Check Out Your Heart

My Students: The rate of children in the U.S. that are becoming obese are dangerously high. In our PE classes we set up an obstacle course that the children simulate the blood cells travel...

My Project: With the heart monitors and timers I have requested the children will be able to see immediately how their hearts are being monitored during exercise. They will be using thes... more»

My Students: The rate of children in the U.S. that are becoming obese are dangerously high. In our PE classes we set up an obstacle course that the children simulate the blood cells traveling throughout the circulatory system. We hope by teaching them about their heart at a young age exercise will be important.

The children are ages 5-9 and they are interested and excited about learning while they are "on the move" all the time. They enjoy learning if it is different methods and at the same time they are exercising. Our children attend a public rural school district. Their parents careers range from doctors, lawyers, construction workers, maintenance personnel, farmers, municipal workers and unemployed. The diversity in socio-economic environment is wide-spread in our district but yet the children for the most part don't see a difference among each other. They tend to be quite accepting of all students no matter the differences in social, ethnic, or economic areas. Our students are willing and excited about all new things that we present to them in our district.

My Project: With the heart monitors and timers I have requested the children will be able to see immediately how their hearts are being monitored during exercise. They will be using these monitors and timers in many activities that we do in our PE classes. The units will also help the students to distinguish which types of exercise improves cardio vascular endurance. One of the major units we will be using them in is during our "Heart Adventure Challenge Course". They see how the blood travels through the circulatory system by simulating the movement of blood cells throughout the body. Also throughout the school year they can see if they are working up to physical ability and maximum heart rate while they are doing other events and challenges in PE. Anytime you put some technological device in this generations' hands it enhances the experience of learning a new subject or challenge. My job as a teacher is to enhance and stimulate their learning in new ways to keep them interested!

By teaching the children the importance of exercise at an early age, we can develop strategies for life long health and the importance of being fit. So many outside distractions have influenced our children to sit in front of a TV to be entertained and to eat unhealthy. It will impact our students for the rest of their lives if they learn and follow the criteria to keep their hearts and bodies physically fit. hide»