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Teacher of year visits with S.F. Giants

Originally published May 28, 2019 by the East Bay Times.

By Roni Gehlke

What better way is there for a physical education teacher to celebrate being appreciated as a teacher of the year than having a free day at a baseball game?

Earlier this month Pittsburg Unified School District and Pittsburg High School Teacher of the Year Maureen Mattson had a chance to hang out on the field during batting practice with the San Francisco Giants. The event was part of the Giants’ Teacher Appreciation Day. All the instructors who had received teacher-of-the-year awards were also offered the chance to spend some time with the players on the field before the game. Read More

Heart Rate Training
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PE Teacher Honored for Creating ‘Rigorous and Engaging’ Heart Rate Training Program

Principal, Colleagues Take Note of Innovative Health Awareness Program After Fourth-Grade Students Improve PACER Results using IHT Heart Rate Monitors

Students in Misty Atnip’s PE classes at  Baldwin Creek Elementary School (Lander, Wy.) saw their PACER test scores improve just weeks after they began wearing the IHT ZONE wrist heart rate monitor in class.

Atnip turned to IHT’s heart rate technology — the ZONE paired with the IHT Spirit System assessment software — in December to connect with a group of students struggling with their fitness.

“Really it’s kind of interesting with our fourth-grade boys,” she said. “Their fitness level is quite low. We’ve never had a group of boys be this low.” Read More

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Titusville native wins state teaching award

Originally published Jan. 27, 2019 in the Titusville Herald.

By Tyler Brown

A former Titusville man received high accolades for his work of teaching students at Cranberry High School that finding a form of physical fitness they enjoy is a path to a better life.

Shawn Bean, a health and physical education teacher at Cranberry High School, was recognized as High School Physical Education Teacher of the Year for 2018 by the Pennsylvania State Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. Read More

wellness management
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PE Class Connects Fitness to Social-Emotional Wellness Management

Peers Honor Hamburg Area High School’s Donine Kelly as a ‘Visionary Leader’ Among PE Teachers For Focus on Both Physical, Emotional Wellness

Two years ago, Hamburg Area (Penn.) High School’s Donine Kelly changed the emphasis of her physical education curriculum from sports to fitness and wellness. Instead of teaching students how to play specific games, her curriculum, honored recently with regional awards, focuses on the tools students need to properly manage their overall wellness, placing the same importance on the social wellness as physical.

“Our goal is to not only improve their fitness levels, but also improve their overall wellness,” Kelly said.  “We have moved away from the traditional, old school, team-based sports model and moved towards a more lifetime, fitness-based model that really addresses all of the spheres of wellness — mental, emotional, social, physical and spiritual.” Read More