mhrschoolgymgems

Time has gone by so quickly this year! We have had a lot of fun exercising and working out with games, activities, and sports.  The nets that we have purchased came into great use for all of the age levels. We used them to play badminton for the older students and for practicing volleyball serves and vollying with beachballs with the wee ones. The last full week of class we will use them for our tennis lesson.  I plan to have a whole tennis unit in the Fall so we will get a lot of use from them then.  In grades 6,7, and 8 we are in our bowling at Bleekers Bowl unit and so far the students are not only having fun but amazing themselves with the scores they are getting! A fun game that can be played for a lifetime! As gym time is running out with the 4 year old preschool and kindergarten, I think we can say we have had a successful amount of time in physical education. They have easily mastered the concept of working with partners and as a team. We have played various games and introduced sports as well. And they have learned quite a few names of the bones on our Mr. Bones sheets.  Some new games such as Pickleball and Badminton have been a hit with the older children and the old standbys of pillo polo and the Catholic Schools Week game day have also been met with enthusiasm. Our “Body Mapping” went well and the current 6th and 7th graders will continue on with them in the Fall adding muscle names to their bone structures. I am always amazed at how quickly the year flies by, but as the saying goes…”time flies when you are having fun”  and I have had a great year in working with our wonderful students of MHR. I hope all of you have a fun, healthy, and relaxing summer and look forward to seeing you again in August! My best to our marvelous 8th graders…be sure to come back “home” to visit us as this will always be your humble abode!

Wow! Have we been busy in the gym this Fall! We have gotten the preschoolers used to coming and playing/exercising their bodies and feeling confident there. The kindergardners through 5th grade have started their Mr. Bones sheets and we have played some new games using the scooters and the footballs. The older grades have measured their height in inches and will start this week with individual body “maps” in which they will plot their images on paper and fill those in with the names of bones and muscles as we learn them.  We also had a very successful raffle in raising money to purchase 6 portible tennis nets that transform into badminton nets as well. The contest was held during the gym time and students paid $1.00 to guess the total of tennis balls in two tubs displayed. The winner, Brendan H., won $10.00 and a gift card to Souzy’s. This is all possible with the additional help from the Athletic Association and the Bruce Sloan Memorial fund in donating $300.00 apiece. Many thanks to all who participated!! As our gym uniforms are switching to the cold weather version, I ask all to remember that the handbook states that children should have their MHR sweatshirt and sweatpants to wear on their appropriate gym days. Children are not to wear Gap, Old Navy, etc. gear those days, as they are not the uniform clothes. Please abide by what has been agreed upon by our school board as uniform clothing. I appreciate in advance your cooperation with this. Have a happy rest of the Fall….and keep those empty 50 oz. detergent bottles coming…..we will use them as hand weights as soon as we have collected enough!!!   

    I hope this finds all of our families excited and ready to go for another great school year at MHR. We have the best students and an excellent faculty and staff…what more can we ask for? This year in Physical education I ask that the students come dressed and ready to go on their assigned gym day. With the new floor (and it looks great I might add) we need to be concious of always wearing the correct shoes so as not to mar it. And gym shoes, besides being comfy, will deter any sprains or worse, so that is a must!  Two out of uniform checks in my grade book per grading period will be a check on the report card.  We want all of the students active and participating in the P.E. classes that we provide each week, I hope they will all find it fun and productive! 

    This year I am holding a mini-fundraiser for tennis nets for the physical education program. Look for the information on the first packet day in September. I hope to gain nets that can be used for both tennis and badminton, two very fun games that children can enjoy into their adult life. Look for the details to come on this.  Please know that I am excited to begin my 16th year here at MHR as the P.E. instructor and know that we will have an enjoyable time exercising and learning healthy habits!