By

Amy Petersilie,   Alternative Learning Center - Rochester

Play:

Topics:

Physical Activity Participation,  Teamwork

Our school doesn't have basketball teams so we run intramurals and we play against other schools that don't have school teams as well. We practice during our club time. The kids are very serious about it and work very hard to play as a team, learn the skills to be a better athlete, and be more active. The game was a great success. The score ended up in our favor 44-36 but that doesn't even tell the story of our success. It started out with the pure excitement from our students to play the game, then to the singing of the national anthem by one of our students, to the winning of the tip off. We continued with positive sportsmanship, blocked shots, three point shots, steals, taking an awesome charge, and many rebounds both offensive and defensive. Not to mention the cheering section that was there, the halftime entertainment of a game of pig, and the great refereeing by our school counselor and secretary. Another huge success came after the game when our FACS class made healthy food for the teams to enjoy and refuel. The boys really enjoyed the food and the time to rest after running up and down the court. But I think the coolest experience was watching the boys from the different schools interact after the game with each other. After they grabbed a bite to eat, they grabbed a ball again and played more ball for fun and enjoyed more social time. A great experience for all.

How did you accomplish your goals?

Our goals were to get students more active and to enjoy their passion basketball. I believe we were able to do that in a very competitive fashion with positive sportsmanship as well.

How do you plan to make this Play last during the school year and beyond?

We plan to continue working with our Community Play time by offering different ways to play. For example, we will be doing a 2 week dance session, a month long dodge ball competition, and a flag football game in the spring.