How Ophea’s H&PE Curriculum Resources: Grades 1-8 are Assisting Educators in Delivering a Quality, Inclusive Program
By now you’ve no doubt heard: there’s a new curriculum in town, and it’s having a major impact on the way Ontario students, grades 1–8, are learning Health and Physical Education (H&PE). The revised elementary curriculum (as well as the secondary version, yet to be released) is based on the vision that the program will help students acquire physical and health literacy—a skill set that will allow them to develop the comprehension, capacity, and commitment needed to lead healthy, active lives both today and in the future.
“The revised curriculum represents the most significant health promotion intervention the province has ever seen, affecting 2.1 million students and their families,” says Chris Markham, Ophea’s Executive Director. In fact, if implemented consistently, it will teach important life skills and help an entire generation get a healthier start… something that will ultimately assist them to reach their full potential while at the same time improving their health throughout life, lessening the burden on our healthcare and social service systems. But while it’s clear that the new curriculum is chock full of possibility, at the end of the day, a policy can’t do it alone. The committed efforts of educators, public health professionals and other community leaders are needed to bring the curriculum to life and to instil its values in students—and those individuals need support.
Since 1921, Ophea has been working to support the health and learning of children and youth in Ontario, and for the past ten years the organization has been helping educators in 93% of the province’s schools through the “Ophea H&PE Binders” (a set of detailed lesson plans for teaching the 1998 H&PE curriculum). From the moment that the Ministry of Education announced plans to revise the 1998 H&PE Curriculum, Ophea has been hard at work building awareness, identifying needs for support, establishing partnerships and securing resources to support educators and other stakeholders in making the vision of the revised curriculum a reality. The organization is pleased to report that a new and improved set of Ophea Health and Physical Education Curriculum Resources: Grades 1-8 is available. How were these resources developed, what do they contain, and how can they provide the consistent, quality support Ontario educators and community partners need? Read on to find out.
The Ophea H&PE Resources were designed to meet your needs…
“Ophea is very proud of these resources and the effort and expertise that went into creating them,” says Heather Gardner, Ophea’s H&PE curriculum consultant. The documents were designed following a needs assessment of teachers across the province and were developed in partnership with education, public health and the sport and recreation sectors. “There were over 50 members on the writing team,” Gardner recalls. “Over 100 stakeholders and organizations from the education, public health, health promotion, sport and recreation, research and other sectors were also involved in the development, review and pilot testing of the resources.”
They include over a thousand lesson plans, and so much more…
The resulting resources are based on the Ministry of Education’s learning expectations for Health and Physical Education and incorporate the key components of a quality H&PE program. They are made up of eight separate documents—one for each grade level—and are available in both English and French. Each document is organized into two main sections that are consistent with the revised curriculum: Movement Competence & Active Living, and Healthy Living. As in the curriculum, activities that address living skills are integrated throughout.
Each document includes an “Upfront” section with background information, followed by 20-25 units. Within these units, educators will find a unit overview, the lesson itself, and additional teacher and student resources. Included in the division appendices, educators will also find warm-up and cool-down activities, a safe stretching guide, program planning information and four sample timetables as well as teaching and learning tools and strategies.
For a complete overview of the resources, educators are encouraged to consult the downloadable training presentation found at www.ophea.net.
The resources break it down step by step and make H&PE fun for everyone...
“The biggest challenge for any teacher is time constraints,” points out Vicky Xenikakis, a Health and Physical Education teacher at Gateway Public School in Toronto. “Not only are the lessons broken down into a warm-up, concept and skill focus, and cool down, but there are also more key teacher questions and sample student responses. It’s minute by minute… everything you need to know to teach an effective lesson.”—something Xenikakis believes will not only save time, but will also increase comfort levels, especially for those educators not trained as specialists in H&PE.
Russ Minnis, a Health and Physical Education teacher at École St-Jean-Baptiste in L'Orignal, Ontario, reports that the 2010 H&PE Curriculum and Ophea resources are also increasing the comfort levels and encouraging the full participation of children who aren’t natural-born athletes. He attributes this not only to the skill-based approach of the 2010 H&PE Curriculum but also to the way it allows teachers to give constant feedback, assisting students every step of the way and setting them up for success.“I’ve seen a big change in a few of the kids who were those traditional kids standing in the middle of the gym never getting the ball,” he says.
The 2010 H&PE Curriculum and Ophea H&PE Resources are also having a big impact on those once-reluctant participants by catering to different learning styles. “Students are given a lot more choice of how they want to demonstrate their understanding of a topic,” says Minnis. Many of the lesson plans in the resources encourage students to write, draw or discuss what they’ve learned rather than simply demonstrating their physical abilities. But that doesn’t mean that students who are traditionally athletic are left lagging behind. Far from it! “In a way,” says Minnis, “it’s an even bigger learning curve for them. Instead of just showing up and playing a game, they’re learning the why’s and how’s of it, and having to explain how to apply the skills they’re learning to different situations.”
“There are just a ton of ideas,” adds Xenikakis. “Net/wall games, territory games… all building up to the development of health and physical literacy. And it’s never about winning or losing. Instead, it’s about students achieving their skills at their own pace. You really see the cooperation, empathy and teamwork coming through. Everyone is winning because everyone is active.”
Take your pick! The activity options abound...
With approximately 130 lessons per grade in Health and Physical Education combined, the Ophea H&PE Resources provide teachers with plenty of options to implement a program that will meet the diverse needs and interests of students, ensuring that everyone is engaged and having fun.
”It’s important to make the resources your own,” says Gardner. “Look at the needs and interests of your students and the facilities and equipment you have available.” For example, in the fitness chapter, some units might require the use of stability balls and resistance bands, while others may call for no equipment at all, using yoga or Pilates to build strength. Teachers can meet the requirements of the curriculum by selecting one or more of the units. The French lessons were also adapted to include francophone cultural pedagogy and cultural references. An icon is used throughout the lessons to assist educators in easily identifying these opportunities.
Other things to take into consideration when selecting a unit include staff expertise and comfort levels, time tabling, class size, student backgrounds, community need, schools priorities and plans, and even physical location. “A school way up north will have different needs than a school in Toronto,” Gardner points out, and the resources are set up to accommodate these variations.
They use all the latest tools and techniques...
Differentiated instruction, think- pair-share, free exploration, think aloud, conferencing… the Ophea H&PE Resources make use of, and explain, a variety of new teaching tools and strategies. They also include current assessment practices such as checklists, rubrics and anecdotal notes.
Furthermore, “the resources link to new legislation and policies related to schools,” says Gardner, “including the School Food and Beverage Policy, Sabrina’s Law, and the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health Promotion and Sport’s Foundations for a Healthy School framework.” Daily Physical Activity (DPA) has also been integrated into the Movement Competence & Active Living lessons, and units have direct links to the Ontario Safety Guidelines and include information about where teachers can turn for further information and support.
Take a look at the resources yourself…
The Ophea H&PE Resources have been made possible through a unique partnership with school boards across the province. School boards, public health units, universities, as well as independent and First Nation schools across Ontario are invited use them to support implementation of the 2010 H&PE curriculum. The resources can be accessed by subscribers through a password-protected website at hpe.ophea.net. Educators and principals should contact their school board for details about how to access the resources, while other individuals can contact vanessa [at] ophea [dot] org for more information.
And be sure to stay tuned for updates! New resources providing further support to address topics such as inclusion, Internet safety and early learning have been released. And, as part of a multi-year strategy, the resources will be continually expanded upon to include additional links as well as online workshops and instructional videos. Ophea will also continue to consult with educators, public health professionals and other community leaders; to advocate for support for H&PE; and to develop partnerships with government and other key organizations, all in order to ensure educators have the support they need.
Get ready to see the difference they can make…
Of course, as with anything new, applying the 2010 H&PE Curriculum and becoming familiar with the Ophea H&PE Resources will take time—something which is in short supply for many educators. “Life’s busy,” says Xenikakis. “That’s why it’s so important to remember that there are resource people who can give you short-cuts… the Coles Notes version,” she laughs. “You can find specialists in your school, at the board level and even at Ophea.”
“Keep an open mind at the start,” advises Minnis, who reports that the initial effort it took to read and implement the 2010 H&PE Curriculum was well worthwhile and that the payoff was quick. He saw changes in his students within a week. “It’s working, and it’s working well. [The kids] are comfortable in the gym. They understand the why’s and how’s of what we’re doing. And when they understand, they succeed. And when they succeed, they’re happy. I wish I could have learned Health and Physical Education this way.”
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