Week 14

Week 14

The week was filled with new and exciting adventures of adapting to classes due to testing. The first two days that we had school the weather was beautiful. All of my classes went outside but we only had 40 min of instruction, and with the students changing there were only 34 min on instruction. On Tuesday and Thursday students were only in class for 30 min. The weather was cooperating at the beginning of the week, we were able to go out and walk the back loop for a few times before going back inside. This week was difficult because all the classes were back to back and there was no planning time for instruction. Normally we have a 20 min break in between my first two classes but we just moved right on through the day. Also we normally have an hour for lunch/prep but this week it was only 30 min then back to instruction. I felt the importance of having those breaks for decompression time. With my background in social work we talked a lot in classes about decompression and how it is a stress reliever. You are given some time to reflect on your day or actions then recuperate and start a new day. Unfortunately this week there was barely any decompression time. While the students were taking the IAR tests, the pe teachers were to monitor the hallway for any students that were being disruptive. This was a simple task but through you off schedule easily. On Tuesday my coop teacher and I had to substitute teach a spec. Ed class for an hour and a half. This was familiar to me because my substitute days I spent proctoring tests and collecting materials, keeping classroom management, and helping students with any questions. This was an easy task to perform. Overall the week went well and the students were ready to be done with testing and back to a regular schedule. (3A)

I learned this week about adapting to new environments out of your comfort zone. Many of the students were surprised to see me away from gym area. Some of the faces were pretty funny to see in the hallway, they were shocked, puzzled, or stunned to see me in a different subject matter. I also learn to commmunicate not only with teachers but also adminitiration. (2J) I had a conversation with the principle about potential jobs and formative and summative assessments. (7D)

What I hope to learn in the next few weeks is how to use all the facilities or amenities for pe. Old Quarry has use of the community facilities that is right next to the school. At a middle school there are tennis courts, basketball courts, pickle ball courts, open fields, and a paved path that the school is allowed to use. I cannot wait to use the facilities to the best of my ability to allow students to increase their knowledge about physical education. (4K)

Week 13

Old Quarry Middle schoool has ever sceesed to amaze me. The thrill of instructions something new to the kids gets better and better. This week I returned form a well rested Sprig break. Many of the student were excited for the track and field events each day because we taught the students something new everyday.(3C) This was difficult because we have been stuck inside of so many weeks the students have been given a taste of freedom and are denied by the weather. Many students did not enjoy the class instruction on Thursday as we went the fitness center and I administered the sit and reach test.(1I) The test scores turned out to be progressing from the numbers previously talken at the beginning of their year. When Friday rolled around the students were very excited that they were given a choice for what activity they participate. I was monitoring the mai gym where Volleyball and Basketball were being played. In the small gym another teacher was watching and reffing soccer games and the upstairs fitness center was being watched by another teacher. The students were very happy they got to be with their friends on a Friday before the weekend, especially because we were stuck inside due to the weather. I was able to participate in a school wide fire drill but during the time of the drill there are no students down at Pe. I walked out with the PE staff and waited for the alll clear from the principle. Also this week I did not have many outburst or any diciplinary problems with any students, I did have a tough time getting the students off the equipment because all they want to do is jum on the long jump or high jump mats. (2B) The hurdles went well and alll the students challenged them selves and moved up to a level that they never would have jumped before. I really did enjoy the new lesson per day as the week went on, it was very helpful to keep the week moving.

This week I learned to communicate with other instructors. I was able to be apart of an all staff meeting and I was introduced to all the staff. During this meeting the principle went over expectations for the next week as the entires school will be taking the state test. After he went over the schedule we were able to split up into groups and fill out three questions to hep the administration understand the staff concerns for the next 8 weeks of school and for next year.(4E) This was an interesting approach that the principle had ad some great ideas came out of this breainstornimg activity. I found out that during the referral sytem you must use one program and when writing a student for a detention you must use another program. It seems to be confusing for the instructors and that was something written on the sheet for things to fix or help understand.

I hope to learn some next skills or tachtics from my teachers in the PE department. (4K) They have been great so far but I always learn something new as the weeks keep going on. This past week one of the teachers was out and the substitute teacher will be the new female PE teacher next year. Her insite was great knowledge to have going forward through the interview process.

Week 11 Old Quarry

Week 11


The last week before spring break is a tough one to teach. I was able to instruct a little bit at the end of the week as well as take attendance. My cooperating had been giving me more freedom with the class but it can be difficult because I am trying to hold students to expectations but other staff members do the opposite. It seems to be difficult to keep everything in working order when you have different expectations or certain teachers give breaks. I find it hard to enforce rules or expectations. The students like to play the teachers just as a child would do to their parents to get what they want. It has been a daily occurrence, students did not like my answer they go to another teacher or vice versa. It puts someone in an awkward position. I have been in many meeting and heard little things here and there about how the students do not care about punishment. Or they get to do whatever they want, this is hard to hear because this is a moral battle for me. I have found that I give respect to the students and they should give respect back. (2A) I was starting to see it at the end of the 2nd week. They started acknowledging me or asking me questions about what to do about certain situations, instead of going to their lead teacher. I see some progress but it will be difficult to come back after having a full week off for spring break. My cooperating teacher has given me so many tools to teach 6-8th graders, I have found that I come to him for many questions daily. He also showed me how their grading system works and how to input grades. (2I)) During our lunches and breaks he fills me in about past students and situations to give me some insight on the staff and student of that district. It is great information to keep in the back of my head. I am making great connections with the rest of the staff. (8H) Today I spoke with the health teacher and her and I spoke for a good half hour about school, classroom management, resumes, teaching jobs, and many more topics. 


I have been at this school and has seen more detentions written up for the smallest things it can be difficult to wrap my head around it. I am a big believer in setting an expectation and holding students to that expectation. (4K) I have spoken with my cooperating teacher about this topic and him and I are on the same page of you build a good report with the students and they will behave the way you want them to. (4B) But if you do the smallest thing to aggravate them or they do not agree with it, just leave it be. I have seen things escalate because of power struggles not only in a school setting but in life. I have learned also that showing sometimes when you are incorrect you need to apologize for the situation, this tactic has worked out well for me and my cooperating teacher believe in this tactic as well. I have learned many different approaches to help students in need but I didn't realize that I would be diving back into my social work background to help students out. I used some social work tactics in high school but I see my self using more and more tools in middle school.



This upcoming week is our Spring break. I hope to learn that decompression is a very useful tool for becoming a good teacher. I have also been looking forward to concentrating on my self and my health. You always hear that you need to take care of your self before caring for others, I am feeling the side effects of just helping others. I look forward to the rest this upcoming week and I hope to return to PE bright eyed and bushy tailed. (1F)

Week 10 Old Quarry Middle School

Week 10 

Old Quarry middle school

The start of week ten I was at my new placement, Old Quarry middle school in Lemont, IL. I have some prior knowledge to the school since my cousins went to the school and I competed against Old Quarry when I was in middle school. This week was mostly filled with observations of my cooperating teacher ad the other pe staff. I was informed that 5 of the 6 classes are cotaught classes and my third hour is an adaptive pe class that a outside teacher come in two times a week and introduces new skills to the students. (1A) I know in the adaptive class we will be doing golf on Monday. The skills that the students learn are essential for basic movement. (1J)There are a wide range of special need students in the adaptive pe class from high functioning autistic to 3 students in wheal chairs that have no use or very limited use of their legs. Two of those three students have cognitive delays and stand up wheel chairs to assist with simple walking. I followed the lead of my cooperating teacher and assisted with getting materials ready for the day and clean up at the end of the day. (2J) I did interact with the students, which they have a lot of questions. I even played some games of pickle ball with the students that did have partners. This week I was taking in the surroundings and getting my bearings on the middle school atmosphere since I was coming from a high school setting. I am happy I was put in a great school with a great staff. During the week there are days that we have meetings with counselors and other staff that are in the arts. This is to go over expectations, upcoming events, important information regarding students that we well need to be aware of, and questions about special days. We did discuss what the day will look like for the 8th grade students that are going on a field trip to see the new Captain Marvel movie. (3B) They came to a decision of going 2/x30 min classes instead of a full period for first hour and 15 min for 2nd hour. For Pe purposes this would be a night mare but we may let the students hang out in the gym and have a little free day. (8F)

The things I have learned this week are the procedures for sustain students that need to change in the main office and then get escorted down due to bad behavior in the locker room. Yon need to allow the class to change and enter the gym, then walkie talkie the front office to send the student down. During class you have to keep a close eye on the student for physical altercations. (4F) Once the class is over you walkie talkie the office again to let them know that the student is on their way back. This is for all students safety and had been working for weeks. I learned that my patience had built up since if came from high school and i am able to wait a little longer for the 8th graders to settle down in the morning. I do enjoy how my day is later out with 8th great the first two periods then 2 seventh and finally 2 sixth grade to end my day. I have learned that there is a big maturity difference between 6th and 8th grade. It can be difficult how you instruct form each age group but all the same skills can be applied. 

I hope to learn a little more about the grading system that Old Quarry has, it seems to be very similar to the grading and attendance system that Reavis has. (3E) I have been peaking at the attendance sheet and grade book to see how my cooperating teacher takes attendance and it seems like a system that could be difficult for me to learn but I am willing to give it a try to see if I want to implement that style into my own teachings. I am looking forward to an all staff meeting on Wednesday to meet all the teachers and get familiar with the school. Also I have reached out to the swim coach and asked if I could help assist the team for the end of the year meet. I haven’t heard anything back but I will reach out again next week. 

Week 9 Mitchell, Landon

Week 9

My final week at Reavis High school was a rollercoaster ride. I started off the week with two days of no school. Monday was a holiday and Tuesday was parent teacher conferences. I learned a lot about my students by interacting with them and their parents. The students are either the same or complete opposite in class. (1L )Sometimes your questions are answered by meeting the parent. Having parent teacher conferences was a great experience for me because I got to converse and explain to parents the steps that we take at Reavis in the PE department. Sometimes students will go home and describe a situation completely different from how we feel or what is the actual truth. I did have a conversation with my cooperating teachers before hand about different types of parents that will come in to conferences. They described the parent that is in full support of their child and everything is the teachers fault, or the complete opposite, everything is the students fault and the teacher is completely right. These are two extremes but most of my meeting, if not all were very good. I explained what grade “Johnny” had in class and how he received that grade. Explained how they are attitude wise, which for the most part all my students are good kids, and how they can improve their grade. I watched other teachers as they sat at their tables talking with students and parents to see what worked and what did not work. My cooperating teachers informed me that I did a great job during the conferences. I was really nice to watch my cooperating teachers engage with their students because they gave me great examples going forward. (6N) The rest of the week went by quickly and the students were sad that I was leaving for my next placement. I did receive a nice card from one of my classes that all the students signed. My cooperating teachers gave me a gift as I was walking out and they gave me words of wisdom and encouragement the entire day. I truely enjoyed my time at Reavis and I hope I get the opportunity to visit and potentially work there.

Things I learned this week were to inform students of things to come. I was taken off guard for my strength class because we went over CPR and AED this week. I informed them that day that we are not changing and moving to a different classroom. (3B)They were happy they didn’t have to dress but it made a change in their routine. Many of the studnets understood and helped me with the tasks that needed to be accomplished. Also my sports class will be starting a new unit on Monday and they will be in the pool. I had to remind them, which I did all week, that they will need their swim suits or notes if they plan on swimming or not swimming.


I hope to learn about new teaching techniques moving to my next placement at Old Quarry Middle School in Lemont. (4C) I have seen the school and know of the reputation as a highly acedmic and athletic school in the area. My cooperating teacher will only be one teacher this placement and I hope to get his insight on how to teach middle adolescences. (4K) This will be a change from high school to middle school but I am excited for the challenge as it could be an age group that I enjoy teaching.

Week 8

Week 8

Week 8 was a full week of school minus the half day today (Friday). I was only there for the last 4 days, seeing as though I was at trinity on Monday for our writing session. The writing session was a good day to talk with other student teachers and get their insight on their placements and how they go about everyday tasks. I know I was asking some student for advice on either edtpa topics or even planning lessons for future classes. The information that I sought out was very helpful for my planning as well as instructing. Other than Monday the week was a normal week for me at Reavis High School. I am teaching badminton to freshmen first hour and I had my last observation during that class period on Thursday. I was given great feedback on my instruction and was also paid a compliment on how I instructed and how my lesson plans improved from the last observation. Todd has really helped me become a better teacher throughout the semester with his feedback and remarks of different tactics of instruction. (8G) My cooperating teachers helped me with the setup of the e-learning day that is coming up on Monday. The students are participating in an e-learning day so they do not have to make up school days at the end of the school year. I can see the benefits of this instruction but I also see some complications with how they will administer the activities. We did have a meeting going over some of the questions that were brought up over time regarding the e-learning. The students need to check in online with a google form submission by 11am Monday but the students have until Tuesday by 3pm to complete the assignments. (5I) (5N)

I learned how to email the social workers and school psychologists about specific students. I was sent an email regarding one of my students from the school psychologist and social worker. They wanted to get information on a specific student in my class for updating their file. There were only a few questions I had to answer regarding attitude and behavior in the class room and whether or not I would suggest anything new for my classroom to help their intervention (9N). This was nice to be on the other side of this email, since in my social work internship I would see emails from the teachers of specific students that would be in favor of intervention or renewal or revisiting of certain interventions with the emphasis of removing students from certain activities or classrooms. My personal belief is that many of the students can be worked with its may sometimes be the way the teacher is confronting a student or how the teacher is instructing a student but the student doesn’t understand and frustrations increase. This type of classroom environment does not help the student nor teacher. I have full confidence in responding to any emails going forward about similar situations to help any student in need.

This next week we have parent teacher conferences. I am looking forward to meeting some parents and a little nervous about certain situations. But I know all the rules and regulations for PE at Reavis to help me with any questions or concerns that arise. I am very interested in seeing other teachers interact with parents. This can help me learn how to communicate as well as how not to communicate with a parent. I spoke with my cooperating teachers and they suggested that I should dress business casual but I will be wearing a shirt and tie to possibly impress administration and parents. (8P)

Week 7 Landon Mitchell

Week 7:

The week started out on Tuesday due to no school on Monday for Presidents Day. The week went by quick since the freshmen class that I teach began a new unit in the main gym. We are teaching the students badminton. Also, since the freshmen are out of the swimming unit we are implementing heart rate monitors to all students. This is a great tool to use in PE for assessing student cardiovascular fitness and effort level during specific activities. The Polar heart rate monitors that we use at school allow you to see the heart rates of every student in the class in real time. This week we went over the correct way to wear the heart rate strap and how to troubleshoot them if need be. Many of the students understood the process and were fascinated by the technology. Since the freshmen class is a combined we discussed that we should go over serving first and master serving. After serving then go over the rules for doubles play and we let the students play a practice round of rallying back and forth to understand how the birdie flies through the air. Students were exposed to a fitness Wednesday with all other PE classes. With Wednesdays being a late start students only perform 25 min of physical activity in PE. With the heart rate monitors being used for not only my freshmen class but also my sports class, we can help students improve physical fitness and cardiovascular endurance. We have started to use the heart rate monitors in my sports class. We finished up the CPR and fitnessgram unit and moved onto volleyball. The first day we went over simple rules and I let the students play a scrimmage game to assess their skills. Throughout the week I applied more skills in bumping, setting, and serving. The students are eager to play games and we will be separating the kids up into teams and plat a volleyball tournament next week. Strength and Conditioning was similar to last week, students are increasing in weight from the ones that are turning in work outs.  I have noticed that many of the students either took this class to lift weights or they were put into this class because they were not able to get in a class they requested. It can be difficult to motivate students that do not want to be there. (3I)  I had my second observation this week. I spoke with Todd about my instruction and he gave me great feedback on my lesson planning and my instruction. I hope I am able to apply his feedback to both areas to become a better teacher.

I have been speaking with my cooperating teacher about different techniques and skills to advise students in trouble. I have been talking with both of them about certain situations what they have done and what happened after the fact. They told me that with the experience and advice of other instructors you become your own teacher. They philosophy you create may change slightly but your morals stay the same with how you want to improve the knowledge of physical education and the importance of physical activity to benefit healthy personal goals.(2A)  The promotion of a physical life can help students in many different facets of life. This element can be an easy thing to instruct but for that message to reach every student is the difficult part.

Next week I will be continuing the lessons in badminton and volleyball. I look forward to increasing my teaching skills in a net game and applying the skills to other activities (6A). I will be having my third observation at Reavis, I have had a conversation with Todd about things to improve and things I need to keep applying to ensure that my lessons are reaching all students (6H). This week we have set a good foundation for my classes and I cannot wait to see how advanced the students will become at a multi-movement sport such as volleyball or badminton.

Week 6 Landon Mitchell

Week 6:

Week 6 was another full week of school at Reavis High School. With the constant instability with the weather and missed school days, it is nice to get on a full schedule. This was the last week for freshmen swimming. The students were assessed on their skills and took a written test. They all did well and showed improvement from the very beginning of the class. During sports class this week we finished up the fitnessgram tests. The tests that I administered were the sit and reach, pacer, curl up, and push up test. These tests show the level of strength, endurance, and flexibility. Each test also targets a specific muscle region. My cooperating teacher teaches a sport class before me so I follow his lead on certain activities because he sets up the testing areas. This is something that I also did in fitness class. My other cooperating teacher has two fitness classes pearlier in the week and we were in the crossfire room going over CPR. The CPR course is just an overview of how to do proper compressions and rescue breaths, it is not a certificate course. We also went over choking victim, AED, and heart attack or cardiac arrest. This week in fitness i felt very comfortable teaching the skills because I have been a certified lifeguard since I was 16 years old. 6N) Uses modeling, explanation, practice, and feedback to teach students to monitor and apply comprehension strategies independently, appropriate to the content learning; During the classes I did not use a video from American Red Cross. I could fully teach the content and see how the students responded when I reviewed. At the end of the week I proctored a CPR/AED test that the Reavis PE department created. The students were given plenty of time to take the quiz and some had questions afterwards for understanding. I did have a difficult time in my last hour of the day. I have a student that is an ELL, some of the verbiage and wording in the test were confusing. She speaks Arabic, the language translation from Arabic to English sometimes does not translate directly. She got confused on some of the questions and answers. I did not have access to an interrupter, lucky I had another student that was a student leader who could translate any confusing words for the struggling student. I found this situation difficult at first but you must adapt to the best of your ability. I looked back to the grade book where I can see any IEP or 504 students and in her file, she does not require a translator but certain verbiage or wordage need to be explained more for understanding. I have encountered students that do not understand certain things I teach due to experience but when you must translate to another language this can be difficult. I am glad I was given this opportunity because then I will be able to adjust my instruction for other students in the future. 

1A. Understands the spectrum of student diversity (e.g., race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, special education, gifted, English language learners (ELL), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity) and the assets that each student brings to learning across the curriculum; 

I learned from my cooperating teachers that there are certain places that you must stay in PE due to locker room safety. I told my sports class that on fitness Wednesday we will be in the main gym instead of the north gym. I was supposed to be in the north gym all week. This is for the student’s safety, overcrowding in certain areas, and gym availability. Reavis does not have a field house so it is difficult to get gym space. But I as able to learn that if I ask around and find out what gym is open during certain classes I can move my strength and conditioning class around. We normally are in the weight room, I asked my cooperating teacher what he thought of switching up the work out and going to the cross fit gym. I could ask around and they cross fit gym was open, the students performed a circuit work out instead of lifting in the weight room that day. I really enjoyed the work out and I think the students liked the change of pace. 

4I) Creates a safe and healthy environment that maximizes student learning; 

With this upcoming week, the freshmen will be out of the pool environment and in the main gym. This means that we have two freshmen classes in the main gym at a single time. Normally we would have 10 + kids out of the pool due to religious reasons, medical, menstrual cycle, or they forgot their swim suits. The gym will be packed with freshmen and we are teaching them badminton, I love the game of badminton but this will be a challenge. I have been communicating with my cooperating teachers about what they have done in the past and they are not worried about the transition for me. They have seen me teach and they fully support my teaching style and they have given me nothing but good remarks back, or feedback to learn from. 

8A) Understands schools as organizations within the larger community context; 

8G) Understands the various models of co-teaching and the procedures for implementing them across the curriculum; 

Week 5

Week five February 4 to February 8, 2019.During week five and finally call my stride in teaching at Reavis high school. This was a full week of classes with the students. I was able to teach a full week of classes without any interruption or alteration to my lesson plans. I was informed we can go that we were doing a lockdown for the school. The lockdown drill was given to us and we can go on the specific day we are going to perform the lockdown drill but the hour of the day we are on aware to make sure that we were ready in a matter what happens. During this time I was in the north gym with two teachers, that happen to be my cooperating teachers. Once they administered the drill we pulled all the students into The locker rooms for safekeeping. Me and the cooperating teachers were in the men’s locker room and we locked the women’s locker room and made sure our student leaders keep the students quiet and safe. I felt that we were able to get the students to to a safe location efficiently. After the drill it had commenced we went on with our daily routine. This week many of my classes I was performing the fitness gram test. This test is performed once per semester to see the progression and physical fitness of each student that participates in physical education class. The four tests that are part of the fitness gram are the sit and reach, push-up test, curl up test, and the pacer test. I was able to administer all these test to all of my classes but I will have to run more test for make up students that were either absent or on a school children. My cooperating teachers gave me full control of the classes with a little bit of suggestions of what they would do in certain situations. I double check with my cooperating teacher to make sure I am still running his class within the unit and not deviating from any plans.
I learned this week that Reavis high school assesses their students in the pool by going over all five strokes but allowing the students to pick three of the five to finally be assessed. They must choose freestyle and then either breaststroke, backstroke, elementary backstroke, or sidestroke. I was able to learn video tape placement. I taped my first lesson in the pool and found that organizing and doing a test run with your equipment is very helpful. I communicated with my cooperating teacher in that class and they were very helpful with suggestions since they went through the EdTPA last semester
I hope to learn in the next week how to communicate with other instructors, and communicate with parents via email. I have been talking with the wind my pretty teacher about certain students that do not address or our lowered attendance and he communicates with the parents via email. I want to learn what his approach is on the communication and how often he needs to communicate with parents for certain instances. I also want to learn more about the school and possible opportunities within the school even if teaching is not the initial path. I’ve spoken with some instructors about what they do and how they’re able to accomplish certain certificates or training for that specific position.
7F.  Uses effective questioning techniques and stimulates discussion in different ways for specific instructional purposes. This particular teaching professional standard occurred to me this week when I gave a lesson and students were not able to understand my delivery. So I had to think very quickly on how to rephrase the question for students to understand.
As we get closer to our assessment I will be judging in assessing each student my class on how to perform certain skills for their swimming test. I was given the rubric that Reavis assesses their students and had my student leaders write out each individual student in that class so that when we assess next week I can assess with efficiency. 8C.  Understands measurement theory and assessment-related issues, such as validity, reliability, bias, and scoring.

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Landon Mitchell Week 4, 1/28-2/1

Week four- Landon MitichellThis week started off with a bump in the road as snow hit the area and getting work was a little more difficult than usual. Students were in and out of school due to field trips, Scheduling some new classes, the two days of cold of snow, and basic illness. This week was the hardest week to grade students due to absences. At Reavis high school each absence counts as 10 points off. Students can make up those points during the rain. At the end of the day, and that is offered Monday-Friday. But with many students missing one to three days of school in a three-day School week, it can be difficult to assess the students. This week I could teach CPR and AED to my sports class because Reavis does a basic CPR and AED course that goes over basic skills to sustain a life until EMS arrives. At the end of the week I could give the students a quiz that was previously created by the PE department. Most of the kids did well with only having three days of the five days of school. In my freshman PE class, we went over skills such as freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and students learned elementary backstroke. The go teacher and I went over the skills for the remainder of the unit to ensure that all students will be taught all skills for the swimming unit exam. My cooperating teacher was not present on Tuesday, I was able to take the lead on not only my class but his class so meaning multiple widths of freestyle, backstroke, and breaststroke. The substitute teacher was another physical education teacher and she could let me lead the entire class. At the end of the class. Students could play volleyball and keep score on their own. This gave me some time to speak with the other instructor about presentation skills that she goes over in her classes. She informed me of some students that she had in her health class the semester prior and some backstory to help me understand how to instruct some of my difficult students. In fitness class the students could run all the way up to 23 minutes and or target heart rate zones. Students are required to bring the heart rate strap’s every single day as we attach a polar heart rate monitor to their strap and as a class see their heart rate in real time on the TVs in the fitness center. Many of the students did not like the increase of time but at the end of the. Every single one of them achieved 23 minutes and your target heart rate zone or more. I could go over my plan for the fitness gram schedule for the next two weeks. Today, Friday, I was observed by my College supervisor. He was escorted down by campus security to the north gym before my class. Started. He could talk with my cooperating teacher for a small amount of time before I met them both. During the lesson, I reviewed form breaks for the sit and reach test and went over How flexibility can prevent injury. When we transition into the fitness center I allow the students to pick a machine and start their cardio-based fitness to achieve 20 minutes in their target heart rate zones. Students were called alphabetically 2x2 to perform the sit and reach test for their fitness gram model. I could give students feedback on form breaks, proper technique, and suggestions on how to become more flexible. Some of the students have a hard time with flexibility, they had a big difference between the right and left sit and reach test. I could suggest simple strategies to even out their flexibility between a right and left hamstring to prevent injury. Do you sit and reach test can be difficult to assess on every student because some students are more flexible, have shorter legs and longer arms, have longer legs and shorter arms, or do you not have any simple coordination between arms and legs. Some of the students did not understand the form breaks as they were performing the sit and reach test. Overall, we could get through every student that was in attendance in class and almost all students achieve their 20 minutes in her target heart rate zone. At the end of the class period my college supervisor went over something that Trinity is looking for in the observations. He gave me great feed back and I look forward to hearing  the full report shortly. He was able to meet up with some buddies that he coached with or worked with in the past and it was good to see that many teachers/coaches still communicate.I hope to be like that someday.  Today was a difficult day to assess all students because all sophomores were required to go to the auditorium during their PE class. To pick their junior year first semester classes. This altered the number of students in the classroom all day long.  Today my cooperating teachers were asking me if I was prepared for my lesson and offered any help if I need any during the day to make sure I am fully prepared and ready to present my lesson to my college supervisor. They were very helpful and any suggestions whether it came from words of wisdom, suggestions they have seen, or even words of encouragement to help me with my lesson plan delivery. I did adventure to the duplication room which is the student copy room and could communicate with the duplication room supervisor and she said if there’s anything I need please do not hesitate to ask.This week I didn’t counter a little mishap in my class with a student that did not want to perform or demonstrate CPR and AED. This was more of a power struggle because this student is a senior and has been through the course many times and sees no benefit to practice CPR when they are ready know what to do. I merely suggested that if they knew what to do it should be a breeze and that they could demonstrate to other students that do not understand CPR and AED. The student did not take my suggestion lately and started to talk back in front of the entire class. At that moment, I decided that making a scene in front of the entire class was not the appropriate thing to do. I pulled the student side at the end of the class period to see what was going on in their mind and why they were acting out. They did not want to speak with me the remainder of the day and I informed my cooperating teacher and they suggested that they have had run-ins with their students performing tasks that they do not seem worthy. The student will be defiant and ask out in front of everyone to receive attention. My cooperating teacher suggested that let the two days go by and talk with the individual student on Friday, but the student was not in attendance at school today. I also had a tough situation with a student that was dealing with things going on at home. This was in my weight training class and I could see that she was physically upset. I allowed her to cool off in the weight room while the other students left but I asked her to list at least three of the five designate a list for that day she was happy that I was understanding to the situation and she gladly lifted her three lives.In the next upcoming week and I planned to speak with some of the newer teachers that were hired in the past few years to discuss how their ad TPA evaluations, task one, task to, and task three went. I personally am struggling with writing down my ideas on a piece of paper. I have a hard time with making sense in my writings. These could take place in my lesson plans, or as we begin the task one part of our ad TPA I know I struggle with the writing portion. I want to speak with them on how to strengthen my writing skills for my ad TPA, I have more confidence and my delivery method with speaking with students and performing or demonstrating the lesson but had difficulty with my writing skills. Where is my experiences so far, I want to take a step back and see where the student is coming from with the decisions that they make instead of keeping my mindset the same. Some students may see this about me with the dress code procedures that all physical education has adopted. But I have noticed that I am more strict than other PE teachers and I and looked upon by the students as the harsh teacher. Not that I am going to give into my Students but I want to have a meaningful conversation with them and let them choose a path A or bath B. I have noticed that if I give them the option of least resistance they usually fall into line that is good for them and it builds respect for me and for them.

One of the Illinois professional teaching standards that I have come across this week was performance indicators 1I. this standard state the competent teacher anticipates and adjust for common misunderstandings of the disciplines that impede learning. this is where I must take a step back and see from the eyes the student how my teaching approach is in any subject. If I allow myself to step back I become a better communicator with the students and this will allow less disciplinary actions such as my pick up with my student in sports class about performing CPR and AED. Another Illinois professional teaching standard would be 4E, A competent teacher understands how to integrate technology into classroom instruction. Even though the polar heart rate monitors have already been implemented into the classroom for fitness class. I can pull in music that aligns with heart rhythms that are 140 bpm which then allows students to move along to the beat, which then students will increase their heart rate to 140 bpm or higher and they will achieve a heart rate zone that qualifies them time to earn points towards their daily goal. I think standard 7H, a competent teacher communicates with and challenges students in a supportive manner and provide students with constructive feedback. In my strength and conditioning class there are many students that are “along for the ride quote. They want to skate on by their senior year and not do anything but receive full credit every day. Motivating the students can be difficult but sometimes motivation and incentive can help students achieve A goal that you have set for them and they will exceed their expectations of their personal goals.

Landon Mitchell - Week 3 1/22-1/25

Landon Mitchell - Week 3 1/22-1/25
Week three started off pretty good with having Monday off of school. We had school from Tuesday-Friday. I was able to talk with my cooperating teachers and teach some lessons and by the end of the week I was teaching by myself. Tuesday and Wednesday were first facilitated by my cooperating teacher until I took over completely at the end of last season I was giving instruction to what is going to be happening the next day and for the rest of the week. Wednesday’s are late starts for students, in PE class we have fitness days in the main gym where the kids need to run a certain amount of time to get full participation points for that day. This week the students ran seven minutes on took a two minute rest walk, and then ran for another six minutes until they were dismissed to the locker rooms. On Thursday and Friday my cooperating teacher was in the classroom while I was instructing/demonstrating specific skills to the students for them to learn. I was given the freedom seventh hour on Thursday and Friday to completely take over where my cooperating teacher was not in the classroom whatsoever. I did speak with him in the previous periods to make sure I was covering all the material that he wanted all of the students to know. The students were receptive to my instructions minus a few that want to push the buttons or boundaries a little bit, but I was able to speak with them and they are on board with how I teach. I tried to give the students respect and hopefully they will give me the same amount that I show them. I have been trying to use my time wisely so I give the students an opportunity to change for their next class. I unfortunately was not able to get the strength and conditioning students into the weight room fast enough and they were distracted by students that were in the hallway. I can see where this could be a problem potentially in the future depending on which tunes are in the hallway that interact with my kids. I am getting more accustomed to how the students are and their behaviors which then allows me to become a better teacher because I am able to facilitate a classroom where they can learn to their fullest potential. This Wednesday I was able to sit in on a learning target and a central target conference with other teachers. Since the students started late it was a mandatory meeting for certain individuals to participate in this seminar. I was able to help my cooperating teacher apply certain state standards to a learning target they were creating for the CPR unit.Some things I learned this week were different strategies of how to present specific information to different students, whether that student was a male or female or potential he a different ethnicity or religion then me.  I was able to take a step back and almost see my instructions through the eyes of the student to help benefit their learning environment as well as make years with my teaching environment. I have witnessed some teachers and students not comprehending each other and it makes for a hostile environment and that is not good for learning nor teaching. I am constantly communicating with other teachers outside of my cooperating teacher’s to see how they are instructing or how they build relationships with their students. I believe that this way of communication with other teachers can benefit me in the long run. I not only talk to Physical education teachers but also other subjects to see how certain students are interacting with in the classroom. My cooperating teacher gave me opportunity to respond to an email regarding a student that was in my freshman PE class. The email was asking about how the student was acting in the classroom for a behavior standpoint. The student has shown nothing but respect towards me and forgot their swimsuit after the long weekend so they were not able to dress for that day. They were completely apologetic and were asking where they can make up their points so that they can increase their grade. The student is an excellent student to respond to as opposed to my cooperating teacher had to respond to another email about a student that was being very difficult and unfortunately her grade P.E.  is not a very good grade. She has consistently either for getting her clothes or not going to the doctor to get a doctors note due to an allergic reaction to chlorine. She is not only a struggling student in physical education but also her other classes. I hope I am able to help her out in anyway possible so that she does not have to retake freshman PE. This upcoming week I believe my student supervisor or college supervisor is coming to observe me later in the week and I cannot wait to see their feedback with my instruction to my students at Reavis high school. I feel that I am doing a good job instructing and facilitating a learning environment for my students but it would be good to get an outside source’s Feedback on my instructing. Some of the things that I have done in the past few weeks I know I need to pay attention to the time due to how the bell schedule runs at Reavis high school. I want to make sure that I give my students a safe environment. As the weeks go by I hope to learn more techniques on a really engaging students to maximize their learning potential and hopefully giving them a safe and fun environment to learn. I really do enjoy and understand why my school does certain tasks to show progression for the state. I believe they are doing a find job and input my name hi expectations on the students and holding them accountable to create achieving young men and women.During Wednesday’s PLC meeting I was able to help my cooperating teachers with a state standard for learning CPR. The state standard falls under PE 22. A. 4c, The state standard states students will be able to “demonstrate basic procedures and injury prevention and emergency care they can be used in the home, workplace, and community ( e.g., first aid, CPR).” Illinois PE state standards. The essential learning targets were created to help students understand the knowledge of CPR and how to implement it in a emergency situation. I will be able to implement these essential learning standards next week when I teach CPR to my sports class.https://www.isbe.net/Documents/Goals-19-24-and-Perf-Descrip.pdf

Landon Mitchell - Week 2 Blog 1/14-1/18

 1.     This week at Reavis I was able to assist my cooperating teachers with the lessons that they were teaching to their students. In my first hour class, freshmen PE, they are swimming and we went over the progression of freestyle and backstroke. The cooperating teacher as well as the other freshman PE teacher would explain the task for the students to perform and I would assist with any necessary alterations to their stroke. With my background in swimming I was able to discuss a lot of my swimming skills and knowledge so the freshman could learn easily. Some of the students caught on rather quickly to the concepts we are teaching and others struggled. I focused on the struggling students so that they could progress just as fast as the higher level or higher skilled students. During my prep I would watch my cooperating teacher teach a lesson on basketball to his second hour class, to further my knowledge and help assist him in third hour sports. During the third hour sports class Ecolab reading teacher and I went over the acronym BEEF. This acronym is a very common saying for teaching proper technique of how to shoot a basketball. The B Stands for balance the first E stands for elbow, the second E stands for elevation, and the F stands for follow through. I was able to take the lead at the very end of class and asked the students if they could recite back what the acronym that we used that day. I also wanted them to recite back what each letter means so that they could further their understanding and enhance their knowledge base on how to shoot a basketball. During my fourth hour class be quite bringing teacher took the lead on how t during my fourth hour class be quite bringing teacher took the lead on how to perform each left to be done that day and I was able to help students with technique problems or references to the correct lifting technique. Many of the students have a hard time staying on task because they had been in strength and conditioning before and it is the same class over and over again. I was informed by my cooperating teacher that all students were given a choice of what PE class they would like to be in next semester and they all chose strength and conditioning. After I was told about this information I did not feel so bad for the students that complain about lifting the same lifts every day. I was tired a little bit more about the grading book and attendance policies and procedures through a software system called power school and power teacher pro. I was assisted in taking attendance and grading students. This is very helpful in fitness class sixth and seventh hour. The attendance procedures and grading procedures are a little different than my first three classes because in fitness class students are required to bring a heart rate strap that a heart rate monitor will be attached during the class to see their heart rates on the monitors in the fitness center. The software system for the fitness center is polar company that does our reminders as well as fitness oriented equipment. The monitors in the fitness center show each students' heart rate box and how many minutes they run or use a machine and their target heart rate zone. Students are graded by having their PE uniform, heart rate strap, and how many minutes they achieve in there a target heart rate zone. Each day there is a target minute number on the board for all the students to achieve. In the last two days the students had to achieve 21 and 22 minutes in your target heart rate zone. We allow for the students to achieve this goal within a 33 minute time. It is highly advised that they obtain their target heart rate zone of 140 or higher for their time to add up. With a 33 minute time limit, this allows plenty of time for the students to achieve their goal for each day. If they do not achieve the time standard goal on the board they will be deducted five points.  For example we had two students that worked for the last five minutes of class and were confused why they did not achieve full credit for that day. We explain to them that they did not get the target goal for that day and therefore points were deducted from their grade. They achieved 15 minutes and 19 minutes in their target heart rate zones. They also did not realize the first 10 minutes of class they did not get their heart rate up high enough for the Polar system to start counting. 

2.     I learned a little this week about how to add a student into the class on Power teacher pro or power school. Those two software sites help the teachers communicate with the students and allow the students to see their attendance and grades in real time. In PE we mark down how many no dresses each student has due to the PE policy. Each student is not allow to exceed more than 5 no dresses in a single semester. If they get a 6th no dress they have failed PE. I also learned how to call down to the deans office if I am in any need with a disruptive student. I also learned what to do in an active shooter situation as well as what to do during a fire drill and so forth. Many of my questions this week were mostly about the students and how I can help them in any way. 


3.     I hope to learn some new practices of helping with classroom management. I have been going to other PE classes to see how other teacher interact with their students and putting my personality twist on it to make the students trust me a little more. I know the first week some students tried to push the envelope a little but to see if I would back down. But i did learn that humor and talking to the kids helps instead of yelling and taking off points. I feel that I have built up respect with my students and they understand my expectations. PE can be a fun place but if is miserable to a student they will try everything to keep it miserable. I hope to learn how to reach every student in some way to show them that PE is a great class to learn new things about sports, working out, fitness, or any health related activity to better their mental and physical well being. 

19.A.4b Participate daily in moderate to vigorous physical activity while performing movement patterns in a variety of activities.
Freshmen PE: Students will perform swimming skills and technique to further their knowledge during their 6 week unit. 

20.A.4a Interpret the effects of exercise/physical activity on the level of health-related and skill-related fitness.

Students will achieve the daily goal set in fitness class within a single class period. 

Landon Mitchell Blog: Week 1 Jan.8-Jan.11

Day 1 Jan.8
-Today was the first day back for all the students. Each semester each student starts a new schedule. With all the students starting a new class schedule the teachers also have a new set of kids in each class.
-1st hour, I started of the day in freshmen P.E. The freshmen class will go a semester of health and a semester of P.E. and vice versa. My cooperating teacher and I met the freshmen in the north gym and went over the expectations for the next few weeks. We lashed out how the semester will proceed and revealed the first unit as swimming for 6 weeks.
-2nd hour I have a prep period, I was able to see how my co-op. teacher interacts with his student and he went over the syllabus and exceptions semester.
-3nd hour is a soph.,jun., and sen. class that focuses on team sports. The syllabus/polices and procedures packet was handed out to all students and we went over in packet in detail. Some students raised their hands and asked about the rental service for shirt and shorts, and they also asked about why they have to make up and excused absence. It was explained by using a math quiz example: if you miss a math quiz you still need to make it up at a later date, Reavis offers a 25 min class at the end of the day if students need to make up work. In P.E. students are able to make up excused absences to receive full points. While in team sports class students will learn the rules and regulations of each sport unit, fundamentals and skills, and team play at the end of the unit. The team play will be in either a king court or tournament style play and students will be assessed during that time.
-4th hour is a soph., jun., and senior weight lifting class.  We went over the polices and procedures just like the last class. In weight training class the students are to perform the exercised that are written on the wall in the weight room each day. On Wednesday the students will be in the fitness center working on their target heart rate zone throughout the semester. After a three week period we will offer for students work out in the weight room on their own provided they send us a detailed work out regiment.
-5th hour 5A lunch 5B “home room” or study hall supervision. Students are allow to work on any material and I they do not have a thing they are allowed to use their phones.
-6th hour I switch to my other cooperating teacher for the last two periods. This class is a soph., jun., and senior fitness class. We went over the policies and procedures for the semester. I was able to introduce myself and let everyone know what I am looking forward to in the 9 weeks that I am at Reavis.
-7th hour was very similar as 6th hour. This fitness class is based solely on fitness based activities. The class will be doing most of their activities in the fitness center which is filled with 5 different types of machines: elliptical, treadmills, stair master, ski elliptical, and stationary bicycle.
- the last 30 min. of the day is classed Ram period “ for Reavis Rams”, this class allows students to make up work. For P.E. this period is used for making up classes missed or no dress points. This class I think is a great opportunity for students to catch up on work and if they do not go to any class or location for Ram period, students are allowed to leave.

Day 2 January 9th 2019
This day we had full P.E. classes and students dressed. This day I was still observing the students as my cooperating teachers taught their class. I was able to ask them questions procedures during specific situations. What happens if a student acts out? If there is an emergency am I able to leave the class with the student leader? What are the responsibilities of the student leaders? I was also able to help out with the freshmen swimming class. This class is a combined freshmen class, there are two PE teachers in the pool and two full classes.

During the last two hour of my day I was with the fitness classes. I was able to ask questions about grading and the computer system that all the teachers use for attendance, grading, etc. My co-op teachers helped me create assignments in the grade book and taught me how to score each student. I learned how to keep track of information so if a parent contacts me I can give them the comments or concerns that I had on that particular situation. My co-op teachers really believe in respecting the students and the students will give the respect back. As we spoke in our orientation, the relationships you create with the students is different then normal life. You can be friendly to the students but you are not their friend. I have been meeting as many teachers as I can but it can be difficult with all the names to remember.

19.A.5b Participate daily in moderate to vigorous physical activity while performing movement patterns in a variety of activities. I picked this state standard because of the type of activities that  I will be teaching. In fitness class we usually use heart rate monitors to see if they students are hitting their target heart rates. But all the students were not in attendance so we will wait for everyone to get their heart rate straps and so we can put them in the computer system. We focused on performing an activity assessed them on the old fashion sweat test and and breathing patterns. They needed to keep moving the entire class period and show that they were working to the best of their ability.

Day 3&4 Thursday Jan. 10th & Friday Jan. 11th
Today was a lot more fast pace than the past two days. I was able help students learn a little about swimming, basketball, fitness, and weight lifting. Students were given a task to work out in the weight room and perform the 5 exercises that were posted on the wall. Before they started working out, videos of the 5 posted work outs were shown the students so they are able to reference good technique will lifting. The videos were pre-loaded onto the laptop so my co-op teacher can click play for time purposes. There is always some kind of set up or plan for each day to allow progression throughout the unit. I keep asking simple question about what to do when I start teaching the lesson. My co-op teachers answer right away and help me with anything I need for the next 8 weeks I am at my placement. I was informed on how to use a different part of the computer system to help with absences or no dress individuals. This could be used during all my class periods that I will be teaching. This specifically will come in handy with the swimming unit. Some students sit out of the pool due to religious reasons or if they are on their menstrual cycle. There is a specific assignment for the students that cannot swim they will be out for religious reasons. They are to create a 12 slide power point about swimming, there is a rubric so the students know what is expected.

I learned how the rental system works the students, but the first 3 weeks Reavis will not be handing out rentals to the students. They are able to but a uniform at the Ram store before school and during lunch. This is a new thing that the PE department is starting so that students are bringing their uniforms everyday and not renting.

Throughout the day I was informed on how to use the computer system and what is a good time to fill out the attendance, grades, and any other comments or students. The computer system that Reavis uses allows students to see in real time their grades and comments that are imported by each teacher. The way I was taught how to input attendance and grades seem to be very effective. I could use the methods that both of my cooperating teacher taught me, input everything either right after each class or import everything during Ram period.  This will be helpful so I do not fall behind on any grading or attendance. 

I thing that has most taken me off guard is in freshman swimming. There are some swimmers that are choosing not to swim, but there are also others that are not swimming because of their menstrual cycle or out for religious values. I should not say that I am feeling uncomfortable but it is a different viewpoint Then what I have experienced in my life so far. My background is in swimming and most of the kids I coached enjoyed it so you saw them in the appropriate swimsuits for their age. But with Reavis’s demographics of having a high population of Arabic students, they are on able to swim due to religious reasons. This is tough, because I believe all students should know how to swim because it is a life skill. And whether or not the students are choosing to swim or not to swim could be hurting them in learning a life skill.