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Learn what being a Physical Literacy Champion or Mentor means...
Cathy says...
Physical Literacy is contagious, share it!
Upon receiving physical literacy (PL) training from Peel’s Physical Literacy Champions’ Network, I was able to mentor my fellow ECEs on the importance of incorporating PL into their daily programs.
I shared wonderful resources like videos, posters, activity cards and demonstrations at staff training sessions.
ECEs are always looking for new activities that encourage the development of fundamental movement skills (FMS)!
We can help children build their FMS by practising fun, simple activities in almost any space. We can incorporate physical literacy in our story time – by singing an action song that encourages movement of our arms and legs; or when we paint – by using a ball to paint designs on paper; or even during indoor play time on rainy days – by balancing on masking tape lines on the floor.
The possibilities are endless!
The more I learned about PL and FMS and shared with my staff, the easier the addition of ‘physical’ development became in our programs!
Staff who weren’t always comfortable engaging in physical activity improved their own movement skills while having fun with their children.
PL is contagious, share it!
Alisa says...
...makE STUDENT learning meaningful and authentic.
As an Elementary Health and Physical Education teacher, I focus on the development of physical literacy for each student by getting to know them individually.
On my own personal journey and as an educator, I strive to be a role model with an energetic attitude and a lifelong passion for physical literacy.
I have found it beneficial to continue to take courses from a variety of sources, such as Play in Peel, to learn more about the importance of physical literacy and the developmental progression of the teaching and learning of fundamental movement skills in children.
One of the strategies I find most useful is to plan activities based on students’ interests and outcomes, making their learning meaningful and authentic.
This allows students to have the responsibility and ownership of the “What, Why and How will I know?” of their learning. Students communicate, value their activities, engage and interact, so they effectively choose how they self-assess and demonstrate their learning.
Sandy says...
It was great to see him using his physical literacy skills, demonstrating leadership and, most importantly, having so much fun.
This summer, all City of Mississauga camp staff received physical literacy training from the team at Play in Peel. As a result, camp counsellors at my centre worked hard to incorporate physical literacy and fundamental movement skills into their daily activity plans for kids. Being able to hike, climb obstacles, and avoid hazards is so important if we want to enjoy activities with friends and engage in lifelong physical activity.
My centre offered an Outdoor Leadership Camp for 10 to 14 year-olds. At the beginning of summer, I had a conversation with a mother who had registered her child in this camp because he really dislikes sports. While her son wasn’t looking forward to it, she still wanted him to experience camp. Four weeks into summer camp, I was onsite doing a program observation. The children were doing a forest walk for a photo scavenger hunt. As they were walking through the trails, I saw this camper hopping boulders, balancing on logs, and warning new campers to watch out for the tree root he had tripped over during his first week at camp. It was great to see him using his physical literacy skills, demonstrating leadership and, most importantly, having so much fun.
This is an excellent example of how physical literacy can be promoted in a non-sports environment. This camper displayed motivation, confidence, physical competence, knowledge and understanding. Watching him gain skills over the summer really helped my staff rethink what physical literacy means. We’re excited to continue integrating physical literacy into our training sessions and program planning!
Joanne says...
...the entire group was fully and enthusiastically involved for about 40 minutes in these super-fun and enjoyable activities.
I had just started in my new position at Family Day Care Services as a Home Child Care Coordinator when my manager received an email from CDRCP about a physical literacy workshop she thought I may be interested in attending. She was correct! Since 2015, I have been a proud member of the Physical Literacy Champions’ Network (PLCN) in Peel.
I consider myself to be a fairly active person and in my last position at an EarlyOn centre, I enjoyed and witnessed the benefits of our “Drop Everything and Move” and “Creative Movement” programs. I also learned that in order for children to be active, we first need to get the adults in the children’s lives engaged and educated on the benefits of physical activity.
Becoming a Physical Literacy Champion taught me about fundamental movement skills, and this knowledge gave me the confidence to further explain the benefits of these fundamental movements to parents, caregivers, and coworkers. It has made mentoring caregivers in this area of development so much easier. Recently, my coworkers and I created a professional development webinar entitled, “Individual Outdoor Activities for Caregivers” and we included information and resources about fundamental movement skills into our training.
Joining the PLCN has also given me opportunities to learn new ways to promote physical literacy in my professional life. Several years ago, I volunteered at one of the PLCN community trainings for Peel EarlyOn staff. The PLCN leaders used a variety of inexpensive items to teach the attendees about fundamental movement skills and we were able to engage the group using these items in many different ways that encouraged a wide variety of movements; the entire group was fully and enthusiastically involved for about 40 minutes in these super-fun and enjoyable activities. Since then, my manager and I created a similar extra-large container of the same items that were used at that training and shared this with the different sectors in our agency.
Thankfully my learning with the PLCN, and the other community partners who belong to this network, continues virtually these days. I look forward to the day when we can collaborate in-person once again.
Share your Physical Literacy story with us!
Do you have an inspiring story about how Physical Literacy has helped you or children you know be more active in their every day lives?
We want to hear and share it with others!
Ready to send us your story?
