tactical awareness, game sense, and selective inhibition. Our goal was to teach a striking and fielding game such as belly kickball. In order to accomplish this we decided to develop the above skills with progressive games scaffolding the skills as we progressed. The first game we led was a passing and catching game that focused primarily on non-locomotor and cognitive skills. The second game we taught was kick wall ball and encompassed elements of locomotor, non-locomotor and cognitive skills. This game was implemented to get the athletes used to a “turn” based game, and to develop the coordination of kicking and catching. The third lead up game we taught was quarter kickball. This game culminated all of the skills we previously developed into a small striking and fielding game that heavily focused on decision making. Our final game tied all skills together and allowed the athletes to apply the newly developed skills on a large scale. The first two innings were scoreless but as the students became more comfortable with and confident in the skills they had developed, scoring became a common occurrence. In future lessons I would like to allot less time for our scaffolding games. Given our target demographic (Jr. High) we assumed 10 minutes would be a good time to develop the desired skills however; due to our actual demographic (university students) many of these skills were already developed and a portion of students began to get bored.

STRENGTHS OF YOUR TEACHING:

The flow and progressions of our teaching was very specific and tailored to scaffold into our main striking and fielding game; this was our biggest strength as each progression flowed into the other well. Our explanation of each objective and key teaching points emphasized the purpose for each game and enabled students to increase their understanding of each progression. The communication between our teaching group was very strong and allowed us to transition between game to game as we were able to allocate setup/take down of equipment to those not instructing. The modifications and adjustments we made during our games allowed the students to remain engaged and enjoy each game longer, given the simplicity of the game and the age group the skills were being taught to. Additionally the facilitation of each game was a major teaching consideration that increased the strength of our teaching. We deliberately split our students into small manageable groups and were able to properly utilize the number of instructors present by constantly rotating between groups, ensuring all games were flowing properly and being performed safely/properly. This style of teaching enabled more detailed and tailored adjustments/modifications for each group for each game. I recognize that in future lessons the number of instructors available to monitor and adjust each game can be lower; some modifications that can be made to this teaching style can be the size of groups, type of game and level of instruction given.

WEAKNESSES OF YOUR TEACHING:

The vocalization of our instruction was a constant struggle across all of our instructors. We were not aware of how noisy the gym was going to be. We did gather students in a close proximity before each game explanation which allowed effective instruction however we neglected to do this when any modifications/adjustments we made. A specific example of this would be during our quarter kickball game, as some modifications we made to change the difficulty and balance (switching to non-dominant hands/legs) went unheard or was only heard by some. Another weakness in our teaching approach was a lack of demonstration. We were very focused on auditory instruction but not visual. This led to confusion during games that had more advanced components to them. As per the feedback provided by our students we switched back and forth between instructors too frequently per game. We did this intentionally with the logic that one would instruct and the other would review the key teaching points, we initially believed this would ensure no important point or rule would be missed. However, it came across unorganized and we lost a definitive teaching voice, as students were confused on who to listen to and in some cases became uncertain of the rules or additions to the game. As mentioned before, the length of each scaffolding game was not appropriate for our demographic of students, and more time could have been allocated to the final game or an additional lead up game. In future classes I will project my voice more so regardless of the noise in the background everyone will effectively hear and understand instruction. I will also incorporate visual demonstrations as this will reduce confusion, outline the expectations of the drill/game, and increase understanding.

STATEMENT ON YOUR PLANNING FOR YOUR TEACHING:

Our planning process was very democratic, and everyone had an opportunity to provide input and constructively criticize ideas presented. Our initial game plan (four

corner soccer) had to be scrapped as we did not have a clear understanding of striking and fielding games, this was a minor setback that forced us to dive into the more basic mechanics and necessary skills involved in striking and fielding games. Our initial mistake was a blessing in disguise as it brought about a deeper understanding of striking and fielding games and aided us tremendously when we were trying to breakdown the skills of belly kickball to create progressions. During our planning we ensured we highlighted all of the skills and key teaching points we wanted to accomplish in each game and built the game around those KTP’s. When planning other lessons in the future I will definitely analyze the final game and highlight the basic skills required for the final game. The process of planning games for progression is easier and more purposeful when a clear understanding of what the goal is and the type of skills that are required to achieve it. The experience from planning this lesson has greatly changed my initial approach to how I will plan future lessons.

MODIFICATIONS YOU MADE WHILE TEACHING:

Several modifications were made to our games. With each modification our goal was to further develop skills related to striking and fielding. We chose modifications that the students might not be accustomed to such as catching and kicking with non-dominant legs/arms. These modifications challenged the students creating new learning and skill development opportunities through alternative forms of locomotor and non-locomotor skills. An example of a modification we made during a game was our catching and passing lead up game. We wanted to incorporate tactical awareness and cognitive flexibility by changing the type of balls that were being thrown, as catching/throwing a tennis ball has different mechanics than catching an inflatable beach ball. We planned for this modifications however we did not expect the ease at which our students would be able to handle the modification. Both groups began to circulate several balls, instead of continuously adding balls we decided to modify our initial approach and create one large group. In doing so we increased possible total number of balls in play, we changed the pattern of throwing/catching they had become accustomed to, we forced them to communicate and we increased the amount of executive function required to keep track of which type of ball you were receiving, where you were receiving from and where you were passing to. Additionally we made modifications to the organization of our games. Given the number of students we had we had to modify our quarter kickball game by reducing the number of games taking place (3 compared to 4) we made this modification because we realised with the decreased number of students we were unable to properly utilize the “each fielding player must touch the ball before you can get the striker out” rule. In order to ensure this rule was applicable for game play we reduced the number of games being played and added extra fielders, this allowed the striker more time to reach the far cone and increased the need for quick and accurate passes from the fielding team. In future lessons I will continue to have planned modifiers to increase or decrease difficulty ensuring development of desired skills. I will also ask the players what worked and what didn’t, being open to different variations and modifications to improve the game.

WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM THIS TEACHING SESSION SPECIFICALLY?

I learnt that I need to be aware of the environment I am in and to adjust my volume accordingly. I need to be able to vocalize my instructions in a manner that will effectively convey expectations and rules of the game regardless of background noise. I realized the importance of demonstrations as the confusion and amount of questions we received for certain activities was almost overwhelming. I learnt that when explaining the parameters of games it is imperative that you are specific and detailed about the rules. During our explanation of belly kickball because there are so many variations and different rules, we had a lot of confusion regarding double plays, outs, home runs, etc. If the students had not asked questions our initial explanation would not have covered the rules in the level of detail needed to play an organized game. There were several takeaways for me that I will apply to my next teaching session, however the biggest takeaway is flexibility. I am continuously learning that you HAVE to be flexible! We stuck to our plan of 10 minutes per lead up game and it caused students to become bored, disengaged and distracted from the desired skills. If we were more flexible with our allotted times we could have ensured higher engagement and enjoyment of our activities.