Providing Structure AND Choice in PE
My PE classes consist of students in grades 9-12, of all different backgrounds. In classes with up to 60 students, I could encounter the following:
- Students ranging from grades 9-12
- Non-athletes
- Athletes who already worked out that morning
- Athletes who haven't worked out
- Experienced lifters
- Students who've never entered a weight room
I knew I had to appeal to a wide variety of students in order to get them to buy into my PE class, but I still wanted to provide some structure so they knew what to expect in my class that day. I landed on the following schedule:
Monday - Mobility Day
Choices: Stretching/Flexibility OR Yoga
Tues/Thursday - Strength & Conditioning
Choices: Bodyweight Fitness OR Weight Lifting
Wednesday - Cardio Day
Choices: Cardio Machines or PLT4M's Dance Fitness
Friday - Game Day
When students show up for class each day, they have two options. For example, on Tuesdays when students arrive, about half of them will head to the weight room to complete a weight lifting workout via their devices, and the other half will head to the gymnasium where they can access a bodyweight workout in PLT4M.
With this schedule, I can achieve a "one size fits all" approach. Every student is exposed to the various fitness elements incorporated into the schedule, but they still get to choose what that looks like for them.
Some students would prefer we play games 5x week. Some students enjoy the versatile PLT4M workouts, and some are just concerned with their athletic training schedule. Having this structure has helped to highlight the various cohorts of students I may have in a given class. In the future, I hope to be able to create more defined classes, so that I can create more targeted curriculums.
For now, my weekly schedule includes structure, but within that structure, students can branch off into their preferred type of fitness—and this has worked well for us!
