Pre-Natal Gangsters

For a group project we got together and brainstormed some ideas to make a video which incorporates Chapters 5 and 6 from our textbook. Jay-Z is a wellknow rap artist from our generaation so we took the instumentals from one of his big hits and made our own version. Each of my group members and I came up with a few lines of lyrics and pieced together a rap song. Along with the words, we came up with a theme. We were gangster basketball players and whoevers turn it was to sing in the song, they held the basketball. When they were done they would toss the ball out of the frame. We clipped together the skits so that the next person in line to sing was "catching" the pass from the previous rapper. It looks pretty smooth but the best part is the ending. We stood ontop of a garbage can and performed some top of the line dunks. To add more some more drama, we through some slow motion action. Here is the final product, enjoy.

Last Day at St. Mary's

Today was an sad day as we all new it was our last time there at St. Mary's. Im not sure if the students new it was our last day because they did not act any differently nor did I want them to. I wanted a fantastic day and thats exactly what I got. We were back with the oldest group because thats who we were with on the first day. Outside we went and the games of tag took off. It was cold out and I had no jacked, but somehow I was still sweating like I was in the 4th quarter of a football game in August. These kids are extremely witty, they will team together and set you up for a trap to get tagged. I can not count how many times I was out smarted. After loosing about 6 pounds of water weight, we went back into the warm gym to start some games. One of my group members kicked everything off with his game and the students liked it. Then it was time for my game that I wanted to test out for the first time. It was the same rules as soccer, no hands, except instead of using a soccer ball we used a football, a soft one of course. Also when the ball went out of bounds, the students had to throw the ball back in like a quarter back instead of the traditional over-head soccer throw. They started out really energetic but after a little while I spiced it up and moved the goals closer to the center of the court. This gave them to go behind the net and score goals from different angles because to score a goal, the ball just had to hit the goal itself, not enter the net. Then to throw more wrenches into the mix, another college student and I began moving the nets around the court. This really got the kids going because they had to move faster seeing as the net coould be moving away from them. The day was coming to an end and more kids were getting picked up. We got to the closing song/dance and then it was time to say our good-byes. My experience here absolutely helped me grow as an educator. I got the chance to work with different age groups and personalities and i'm glad I did because I now have more knowledge of how to handle the situations they throw at you. I would like to thank the staff of St. Mary's for allowing us to grow within your walls. Also a big thanks to the students who let us influence their lives and more importantly, touched our lives. Maybe one day some of you will stumble upon one of our blogs and see the happyness you have brought us.

Reflection onSt. Mary's Day 5

This day a the elementary school my crew was placed with the youngest group, the pre-K. The second we walked through the door, all of their little eyes lit up with excitment. It was a warming feeling seeing that people that do not even know you can get excited to see your face. I walked right over to a tiny table and sat down in a tiny chair. I might as well have been sitting on the floor, thats how low the seat was. There were three boys at the table with me and they were playing with Lincoln Logs. I never really played with these toys when I was younger so it was something new for me. They were very giving when sat down and began offering me pieces to build my own house. One of the boys had completed a full house with windows and a door and it actually looked real. They are young but very knowledgable and respetful because one boy got up, another reached over to take a piece of his house, and then the third boy said to him " hey thats his house, you shouldn't take it apart without asking." When he said that, my mouth dropped and my heart warmed.

Minutes later we began the craft and it consisted of pine cones and colored paper to make a turkey, flower or whatever the kids wanted. They were suppose to use glue to get the paper to stay on the pinecone, but before instructions were even given, the child sitting next to me picked up a few pieces of paper and crammed them into the pinecone with no glue. He got them to securely stay and said "LOOK!" For the second time that day, my mouth had dropped. I was stunned that these young children had the intelligence to take the initiative and create something with no instructions of how to do it.
My first choice of an age to teach was never for this young of students, but after my first encounter with them, my mind mind change. I absolutely loved being with them because they were just full of joy and energy. If you are having a bad day, I strongly suggest spending some time with them because your attitude with do a full 360 and your bad day with turn great. Another amazing day at St. Mary's.

Reflection on St. Mary's Day 4

This day landed on Halowen and was very festive. Almost all the college students dressed up in costumes. I planned on taking part in the tradition until my costume got ripped the day before. I had the outfit of "Mr. Incredible" from the Pixar movie, The Incredible's. I was dissapointed that I could not wear it because I knew that the kids would have loved it. But anyway, the day was very fun because everyone was in a great mood for what the night was about to bring. Candy and tick or treating is what was constantly on the kids minds. I presented a game at the end of the day when we had to whole program participating and it was called, "Trick or Treat." I know, very creative. The game consisted of myself and four other college students walking around with these big cylanders on our shoulders. We were considered the "candy bags" and the kids had to throw all different balls and toys, which were "candy" up in in the top so that they could eat it all later.

I personally could not see the enjoyment on all the kids faces because my head was covered and had things being throw at it, but I could hear the laughter and approval from the children. Everyone once and a while I crouched down low so that a smaller child could dunk it in and I was told that they all had great smiles on when they did this. All I know is that I got hit with alot of candy but if it made the kids happy, I was more than glad to take the pain.

Reflection on St. Mary's Day 3

For Day 3 all of us decided on a theme to give the kids a little excitement. The theme was "Sports." I was extremely excited for this theme because I love sports, especially football, and I was getting the opportunity to represent my favorite team. When I arrived to the school and walked in the gym, not only did I see every single Cortland student wearing a jersey, but also saw a smile on every kids face.

 Most of them are old enough to understand sports teams and even know specific players. I was wearing a Ladanian Tomlinson jersey, a runningback for the New York Jets, and when we were having a catch with the football as the kids were sitting down, they were yellin out "Tomlinson, throw it here!" The kids were even being negative to some other Cortland students who were wearing jerseys of players they did not like. For example, Eric was wearing a Mark Sanchez jersey, the new quarterback for the New York Jets, and the kids said things like, "You have a terrible arm!" Beside the fun from the jerseys, we played some really fun games too.

"Speed Ball" was a fan favorite. It consisted of soccer, basketball and handball so there was three different ways to score. Shotting the ball in the hoop was 3 points, kicking the ball in the soccer net was 2 points, and throwing the ball in the sovver net was 1 point. The kids really got into this game and we even had some trickle over to it from other activities because they saw how much fun everyone was having. Some of them are very talented and I was taken back by a few of them. The goalie for my team made a save, walked up about three steps and punted the ball. It went soaring across the gym and directly into the opposing basketball hoop. I could not believe that this young boy had just accomplished that. I most likely could not achieve that task. Anyway, everyone that witnessed this happen went absolutely crazy, a kid on the other team actually ran over and gave the goalie a high-five. It was pretty cool to witness sportsmanship like that at such a young age. I havent seen a bigger smile on a kids face in a while and it was a great end to my day at St. Mary's.

Reflection of St. Mary's Day 2

On this day I was presenting a game to a very young group of kids, the 1st and 2nd graders. I had a solid lessson plan and a pretty fun and adventurous game. The name of the game was called "animals and machines." the concept of the game was to establish a partner where on of them was an "animal" and the other a "machine." After figuring out who was each aspect of the game, they then had to pick an animal and a machine to be. So if the animal decided to be a cow then the sound that child had to make was "Mooo." on the machine side, if the child chose to be a clock, the sound they had to make was "tick-tock."Tthe point of the game was to the animals seperate from their partner and make the sound of the animal that they had chosen. the machines would then be blind-folded and have to try and locate their partner by only listening to the sound of the animal that their partner had chosen.

Once the partner was found they had to "hop" back to me and they would be finished. Then the animals and machines would switch roles and play again. Going into the introduction I had the kids full attention and they seemed really excited to play my game. Unfortunately I struggled with explaining the game because the children just did not understand the cioncept. One child even started crying because he wanted to be a machine instead of an animal. It started going downhill and I finally through a curveball and just said everyone hop around and make the sound of your animal or machine.  What I learned from this occasion was that as a teacher, if the activity is not explained to young children quickly and easily, they will be lost and not understand anything. I'm glad that this happenned to me because even though I was instructed about this possibly happenning, I now know with my own experience.

To Dodge or Not To Dodge?

Dodge ball is looked at like the "devil" of physical education activities. I personaly do not believe that because there are plenty of positives from the activity. Teamwork, sportsmanship, hand-eye skill, and agility are all fundamental aspects of dodge ball. Yes there are some controversial parts of the game, but as physical educators it is our responsibility to adapt and eliminate those threats.

Reflection on St. Mary's Day 1

Going to St. Mary's Elementary School for the first time was an absolute blast. I walked into the building not knowing what to expect and what I got was great. The kids just had so much energy to give. Even if I was tired and didn't want to be there, those kids would have changed my attitude within minutes with all of their spunk and liveliness. The groups were split up and I was pared with the 1st and 2nd grade students. We stayed in the gymnasium and played different games with them. I ended up walking around the entire gym standing on two buckets attached to strings. I honestly do not know how they didn't collapse under my feet. Then we all went outside and the amount of tag that we played with the students was more than I have played in the past 10 years combined. I was sweating and out of breathe but every moment was worth it to keep a smile on all those students face. Having them see all of us college students running around and laughing gave them even more of a reason to be young and fun. I can not wait to go back for another adventure.