Teaching Philosophy

As a physical education teacher, I believe I can teach students to discover their love for physical activity while creating great individuals who carry the characteristics they developed through physical education throughout their lives. I want to show students that if you don’t like traditional team sports, that doesn't mean you can’t still like physical education. It takes more than just being physically literate to have success in my classes. The national standards touch on much more than that and I plan to as well.

My goals for my students are first to develop an admirable character. Characteristics such as good sportsmanship, respect, self-discipline, and integrity. How will my students decide to act in moments when no one is watching, and how can I make sure it is the right choice? This focuses on the affective domain. My next goal for my students is to teach teamwork cooperation and the social skills needed to succeed. This, too, aligns with the affective domain. My third goal for my students is to develop the knowledge of health literacy, nutrition, and safety practices for being active. Engaging the cognitive domain. Lastly, my final goal is that the students learn sport-specific skills, and build competence in a variety of activities. This connects to the psychomotor domain. These goals are essential to me because it is my belief that the strongest form of education is a holistic one. One that develops each child as a whole intellectually, physically, and social-emotionally.

Teaching styles I believe will allow my students to reach their goals. First, use the guided discovery style to teach adventure activities. Problem-solving, trust, risk-taking, and communication games. Activities will challenge them and they will have the opportunity to develop the desired characteristics. I will also utilize the self-check style of teaching. Allowing the students to determine how well they are working together as a team and cooperating. Additionally, I will use the practice style to teach. For instance, take them through proper warmups and cooldowns. Identifying the nutrients in physical food labels. And identifying components of fitness by the exercise. I want the students to experience hands-on practice to better their retention of the content. When teaching lifetime activities, I will adopt the command style, as I will likely be teaching unfamiliar hobbies to the students. And they may need more demonstrations and explanations than usual. My preferred teaching style may not be reaching every student, so it is crucial to use a variety of teaching styles, rather than just relying on one.

As for assessments, I will use multiple different assessments to allow for students to express themselves in various ways, ways that may work better for them than others. I will incorporate reflective journals for the students. To be able to read their honest thoughts from and about the activities. And to allow for self-reflection and expression. I will also assign self and peer performance checklists. These are assessments I will normally use for assessing the affective domain. I will likely use written quizzes or project assignments to assess the cognitive domain. And lastly, assessments for the psychomotor domain will be performance checklists or rubrics for me to use when I observe as a teacher. It is important that I be the one assessing because I know the criteria to look for. Each student may have a different way they best express their understanding of the content taught in class. I want to allow them to have that chance during assessments.

In my gymnasium, inclusivity will encompass anyone who enters. There will be posters of people who look like my students and colleagues doing the activities I may ask of them throughout the year. Bright colorful images of different genders, races, ethnicities, and abilities to include anyone who may be in my gym. Creating a safe and supportive environment that encourages everyone to participate. I will be sure to develop strong relationships with my students and their families to be able to know every little thing about them. That way I can best prepare my gymnasiums for any of their needs. I will follow the Universal Design of Learning guidelines to adhere to diverse learners with visuals, written instructions, and demonstrations, including the student's interests. Approaching every student's preferred language. And again creating various assessments that allow the students to express their understanding in multiple ways. I will enjoy involving my students' cultures by incorporating games or activities from their cultures. I will also allow my students to challenge themselves by choice while encouraging them to do their best. I will provide modifications and adaptable equipment for each of my students so they may find success at their own levels. That is inclusivity to me and it is a strong component of my gymnasium.

I take great pleasure in helping students come out of their shells and showing them that physical education can be enjoyable. I want them to discover a form of physical activity they can embrace for life. My role as a physical education teacher goes beyond just teaching sports or fitness; it involves guiding young individuals to become not only physically capable but also to embody the qualities of a virtuous person and a responsible member of society. I aim to inspire them to make a positive impact on the world around them.