Virtual movement - a challenge not only in PE lessons

Conducting PE classes online, where exercise is a special subject matter, can be a challenge for sports teachers. How to develop the motor potential of children and adolescents in times of virtual walks and remote classes? How to ignite students' motivation and the need to move in the age of restrictions and prohibitions of proximity. Such questions are part of the everyday life of every physical education teacher. There is no simple solution, but there are possibilities to break the patterns and show the importance of movement in a different "touchless" edition. Virtual movement.

Raise awareness of the need for exercise. Why is it worth provoking to be active? 

The history of sport shows how much motivation and authority are played by the teacher-trainer himself. Currently, raising awareness, inspiring students in the space of working with the body, and comprehensive education are a must-have of the work code of sports education teachers. Ideally, you can inspire others to act by your own example.

Promoting physical activity as a source of health, mental and physical strength and resilience is an important mission. Especially today, when children locked in four walls let go of everything that does not live online. Take advantage of technology and the possibilities offered by the Internet. There are no limits and restrictions here. Find your own path and channel for the best message and quality of your profession.

Movement that keeps these young people fit in the future may be the key to success in many ways in the lives of these young people. Why? Because sport shapes not only the body, but most of all strength and character. Movement is a powerful tool to release potential and difficult emotions. It is an extremely important space for working with young people. You can use this knowledge and experience satisfaction on many levels of your professional career. Below I present some proven ideas for conducting classes. It is just the beginning on the path of unlimited creativity of each educator. It can be the "basics" of actions in more difficult times when you have doubts.

Check list of inspiration. Discover, experience and nurture students' need for movement

The most difficult issue in online communication is, of course, mobilization for practice. Movement lessons should move and release the flow of energy in the body. Therefore, we focus on pure movement. It is best if it will be active time. Therefore, it is worth looking for a way that will distract children from the computer. An important aspect is the use of substitutes for home strength equipment. Learn about the technological possibilities of your students and the resources they have at home (home space, equipment, Internet, home situation).

To work with the body, we can use: water bottles, broomstick, balls, rollers, rollers, mats, steps, kitchen chair, bed, cloths, towels, rubbers and much more.

1. Weekly challenges - challenges for groups. The challenge is designed to move children and encourage healthy competition. The goal of the challenge should be pro-health. Topic of the challenge: Healthy body, sharp mind - nourishing the body through movement. As part of the challenge, we encourage students to take a daily dose of exercise and develop awareness of a healthy lifestyle. Students' activities can be photographed and published. Students share information by describing their own day - meals, water, training. They also present their own ways of motivating themselves. Group collages made of the photos sent will work as a motivation.

You can use the paper version of the application in the form of the Activity Planner (weekly timetable) for the challenge. The Activity Planner is a weekly challenge class schedule. Students plan and write down training sessions, meals, and rest times. Enter the day, time, type of training, goal, inspiration. The planner helps maintain self-discipline and monitors progress.

2. General development training, which is the whole range of exercises used during the classic warm-up. Let us remember that the extraordinary nature of a movement comes from its ordinariness. The goal is activation, mobilization of the body, energy flow. Use home training gadgets: skipping rope, hula hoops, balls, stick, chair, pillows, cloths, water bottles.
3. Fitness is health. Short videos with your own lessons and exercise suggestions. If we live with the movement, a short video with an exercise suggestion may prove to be a motivation for students. Video recordings can be made in various spaces: at home or outdoors. You can also submit links to proven and high-quality recordings of famous athletes or active people. Look for inspiration through the eyes of students. Videos can also be short talks showing the benefits of regular physical activity:

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• Exercise for the brain / exercise for the nervous system / exercise to release emotions and build inner strength. Motivating to act according to the principle of a healthy mind in a healthy body.
• Challenges to drink water also under a motivating slogan, for example: We hydrate - we nourish - we fire up internal resources of power. Create a space that will also be an opportunity for development.
• Organizing virtual meals. Encouraging health choices for yourself and your loved ones. We capture the daily choices of meals in the pictures. Maybe one of the students will be able to invite us to the back of the kitchen and show us how to prepare a healthy meal. A description or photos of a healthy meal will suffice.

4. Activate students by encouraging them to warm up or suggest favorite exercises using home appliances. Activating students through homework describing the impact of movement on the human psyche / benefits of physical activity for the body / mind / spirit - a holistic concept of working with the body.
5. Dancing is the best natural form of emotional expression through the body. Maybe you know some crazy note dance routines? Lots of inspiration is available on the YouTube channel. Activating students in this space brings amazing results for those interested - ask the students to develop their own layouts for their favorite song, and we will share the recordings with the rest of the class.
6. Relaxation - education to breath. Introduce students to the possibilities of relaxation techniques in situations of excessive stress. Work with the breath, mute, calm music, mood, appropriate light, contact with nature. Encourage students to find their own way of silencing.
7. If something inspires you, share it: articles, literary works, affirmations, articalers, videos, photos, illustrations. Infect with value !!!
8. Proposing sports applications - these can be applications that propose specific workouts or applications that help to count steps, calories burned, heart rate, etc.
9. Homework (exercise recommendations in every possible form: walking, cycling, throwing garbage if possible).

10. Board games with challenges - we can create such a game with students during on-line lessons or divide the class into groups so that they can work on individual elements of the game. It can also be a standalone job. As part of their homework, students can create mini challenge games which they will then "play" in on-line PE lessons. The games can also be played with household members.

11. Maps of mind and associations (subject of physical activity). This is another homework idea. Created mind maps can be enriched with photos. Such a mind map can be helpful when learners need a short break from the computer during distance learning. A mind map with short stretching exercises will be useful for all household members.
12. Fitness tests.

These are just some ideas for making online PE classes more attractive. There is a creative energy in each of us that can express itself through movement and provoke the discovery of the student's potential. Any blockages in the body arise as a result of unworked emotions, tension or lack of movement. Therefore, it is worth making people aware of the impact of activity on the life of every young person. For our life.

There are many doubts about the safety and responsibility of a physical education teacher for possible injuries during exercises performed at home. Remember that ultimately the parent is responsible for the child's safety and may decide to perform / not perform the exercises (e.g. due to housing possibilities). Due to the fact that the teacher does not fully understand the student's home environment, during distance learning, students should be reminded that the exercises should be performed under the supervision of adults or with their consent. At the same time, it is worth remembering that the content of the physical education curriculum remains unchanged at the moment. Physical education teachers can modify the curriculum, but the modification must not exclude the content of the core curriculum. In addition, the headmaster in pedagogical supervision, in cooperation with teachers, defines safety rules during distance teaching - this also applies to physical education classes. The challenge in distance learning is choosing exercises that the teacher believes are safe.