PE Class

So...I decided to take a PE elective this semester.  It's called Movement Education and it's geared for future PE teachers.  While it will teach various PE activities the focus is less on the doing and more on how to teach those activities so I thought it would be a safe bet for this nerd-who-hates-PE.  My main motivation for taking this class is that I know the professor (she's a colleague of mine at the college) and I need a few elective credits to graduate in May.  I knew this would be an out-of-my-comfort-zone experience and my first class was no disappointment.  I will recount my experience for you now.  Keep in mind my severe fear of athletes which started in my childhood PE classes and has been affirmed in my position in the Provost's office at the college where we have to deal with athletes begging to be let back in for "just one more chance" to prove they can, in fact, succeed academically.  Riiiiiiiiiight.

I walk to class with a friend (there is, after all, safety in numbers).  We sit down.  In the back row, which is not normal for me.  Normally, I'm front and center.  Philosophy classes? Front and center.  Psychology classes?  Front and center.  Religion classes?  Front and center.  Those classes don't scare me.  PE class?  As far back as possible on the row closest to the door should an immediate escape be necessary.

Anyway, as students filter in I find myself categorizing them into groups: slacker, not too bright, at least he/she is cute, etc.  (I know, not nice. Not Christ like, but I'm being honest here.)

The professor walks in, she's excited to see me and gives me a hug (insert target on my back here).

She covers some basic housekeeping procedures; syllabus, handouts, attendance policy, etc.  Then she goes on to start an intro on the material.  She asks us to list our favorite activities in PE from elementary/middle school PE classes.  I lean over to my friend and whisper, "None. I hated PE.  I preferred silent reading time." We move on to activities we didn't like in PE.  I still remain quiet.  Then, the most dreaded thing of all all happens.  The professor calls on me and asks, "Vanessa, you've been quiet.  What activities did you dislike?" "Actually," I chirped "I didn't like PE at all.  I'm a nerd and preferred silent reading."

Everything stopped.  Everyone turned and stared at me.  They had looks of horror.  "Who is this traitor and why is she in OUR building?" their grimaces seemed to scream at me.  "Someone who reads?  FOR FUN?!?!?  UGH!"

"Oh God! I'm 10 again.  This is why I hated PE!  People like THEM!"  I thought to myself.

The professor, quickly coming to my rescue, speaks up, "Great!  As teachers this type of student is the one you'll need to win over!  It's not the athletic student who thinks you're God, get over yourself!  It's the student who doesn't like PE that you have to figure out how to get them involved and get them to like it!  What kind of student is that?"

"The introvert" one girl says.

"I'm NOT an introvert" I counter.

"The kid who likes chocolate cake" a boy snickers.

"Hey, don't knock the cake" I defend.

"The kid who isn't coordinated?"  someone else offers.

I think to myself, "well, I'm klutzy but I'm not uncoordinated.  I was great at soccer I just hated getting sweaty in the middle of the day". But I kept that to myself.  They probably wouldn't understand anyway.

Fast forward...moving on in the lesson.

The professor gives us 3 Skill Themes we'll need to know.  "The first" she says, "is locomotive skills.  This is the manner in which you move from point A to point B.  Can someone give me an example?"

I immediately start thinking; running, walking, skiing, swimming, skipping...

She calls on someone.  "Umm...baseball?"

WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!?  Baseball?  Seriously?  WOW!  Really?

Someone else offers, "Hockey?"

Again, WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!?

Finally someone ventures, "running?"  "Yes," the professor, ever patient and cheerful, says "running!"

Wow.

"Ok, the second skill theme is Manipulatives.  This is using something tangible to perform a skill set.  Examples?" (The woman is brave.  Really? Asking THIS group for examples, again?)

"Thinking?" a girl offers.

At this point I'm doing everything I can not to laugh.  Really?  Thinking?  How about dribbling, kicking, hitting, tossing, throwing, etc.?  The only way I can see that she got "thinking" was that she was thinking about manipulation not manipulatives.  Maybe?

Finally the class got it and, in all honesty, they did much better with the third skill theme which was Non-manipulative/non-locomotive (basically anything that wasn't covered in the first two).

I'm pretty sure this class will be quite the experience for me.  And if nothing else it will be very entertaining. :)