Cross Curricular Competencies: Thinking Critically in Physical Education
Philosophy of Physical Education
Our philosophy of Physical Education is constructed around the importance of physical activity and how it should be implemented into the everyday lives of our students. We do recognize that Physical Education often is sacrificed and overlooked due to the importance of core curricular classes. However, we believe that being physically active will help to improve our students performance in more inquiry based classes. Through Physical Education, students will learn how to become independent in their learning, and recognize how crucial physical activity is in order to lead a healthy life and further progress in their academic pursuit. Realistically, we recognize that not all of our students will enjoy being physically active. However, due to the fact that being physically active is vital to living a healthy and long life, we want to encourage and enlist a drive and love for being physically active in all of our students. In order to do so, we want to bring in physical activity experiences where students are not only engaged physically but also mentally. Having a specific unit based on thinking critically in Physical Education will in turn, empower and encourage students who find physical activity difficult or uninteresting. Based on the critical thinking aspects provided within this unit, students will engage in mentally stimulating activities that will cause them to focus more on the cognitive aspects, as opposed to just the physical components.
Rationale
The purpose of this unit is to integrate thinking critically into Physical Education in a way that engages students both physically and mentally. This unit will specifically target students who are uninterested in being physically active as well as students who struggle with inactivity. Our Unit will surround the question: How might we best infuse critical thinking into physical education?
Through this Unit we also hope to focus on the importance of teamwork, respect and fair play. That is why most of the lessons will contain collaborative and cooperative work which will be conducive to critical thinking. Although this unit will focus on critical thinking in Physical Education, it is imperative that students remain physically active for the majority of class time.
Since critical thinking is a part of our everyday life we want to show our students exactly this. We want to provide a different way for students to see how thinking critically can be used in various situations not only in the classroom. This also will expose our students to different types of critical thinking and how we can apply our critical thinking strategies to different situations. Since a part of thinking critically is hearing other points of view we have chosen certain games that focus on collaboration and working as a team in order to complete a task. Another part of critical thinking is being able to acknowledge and accept that other people’s points of view are valuable. In a physical education setting this is done by identifying that certain techniques or strategies are more effective than others.
Philosophy of Physical Education
Our philosophy of Physical Education is constructed around the importance of physical activity and how it should be implemented into the everyday lives of our students. We do recognize that Physical Education often is sacrificed and overlooked due to the importance of core curricular classes. However, we believe that being physically active will help to improve our students performance in more inquiry based classes. Through Physical Education, students will learn how to become independent in their learning, and recognize how crucial physical activity is in order to lead a healthy life and further progress in their academic pursuit. Realistically, we recognize that not all of our students will enjoy being physically active. However, due to the fact that being physically active is vital to living a healthy and long life, we want to encourage and enlist a drive and love for being physically active in all of our students. In order to do so, we want to bring in physical activity experiences where students are not only engaged physically but also mentally. Having a specific unit based on thinking critically in Physical Education will in turn, empower and encourage students who find physical activity difficult or uninteresting. Based on the critical thinking aspects provided within this unit, students will engage in mentally stimulating activities that will cause them to focus more on the cognitive aspects, as opposed to just the physical components.
Rationale
The purpose of this unit is to integrate thinking critically into Physical Education in a way that engages students both physically and mentally. This unit will specifically target students who are uninterested in being physically active as well as students who struggle with inactivity. Our Unit will surround the question: How might we best infuse critical thinking into physical education?
Through this Unit we also hope to focus on the importance of teamwork, respect and fair play. That is why most of the lessons will contain collaborative and cooperative work which will be conducive to critical thinking. Although this unit will focus on critical thinking in Physical Education, it is imperative that students remain physically active for the majority of class time.
Since critical thinking is a part of our everyday life we want to show our students exactly this. We want to provide a different way for students to see how thinking critically can be used in various situations not only in the classroom. This also will expose our students to different types of critical thinking and how we can apply our critical thinking strategies to different situations. Since a part of thinking critically is hearing other points of view we have chosen certain games that focus on collaboration and working as a team in order to complete a task. Another part of critical thinking is being able to acknowledge and accept that other people’s points of view are valuable. In a physical education setting this is done by identifying that certain techniques or strategies are more effective than others.
Day 1: Working Memory Game
Students will be put into teams at the beginning of class. They will be assigned a colour of pinnie they must focus on throughout the entire lesson. At one side of the gym, students will be lined up in their teams, with the memory board on the opposite side (2 teams per memory board). The memory board will contain 9 squares made of hoola hoops, each filled with a different coloured pinnie, covered by a bucket. One a time, players will race out to the memory board, and uncover two buckets to see the pinnies underneath. Once they have done so, they must cover those pinnies back up, and race to tag the next person in line. The objective of the game is to be the first person to match & flip two of your teams coloured pinnies in the same turn. The first team to do so, wins.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
Day 2: Scrabble
Students will be placed at one end of the space, with cut up letters on the other end. They will have 10 minutes to complete the game, with 2 minutes in between each round. The goal of the game is to spell out as many words as possible in the allotted time. Each word will be 1 point, with the “special scrabble” words as 2. Each round will begin through demonstration of the movement for that specific round (ex. Round 1 students will have to complete 5 sit-ups). Once the timer has started, students will run to the opposite side of the gym, complete their movement, and then take ONE letter back to their team. Once arriving back at their team, the next team member may go. After each round, students will show their words to the teacher, and then they will write their tallied points on the ground. After doing so, they will put their letters back for the next round.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
Day 3: Sink the Ship
Students will be broken into 2-4 teams with adequate amount of students on each team (at least 6 per team). The object of the game is to sink the other team’s ships before yours gets sunk. To sink their ship all four bowling pins must be knocked down for that ship to sink. Students will have four bowling pins that they can set up in the form of a ship (some students will have to pretend to be standing on the ship, so they can’t make it too small that their team members will fall off their ship). The teacher will set up boundaries as to where their ship has to stay in (not too far, not too close). Students will then decide how many people they want on their ship and how many they want on scooters (mini boats). The students on these mini boats are in charge of receiving dodgeballs to bring to their ship for the students who are on the ship to throw and hit the other teams pins with. The students on the ship are the only students who are allowed to throw the dodgeballs (bombs). Students on the scooters are not allowed to throw the dodgeballs but they can only pass their dodgeballs to their team members on the ship.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
Day 4: Cross the Sea
Students will be broken into 4 teams. Each team has their own set of materials (eg. mats, exercise balls, bosu balls, noodles, etc.) that they have to use to “cross the sea” before the other team. All of the teams must get their members across the sea without touching the water/floor, if a team member touches the water they have to go back and start over. Objects can’t be carried the whole way they must be used be used in a way to cross the sea. Each relay they will be given a new object and/or take away a material to ensure students are thinking of different strategies for each race. Once students have completed multiple variations of the race students will then be put into 2 teams and then go through a couple different races with their new teams.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
Day 5: Minefield
Students will be put into groups of two at the beginning of lesson. They will be shown a minefield they will have to cross, without touching any of the objects. It will be explained to them that one partner will have to cross the minefield blindfolded while the other partner guides them through the minefield. If students touch any of the objects, they must restart. Prior to beginning this activity, students will be given time to create a form communication with their partner, without using the terms left, right, straight, backwards, and stop. They will have to be creative in their communication as multiple teams will be going through the minefield at once, and there will be lots of yelling occurring at one time. After the first round, students will be able to re-evaluate their communication strategies to adjust and improve upon. This way, hopefully the second partner navigating through the minefield will be more successful than the first.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
Day 6: Build a Stretcher
Students will be put into teams at the beginning of the lesson, all with fairly equal physical capabilities. It will be explained to students that they will have 10 minutes to create the best stretcher possible out of the materials provided to them, in order to carry one of their “injured” teammates from one end of the gym to the other. Students will be given 6 materials as options to use for their stretcher, 3 of which they will select to create their stretcher. The options for students will be: blankets, hockey sticks, ropes, tarps, pinnies and exercise balls”. Once the students have created their stretcher, they will have a race by placing one teammate on the stretcher, and carrying them to the other side of the gym. The first team to cross the finish line wins. However, the next round, students will be able to swap materials if they so choose, in order to create a more durable stretcher. This will allow students the opportunity to use critical thinking in order to create the best possible form of transportation.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
Day 7: Movement Jeopardy
Students will be put into teams at the beginning of the lesson and will choose amongst themselves who will be up representing them for answering riddles and questions on the “main stage” and who will be in the background working together to come up with answers to share with their representative teammate. Students will be asked a certain question or riddle and the whole team and each team will use their whiteboards to write their answer down. Once they have their answer they can “buzz in” with their teams chosen buzzer sound to answer the question. If the question is correct they are then able to choose a select movement (i.e. run around the gym) for the other teams to perform. If they answer the question incorrectly they are then having to perform a movement decided by the host (the teacher).
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
Day 8: Amazing Race
Students will be on a team with no more than 5 team members to complete the amazing race challenge. There will be a set number of stations (10) throughout the gym/school/outside that the students will have clues to find. They can only go in a linear fashion (can’t just go to a station they see). To complete the challenge they must collect all 10 clues and bring them back to the teacher. Each team will be given a different starting clue so students can’t just follow the group. The answer to these clues is the location of their next clue. Once they get to the correct location they must complete a physical activity that is set up at that location before they can receive the next clue. If teachers have parents volunteers they can have a parent set up at a location with an ipad to videotape the thinking process of the clue they are given.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
-The final day of this unit will provide students many opportunities for thinking critically, incorporating skills they have utilized from previous lessons for their final performance task. Through this activity, students will practice open mindedness, how to select relevant information from a broad range of data as well as how to withhold judgement until sufficient information has been selected. They will also be forced to identify sound arguments, build arguments of their own, and come to reasoned judgements based upon multiple opposing arguments.
Guided Journal Entry Question? -Admiration for human intellectual achievements
Students will be put into teams at the beginning of class. They will be assigned a colour of pinnie they must focus on throughout the entire lesson. At one side of the gym, students will be lined up in their teams, with the memory board on the opposite side (2 teams per memory board). The memory board will contain 9 squares made of hoola hoops, each filled with a different coloured pinnie, covered by a bucket. One a time, players will race out to the memory board, and uncover two buckets to see the pinnies underneath. Once they have done so, they must cover those pinnies back up, and race to tag the next person in line. The objective of the game is to be the first person to match & flip two of your teams coloured pinnies in the same turn. The first team to do so, wins.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
- Throughout this activity students will be encouraged to strategize with their teammates regarding how to best remember where their coloured pinnies are. They will have to develop a system that most efficiently and quickly allows them to be the first team to unveil both their coloured pinnies. By allowing teams to create their own strategy, they will have to decide what will be the most efficient way to complete the task. They could do this through designating one or two people per team to directly remember where their coloured pinnies were located. They could designate certain rows to each teammate to remember the placement of the pinnies. Through this activity students will have to collaboratively inquire as to how they will be the most successful team.
- What information did you find relevant to focus on in order to successfully accomplish this task?
Day 2: Scrabble
Students will be placed at one end of the space, with cut up letters on the other end. They will have 10 minutes to complete the game, with 2 minutes in between each round. The goal of the game is to spell out as many words as possible in the allotted time. Each word will be 1 point, with the “special scrabble” words as 2. Each round will begin through demonstration of the movement for that specific round (ex. Round 1 students will have to complete 5 sit-ups). Once the timer has started, students will run to the opposite side of the gym, complete their movement, and then take ONE letter back to their team. Once arriving back at their team, the next team member may go. After each round, students will show their words to the teacher, and then they will write their tallied points on the ground. After doing so, they will put their letters back for the next round.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
- Students must think critically about the letters provided and how to form words. Through this they are using problem solving skills. They must also think critically about how many words they could create with the letters provided. This lesson also provides students an opportunity to problem pose, which will strengthen and encourage thinking critically.
- What was your strategy when creating your scrabble words; what made your team successful or unsuccessful?
Day 3: Sink the Ship
Students will be broken into 2-4 teams with adequate amount of students on each team (at least 6 per team). The object of the game is to sink the other team’s ships before yours gets sunk. To sink their ship all four bowling pins must be knocked down for that ship to sink. Students will have four bowling pins that they can set up in the form of a ship (some students will have to pretend to be standing on the ship, so they can’t make it too small that their team members will fall off their ship). The teacher will set up boundaries as to where their ship has to stay in (not too far, not too close). Students will then decide how many people they want on their ship and how many they want on scooters (mini boats). The students on these mini boats are in charge of receiving dodgeballs to bring to their ship for the students who are on the ship to throw and hit the other teams pins with. The students on the ship are the only students who are allowed to throw the dodgeballs (bombs). Students on the scooters are not allowed to throw the dodgeballs but they can only pass their dodgeballs to their team members on the ship.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
- Students are given the opportunity to come up with their own strategy and use strategic thinking with regards to their ship positioning and how many people they want on the ship or the mini boats. All the teams will be given time to think about their ship placement/shape and where they want their team members to go. This gives teams possible options through which they will have to choose the best course of action. Once they have decided what they think is the best strategy they will be given the opportunity to try out this strategy and see if they were able to successfully sink the other team’s ship faster than being sunk themselves. After the rounds are over the teacher will allow for the teams to discuss what they think worked and what they need to change. There will be multiple rounds so the teams can modify their strategies after each round and establish sufficient criteria.
- By allowing you time to alter your ship shape and placement, how did this change your team strategy; what new information did you take into account?
Day 4: Cross the Sea
Students will be broken into 4 teams. Each team has their own set of materials (eg. mats, exercise balls, bosu balls, noodles, etc.) that they have to use to “cross the sea” before the other team. All of the teams must get their members across the sea without touching the water/floor, if a team member touches the water they have to go back and start over. Objects can’t be carried the whole way they must be used be used in a way to cross the sea. Each relay they will be given a new object and/or take away a material to ensure students are thinking of different strategies for each race. Once students have completed multiple variations of the race students will then be put into 2 teams and then go through a couple different races with their new teams.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
- Students will be brainstorming their own strategic thinking in order to move objects and team members across the gym. The teacher is only there as a guide and lets the students find out for themselves the best and most efficient way to get across the sea. Since each race will be different students will be continuously changing their strategy and adapting in the way they think works the best. This will be done through trial and error as their evidence. This will help students to identify the best outcome out of a range of possibilities. After each race the winning team will be able to share ideas as to why they think their team was successful and the losing team can share ideas as to why they weren’t as successful. What slowed them down, if they fell off what happened? Was there lots of communication and teamwork to be successful?
- How did your team identify the best plan of action based on all the varying possibilities to choose from? How did you eliminate certain options?
Day 5: Minefield
Students will be put into groups of two at the beginning of lesson. They will be shown a minefield they will have to cross, without touching any of the objects. It will be explained to them that one partner will have to cross the minefield blindfolded while the other partner guides them through the minefield. If students touch any of the objects, they must restart. Prior to beginning this activity, students will be given time to create a form communication with their partner, without using the terms left, right, straight, backwards, and stop. They will have to be creative in their communication as multiple teams will be going through the minefield at once, and there will be lots of yelling occurring at one time. After the first round, students will be able to re-evaluate their communication strategies to adjust and improve upon. This way, hopefully the second partner navigating through the minefield will be more successful than the first.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
- This activity gives students many opportunities for critical inquiry. Through creating their own dialogue with their partner about movement patterns, they will have to create a system that effectively communicates direction so that their partners will be successful in maneuvering through the minefield. Whether students choose to assign different words to describe directions of movement, or various sounds is up to them. After the first partner has successfully or unsuccessfully moved through the minefield, students will be given the opportunity to adjust, modify and revisit their communication system. This will allow them to decipher what components are making them successful, and which components they need to fix in order to become more fluent and efficient in their movement. Through this, students will be encouraged to withhold judgement until sufficient information has been collected. Through this activity students will also have to use their creativity, due to the fact that if various teams use the same sound/words it could become extremely confusing for the students moving through the minefield.
- How does the position of guiding someone through a task limit your control of the outcome?
Day 6: Build a Stretcher
Students will be put into teams at the beginning of the lesson, all with fairly equal physical capabilities. It will be explained to students that they will have 10 minutes to create the best stretcher possible out of the materials provided to them, in order to carry one of their “injured” teammates from one end of the gym to the other. Students will be given 6 materials as options to use for their stretcher, 3 of which they will select to create their stretcher. The options for students will be: blankets, hockey sticks, ropes, tarps, pinnies and exercise balls”. Once the students have created their stretcher, they will have a race by placing one teammate on the stretcher, and carrying them to the other side of the gym. The first team to cross the finish line wins. However, the next round, students will be able to swap materials if they so choose, in order to create a more durable stretcher. This will allow students the opportunity to use critical thinking in order to create the best possible form of transportation.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
- Students will have only a certain amount of time to work collaboratively with their team to create a stretcher. What are the purposes of these tools? How do you build a stretcher with these tools? How should the stretcher be built so that it is strong enough to hold a member effectively? What is the best design? How must the group get from one end to the other without letting the member on the stretcher fall or touch the floor? Through this activity students will collaboratively come to a reasoned judgement.
- How did other group members’ arguments alter the overall design of the stretcher? How did you come to a reasoned judgement?
Day 7: Movement Jeopardy
Students will be put into teams at the beginning of the lesson and will choose amongst themselves who will be up representing them for answering riddles and questions on the “main stage” and who will be in the background working together to come up with answers to share with their representative teammate. Students will be asked a certain question or riddle and the whole team and each team will use their whiteboards to write their answer down. Once they have their answer they can “buzz in” with their teams chosen buzzer sound to answer the question. If the question is correct they are then able to choose a select movement (i.e. run around the gym) for the other teams to perform. If they answer the question incorrectly they are then having to perform a movement decided by the host (the teacher).
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
- Students are subject to think critically about the riddles and questions asked and work collectively with their team to come up with the best possible answer in the fastest time. This will allow students to recognize relevant information to them, as well as give them the opportunity to use their working memory.
- How did working collaboratively with your teammates alter the answers given during the game?
Day 8: Amazing Race
Students will be on a team with no more than 5 team members to complete the amazing race challenge. There will be a set number of stations (10) throughout the gym/school/outside that the students will have clues to find. They can only go in a linear fashion (can’t just go to a station they see). To complete the challenge they must collect all 10 clues and bring them back to the teacher. Each team will be given a different starting clue so students can’t just follow the group. The answer to these clues is the location of their next clue. Once they get to the correct location they must complete a physical activity that is set up at that location before they can receive the next clue. If teachers have parents volunteers they can have a parent set up at a location with an ipad to videotape the thinking process of the clue they are given.
How are we best infusing thinking critically into this lesson?
-The final day of this unit will provide students many opportunities for thinking critically, incorporating skills they have utilized from previous lessons for their final performance task. Through this activity, students will practice open mindedness, how to select relevant information from a broad range of data as well as how to withhold judgement until sufficient information has been selected. They will also be forced to identify sound arguments, build arguments of their own, and come to reasoned judgements based upon multiple opposing arguments.
Guided Journal Entry Question? -Admiration for human intellectual achievements
- Given these activities and what you have been asked to look at through this unit, identify three of the most important critical thinking skills you’ve learnt through these activities for you?
Assessment
- Guided Journal Entry Questions: Students are going to have daily Guided Journal Entry Questions where they must reflect on their personal processes of thinking critically throughout the lesson of the day. This will be a summative report on how the individual is able to accurately evaluate and assess their participation in the unit and how critical thinking is implemented within each activity. Guided Journal Entries will be an artifact about their thinking.
- Rubric of Daily Participation: Thinking Critically Participation Self- Evaluation Sheet
- Have you been thinking? Considering? Etc.
- Evaluation of Critical Thinking: Students throughout the unit will be subject to specific elements of Critical Thinking, Supposing, Considering, Reflecting, Weighing Evidence, Posing Solid Questions, Exploring a range of answers, Selecting the best one, Imagining possible solutions
- Performance Task: Last day - synthesis activity
- Given these activities and what you have been asked to look at through this unit, identify three of the most important critical thinking skills you’ve learnt through these activities for you?