What is your favorite movie?

1 Vote - Deep Blue Sea, Marmaduke, Beverly Hills Chihuahua, Finding Nemo, Case Closed, Two Towers, Lord of the Rings, Lemonade Ralph, Rapunzel, Fast & Furious, Men in Black, Indiana Jones, Sound of Music, Spiderman, How to Train Your Dragon, Aquamarine, Good Luck Charlie, 3 Stooges, Titanic Mysteries, How the Grinch stole Christmas, Air Buddies, Elf, All Dogs go to Heaven, Racing Stripes, War Holes, Milo & Otis, Black Beauty, Soul Surfer, Terminator 3, Bench Warmers, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Sky Fall, Halloween, House Fold 2, Madagascar 3, Home Alone, Hotel Transylvania, Don't have a favorite

2 Votes - Search for Santa Paws, Smurfs, Victory, Flicka, Pirates of the Caribbean, Hunger Games, Chimpanzee

3 Votes - Wreck it Ralph, Happy Gilmore

6 Votes - Rise of the Guardians

Frisbee

This week all classes will be learning how to properly throw a frisbee. Did you know that almost everything about throwing a frisbee is OPPOSITE what we do to throw a ball? Ask your child to explain the differences. Students will progress from skill work to modified games of ultimate frisbee and ultimate handball. We may even play some frisbee kickball! Its sure to be a fun week :)

What was the best thing about your Thanksgiving Vacation?

1 Vote - Turkey, Soccer Tournament, My Cat, Eating Dessert, Seeing the kittens we rescued, Sleepover, Pumpkin Pie, Dancing, Chocolate Pie, Football Championship, Hunting, Going out for dinner, Eating, My Birthday, Getting a new Ipad, My Really Weird Thanksgiving

2 Votes - Getting a new Dog, Going to Disney, Going water tubing

3 Votes - Going to the movies, No School

4 Votes - Hanging with friends

5 Votes - Playing Video Games

9 Votes - Taking a trip

19 Votes - Being with family

Welcome to PE with Coach Pope! I'm excited to begin working with my new groups for our second trimester of school: Ms. Conroy's group, Ms. Hawley's class, Ms. Graham's group, Mrs. Hensler's group, and the boys from Mrs. Davis and Ms. Tucker's classes!

This week all grade levels will be introduced to Burnball - a Swedish version of baseball. Many of the rules of the game are very similar to American baseball but there is one VERY important difference, there are NO outs! Burnball enables students to not only improve their hand-eye coordination and running skills, but critical thinking and problem-solving skills as well. We'll even throw in a little math! Its great fun - ask your child to compare and contrast Burnball and American baseball. Ask which one they prefer!

In honor of Halloween, what's your favorite candy?

1 Vote - Ring Pop, Mike & Ike, Sour Spray, Big Pops, Lollipops, Peppermint, Fun Dip, Bull's Eyes, M&M's, Snickers

2 Votes - Skittles, Dots, Milk Duds, York Peppermint Patties, Candy Corn

3 Votes - Crunch bar, Laffy Taffy, Nerds, Butterfinger

5 Votes - Twix

7 Votes - Hershey's

8 Votes - Reese's Peanut butter Cups

13 Votes - Kit Kat

10/30 Lunch Time Poll

Last week we attempted to categorize our Halloween Costumes - here's what we came up with :)

Inanimate object - 1
Historical Figure - 2
Don't know yet - 2
Animal - 4
Halloween Classic - 12
Its a Surprise - 13
Fantasy Job - 15
Character - 17

This week in class students will be reviewing Burnball and playing various cooperative games, as I will be out Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Coach Dean will be here with the students, and they are sure to have a wonderful time with her! Also, don't forget this week is Homecoming week, with lots of fun activities in the Upper Division. On Friday we'll all celebrate with the All School Pep Rally in the Crisp Gym. Mr. Spirit will be crowned at the Girls Powder Puff finals on Thursday night, and the Homecoming Queen will be crowned at half time of the Varsity game on Friday night.

What's your favorite thing to do on the weekend?

1 Vote - Go to Universal, Go Tubing, Explore Outside, Install a Bike Rack, Play Kinex, Read, Visit Places, Go Canoeing, Take care of my sister, Sleep, Fish, Go to Horse Shows, Play Baseball, Do Cart Wheels, Watch TV, Go to our Ranch, Play Hockey, Titanic Research, Go to Legoland, Go on the boat, Play Legos, Do Gymnastics, Play Tennis, Go to the beach

2 Votes - Ice Skating, Go on the Jet Ski, Go Sailing, Have a sleepover, Play with my dogs, Hang out with my family

4 Votes - Play Soccer, Go Swimming

6 Votes - Hang out with Friends

7 Votes - Play Video Games

9 Votes - Play or Watch Football

This week's main focus for the 4th grade girls will be Punt, Pass and Kick. The girls will have the opportunity in class to compete for two spots in the finals during Friday night's football game. The rest of our classes will complete our Burnball unit - as soon as the fields are dry enough to use :) Thanks for your patience with the weather! Have a great week!

This week we are finally making it to our introduction to Burnball - for grades K-3. Third graders will run the mile on Tuesday, 4th graders on Friday. Please help us to reduce anxiety for the children by reminding them that this mile run is simply a baseline test - to see what their level of fitness is today. Each child should do the four laps around the track at his or her own pace - no one will be forced to run or push past his or her own comfort level. We only expect each child to give his or her best effort!

Flexibility

This year's theme in PE seems to be FLEXIBILITY! We are all learning not only how this term refers to our muscles, but also to our everyday lives :) Plans often change. This is a fact of life and this year we're all having many opportunities to practice being flexible when things don't go the way we expected! Hopefully the students are learning lots of patience too - I know I am!

This week we will continue to work on Fitness Testing in 3rd and 4th grade. The other grades will have an opportunity to climb the rock wall and participate in some cooperative games. Next week we should be able to move on to our Burnball unit. The 4th graders will finally get to dress out this week too :)

This week in PE

This week all classes will be introduced to Burnball - a Swedish version of Baseball. Many of the rules of the game are very similar to American baseball but there is one VERY important difference, there are NO outs! Burnball enables students to not only improve their hand-eye coordination and running skills, but critical thinking and problem-solving skills as well. We'll even throw in a little math! Its great fun - as your child to compare and contrast Burnball and American baseball. Ask which one they prefer!

So far, what's the best thing about 3rd Grade?

Lunch, Weekends, Everything, Learning - 1 Vote

New Playground, Spanish every day, Art, Science - 2 Votes

My teacher - 3 Votes

Class Pet, Friends - 4 Votes

Math - 8 Votes

Recess - 15 Votes

PE - 19 Votes

3rd Grade Poll

One of the special things about 3rd grade is participating in Coach Pope's Lunch Time Poll. Each week I like to ask the students a question, then I post their answers on this blog. It's always fun to see how your answers are similar and different from those of your friends. Be sure to check in and see what you can learn about each other!

This week's question - In one word (sometimes I allowed 2 :), tell me the best thing about your summer! Here's what you had to say :

1 Vote - New Jersey, Maine, Stunting, Zip Lining, Phenomenal, Horseshoe Beach, Olympics, Golf, Hamster, Boogie Boarding, Arizona, Playing, Cocoa Beach, Tubing, Celebration Station, North Carolina, Atlantis, Baby Brother, Food, Roller Coasters, Reading, Island, Vacation, No School, Exciting, Action, Athletic, Awesome, Wake Boarding, Turks & Caicos, Southern Indiana, Green Brier, Cruise, Sea Island, Washington DC, Texas, Sailing, Jet Skiing, Summer Camp, The Ranch, Hockey, Kanuga, Ireland, Jamaica, Alabama

2 Votes - Everything, Beach, Cheese, Moving

3 Votes - Hawaii, Swimming, Gymnastics, FUN!

Welcome to 2012-13!

Hi Everyone! We in the LD PE Team are so excited for this new school year! We welcome Coach Wolfrath and know that this is going to be one of our best years yet!

For the first trimester I will be working with Mrs. Densa's group (which includes 5 students from Mrs. Minke's class), Mrs. Owen's class, Mrs. McKenzie's group (which includes 5 students from Ms. Deegan's class, Ms. LaDuke's group (which includes 6 students from Mrs. Hobb's class, and all of the 4th grade girls.

Each week I will post our plans for the week including any special announcements. This week 4th graders should bring in a lock and an order form for PE clothes. Please remember only Master Locks like the one in the photo! Thanks for your help with this :)

Final 3rd Grade Poll

Thanks to all of the 3rd graders for participating in the Lunchtime Polls this year! It has been a blast learning more about you through your answers. Have a wonderful summer! Our final question, Who will you miss most this summer?

3 Votes - Dr. Bianco, one of the coaches

9 Votes - Mrs. Lippincott

21 Votes - My Current Teacher

35 Votes - A Friend

Lunch Time Poll

This weeks's question: What is one thing you are looking forward to this summer?


1 Vote - My Birthday, No Homework, Going Fishing, Going Camping, Swimming with Manatees, Moving into my new house, Staying home, Working at the Animal Shelter, Going to a Water Park, Cheerleading Competition, Doing Nothing, Going to the Titanic Exhibit, Having a Slumber Party

2 Votes - One Direction Concert

3 Votes - Hanging out with friends

4 Votes - Playing Video Games

5 Votes - No School

13 Votes - Camp

37 Votes - Taking a Trip

Lunchtime Poll

Today's question - Who is the person you most admire? 1 Vote - George Lucas, Carl Crawford, My Grandmother, Evan Longoria, My Great-Aunt, Jesus, Steve Jobs, My Dance Teacher, My horseback riding instructor, Sean Connery, Anakin Skywalker, Mia Hamm, Jamara, Kristin Stewart, Andy Samburg, My Uncle, Einstein, My Sister, David Beckham, Mario, Richard Petty, Rafael Nadal, Taylor Swift, My Family, Muscle Man 2 Votes - Selena Gomez, My Brother 3 Votes - Jennifer Lopez 6 Votes - Cousins 8 Votes - My Mom, My Parents 10 Votes - My Friend (another 3rd grader) 12 Votes - My Dad

Lunchtime Poll

This prompt was actually presented to the students over the last two weeks - If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go? Here's how you answered. . . 1 Vote - Norway, Israel, Ohio, Boston, The Desert, California, Lego Land, Colorado, St. Thomas, Costa Rica, Portugal, Europe, The Core of the Earth, Puerto Rico, Duckland, The Science Museum, The Grand Canyon, An Aircraft Carrier, Michigan, Ireland, The Mayan Ruins, North Dakota 2 Votes - Egypt, North Carolina, Space, Paris, Alaska, England, Africa, Spain, Canada, New York City, Oregon, Iceland 3 Votes - Atlantis, Australia 4 Votes - Hawaii 5 Votes - Italy, Hollywood 7 Votes - China

Volleball!

This week all classes will be learning the basics of volleyball. Passing, setting, and serving will be the major skills on which we will focus. 2nd, 3rd and 4th graders will also have the opportunity to put their skills to use in modified games. Its sure to be a fun week for all!

Fitness, Celebrate the Arts, and Review

This week the 3rd and 4th graders will complete their fitness testing with the Mile Run for the 4th graders today (Monday 4/16) and shuttle run for the 3rd graders. We will also have some scheduling changes due to Celebrate the Arts week. Classes will review previous units and revisit skills that have been covered this trimester. Next week we will begin a new unit.

3rd Grade Lunch time poll!

This is actually the poll from last week - with track season going on, I don't always get them in right away! The question was "What's your favorite TV show?" and here's how you answered:

1 Vote - How to Rock, The Middle, Animal Show, Johnny Test, Pawn Stars, Dr. Who, Dance Moms, Family Guy, Chowder, Amazing Race, Family Fued, Drake & Josh, I Carly, Once Upon a Time, MAD, Phineas & Ferb, House of Anubus, I don't watch TV

2 Votes - Star Wars, American Idol, Gumball, America's Funniest Home Videos, Lego Ninjago

3 Votes - Good Luck Charlie, Shake It Up

4 Votes - Jessie

5 Votes - Regular Show

6 Votes - Victorious

7 Votes - Sponge Bob

9 Votes - I don't have a favorite

11 Votes - Adventure Time

Fitness Testing and Other stuff too!

This week the 3rd and 4th graders will be participating in their final round of fitness testing for the year. Students are reminded that this test is an opportunity for them to see how they've progressed throughout this year. Many students feel great anxiety when it comes to fitness testing, however, we are doing our best to change this trend. We will be testing each class individually, and giving the students the choice to do each test in private when possible. Hopefully this will ease some troubled minds and help all of the students to do their very best!

Other classes will be playing various cooperative games and also have a chance to use the rock wall this week.

Speed Minton

This week classes will be learning a new sport - Speed Minton - a cross between Badminton and Tennis. Speed minton rackets are larger than Badminton rackets, however, the birdies are smaller. Another major difference - there is no net in Speed Minton. Students will be working on hand-eye coordination, game strategy, and the understanding of a new set of rules this week. The fourth graders will also participate in their third tournament of the trimester. It is sure to be an exciting week for all!

Bocce anyone?

This week students will be introduced to the game of Bocce Ball. Bocce is a relatively simple game that involves rolling a ball - the bocce - as close as possible to the target - the pallino. Through Bocce students are working on hand-eye coordination, judgement, sportsmanship, fair play, and score keeping. Another great benefit - its pretty easy to be good! Fun for all on the field this week!

Learning Burnball!

Welcome to PE with Coach Pope! I'm excited to begin working with my new groups for our final trimester of school!

This week all grade levels will be introduced to Burnball - a Swedish version of baseball. Many of the rules of the game are very similar to American baseball but there is one VERY important difference, there are NO outs! Burnball enables students to not only improve their hand-eye coordination and running skills, but critical thinking and problem-solving skills as well. We'll even throw in a little math! Its great fun - ask your child to compare and contrast Burnball and American baseball. Ask which one they prefer!

3rd Grade Lunch time poll!

Thia week you told me your favorite vegetables. Take a look at where yours ended up on the list :)

1 Vote - Mushrooms, Cucumbers, Lettuce, Kale, Cauliflower, Red Peppers, Asparagus, Onions, None

2 Votes - Olives, Zucchini

3 Votes - Peas

4 Votes - Potatoes, Celery, Green Beans

6 Votes - Tomatoes

9 Votes - Broccoli

14 Votes - Carrots

20 Votes - Corn

Our Final Week Together. . .

It has truly been a pleasure teaching the groups I have had this trimester. So much hard work and cooperation - these children have truly been models of good sportsmanship. As we close out this week we will be completing our last unit - Bowling. The students will have the opportunity to put in to practice many of the skills we have been working on all trimester. It is sure to be a fun week for all!

Team Building and Review

This week, classes will be spending some time looking at ways to become better teammates and partners. Sportsmanship is a constant focus in our curriculum, and this week we'll be practicing specific strategies that will help us to work cooperatively more effectively. Not an easy task, but certainly an important one! Ask your child how he or she views team work. In our discussions, I was so pleased to hear all the wonderful examples of cooperation and friendship!

We'll also spend some time this week revisiting some of the units we have covered throughout the trimester, as our time together will be coming to a close in the next two weeks.

Lunch Time Poll

In honor of fitness testing this week's question was What are your favorite and least favorite fitness tests? Here's how you answered. . .

FAVORITES :)

Mile Run - 27 votes
Shuttle Run - 20 votes
Arm Hang/Pull Ups - 16 votes
Sit & Reach - 8 votes
Sit Ups - 6 votes

LEAST FAVORITES :(

Mile Run - 30 votes
Arm Hang/Pull Ups - 19 votes
Sit & Reach - 15 votes
Shuttle Run - 8 votes
Sit Ups - 5 votes

Horseshoes!

This week classes will be learning the classic backyard favorite, Horseshoes. Using modified rules the students will have the opportunity to practice tossing, scoring, and good sportsmanship. Hopefully they'll be ready for some fun family picnics real soon! Following are the modified rules used for the classes. Maybe you and your family and play a game this week too!


HORSESHOE REMINDERS

· Pitch horseshoes underhand

· Stand across from your teammate on the same court

· Alternate who goes first (ie both red, then both blue)

· 1 point is awarded for the 1 horseshoe that is closest to the stick – MUST BE INSIDE THE SQUARE

· 2 points for ANY LEANER

· 3 points for ANY RINGER

· Only stand inside the box when you are pitching

· Measure using another horseshoe

· Pay attention to flying horseshoes!

3rd Grade Lunch time poll!

On Tuesday, January 17th our question was "How did you celebrate Martin Luther King Day?" Here's how you answered. . .

1 Vote - Went to the mall, Ate a Cheeseburger, Went to the Parade, Ate Chinese food, Went to my job, Went to Bern's in Tampa, Went to Target, Went to the zoo, Went to the park, Went to the beach, Went Horseback riding, Went to St. Augustine, Went to a toy store, Played Tennis, Played Golf, Hung out with my Dad, Went shopping, Traveled home from a trip, Played Video games, Went to Tallahassee, Played Lacrosse, Packed for moving, Went to the Rec Center, Got a Ukelele

2 Votes - Celebrated a Birthday, Went to a Museum, Went to the Movies, Went Boating, Went to Sea World

3 Votes - Went Rollerskating, Went Bike Riding

4 Votes - Hung out with my Mom, Went to the Aquarium

13 Votes - Stayed at Home

14 Votes - Hung out with Friends

Alleyball and Volleyball

This week our classes will be utilizing the Athletic Center's Rec Gym for two exiting units - Alleyball and Volleyball. Alleyball is a form of kickball in which teams run through an alley to land safely on base and score runs. Critical thinking, strategy, and cooperation are key elements that are reinforced through this highly active and fun game.

In volleyball, students will be introduced to some basic skills necessary for play - passing, setting, underhand serving, and overhand serving. While we will not be using nets, just having the opportunity to explore these skills will help the students be ready to expand their knowledge of the game in future lessons. Its sure to be a great week!