Peshastin, Perstashtin, Preshashten, Whatever....it was rockclimbing!

This was a very interesting experience. When we arrived at the rock it looked a little intimidating. We had to hike up with our water, shoes, and equipment before we started the climb, and I was pretty much exhausted for the rest of the day after that. However i kept on keeping on. I belayed Shane for the first climb and he did awesome, made it look easy. When I got ready to go I was scared out of my mind and my feet were on fire. I made sure to ask Shane 49 times if he had me secure. The worst part was coming back down from the climb. What do you mean put your feet flat on the rock and lean back. I did eventually, but I didn't like it. The next climb required us to repell on our own. I belayed Shane again, and when he got to the top we realized he had no helmet on. Whoops! Again Shane did a great job, and made it look easy again. However this time I knew it wouldn't be. When I got to the top I made sure not to look down, and Fred taught me how to repel down the side of the rock. I was more comfortable repelling down the mountain that being belayed down. My 2 climbs and repel was complete and I was ready to "attempt" 3 more and call it a day. That is exactly what I did. Shane and I were the last ones down to the parking lot, but I really did not care at this point. I was hot, hungry, dehydrated and ready for a "beverage." After the climbs we all met at Gustav's for food and drink. I had a ton of fun hanging out with my cohort, and relaxing. Would I rock climb again? Yes, but on my own terms. Challenging, great experience!

Hardcore Bikeride!

The hardcore was a lot less hardcore than I thought it was going to be. I didn't even realize that area of Ellensburg existed but now I have a place to go back to and camp, and mountain bike. When we first started the ride we approached a super steep hill, and Limwell ate it. Aaron's bike wasn't working so he was way behing, but eventaully Dr. Mathias and him caught up. I had a tone of fun during the downhill portions where we could gain a little speed, and the uphill rides were not too hard. The ride took us about an hour and a half, and once we stopped for luch it was all down hill. I am looking forward to do this ride again, and I would love to do it with my cohort!

Free Manastash Rides!

What can I say, I was sore as heck from doing plometrics that morning, but I still finished the hike. That was my first time ever hiking Manastash successfully, and I am very happy I did. I was a little sketched out after hearing there might be rattle snakes, but I was told the bite wouldn't kill you unless you don't get it treated within a few hours. I feel everyone should take a rattle snake bite in their lifetime. Anyways, this was a great experience and I am excited to hike many more times in the near future.

HONORS CAMP!!!!

Honors camp was da bomb. I had so much fun hanging out with my classmates and teaching the students. Before camp began we all met at the Golden Dragon for nasty chinese buffet. The drive was short and when we arrived it brought back memories of when I attended camp in 6th grade. The first day we were able to just mingle and see what the camp looked like. That night Aaron, Jason, and I (with the help of Sean C.) did a "helping hands" skit. The kids enjoyed it and I think our cohort did to. I can't believe Aaron ate that banana and cookie! The next day (Saturday) we had the opportunity to teach the campers trust and teamwork exercisies. We did an ice-breaker, trust-fall, and finished up withwood-plank-walk. I know the students enjoyed it, and we all had a great time teaching it. That night we watched more skits, and Carly and megan did a funny SNL cheerleader skit! We all dressed up in our 80's gear and went to their dance. I thought it was pretty cool to see a bunch of kids dressed up into 80's clothes and they were all born in the 90's! The dance was fun but I was definitely ready for bed very early. The last day we woke up and taught more for the kids, and that ended our day. Overall the kids were great, the food was ok, I got terrible sleep, but I had a great time with my cohort!

Where the (Geo) chash at? Where the, where the cash at?

Geocashing was an activity I had never done, but heard great things about. I was always curious to know how a GPS unit worked. Using a GPS unit a skill that I know will come in handy in the future, as a teacher and someone who enjoys traveling. We started off the day by learning how the GPS unit worked and that was followed by getting into groups and hiding a cashes. After we hid ours and found the coordinates, we took a break. When our lunch ended we came back to use our GPS units and find our classmates cashes. It took a while, but we found everyone's, and also came to notice that we gave the rest of our class the wrong coordinates. Geocashing is something I can see myself doing in the future and teaching in the classroom!

Orienteering

I learned how to use a compass! Other than that I personally did not get much out of this day. It is important for kids to learn these kind of things, and it could be implimented into some types of activites, but the experience I had in practicum was a bit boring. Oh well, everything can't always go your way.

FRISBEE!!

I learned how to throw a forehand pass! I didn't think I would ever be able to do that and its actually pretty easy. We started the day with an instant acticity game of throwing in through the goal post. Following that was basic passing and catching skills. Before our lunch break we did a couple activities including bowling, catch, and golf. after class we played some ultimate frisbee. It was fun. Of course some of my classmates are a bit more competitve than others but that always makes for good times. I just tested for frisbee yesterday, and i got advanced in throwing and catching. GOOD TIMES!

Archery

After the bike ride we did some archery which is another activity I learned how to due, and teach last summer for CWU P.E. camp. We learned the proper way to string the bow, how to hold it correctly, and all the commands that lead up to shooting at the target. By the end of the lesson everyone was shooting well especially Limwell. From past experience, teaching archery has been very enjoyable and liked by all students. This is an activity all students can become successful at fairly quickly, and they get so excited when they hot the target.

Mountain Biking at Docs

My bike was a piece. I just bought a brand new Mongoose 21 speed and after we started riding the pedal and arm fell off for the second time. I had it fixed at the bike shop before I went to Docs and it still fell apart. Apart from my bike problems it was a cool experience. We learned about shifting gears and going up hill. Our class filled out a packet that taught us bike anatomy, and terminology. Luckily Mary and Limwell let me use their bikes and I was able to get back on and ride around the track that Doc had set up through his property. This is just another activity that would be great to have in my classroom!

Traverse Traverse!

I knew that the P.E. department had just acquired a new traverse climbing wall, and to be honest I had no clue the room it is in even existed. Just looking at the wall I had my doubts about how fun it would be, but soon it was proven to me that a travese wall is pretty cool. It provided us with a great workout, and I could see this being a success in my future P.E. classroom. We were able to free-climb, learn some cues, and do some partner/group activites. The company that installs the wall also provides you with lessons. When I am hired I will do my best to get a climbing wall put in my classroom.

Rollerblading? Really?

I had not strapped on a pair of rollerblades in about 7 years, but once I did, I didn't miss a beat. It took a second to get my balance back, but after I had, it was on like Donkey Kong. When I was in elementary and junior high school rollerblading was a passion of mine, and I think that benefited me when it came time to practice after such a long time off. The ground in the field house was too soft and it was impossible to get much speed. When we were given our lunch break, Sean, Mary, Johnny, and I sketed to 18th St. Deli, and grabbed some water. The pavement provided us with the opportunity to go a little faster. I am sure people driving buy were thinking, "what the.., who rollerblades anymore?" Luckily, Practicum 3 gave me the opportunity to teach rollerblading, and the students loved it. I think every school should try their best to get a set of rollerblades, and teach in during the school year.

Doot doot doo-doo doo-doo doot doot doodoo (Circus Arts)

Circus arts was something I was looking forward to doing because I had some time to practice them over the summer. I taught at the CWU P.E. Camps, and Diabolo, Flower Stix, and juggling were all part of the cirriculum. Because of this I was confident that I would do well in all of the activities. However unicycling was a different story. When I first saw Dr. Jefferies unicycle I thought to myself, "piece of cake." I was terribly mistaken. Unicycling is rediculously hard, and I am pretty sure I'll never be able, nor have the desire to ride one. Some of my classmates like Sean and Tiffany were able to catch on pretty quick and they did great. I think circus arts in general is a cool, non traditional way to get students active.

Adventure Activities w/ Mr. Hagbo

Adventure activities were great. We were led through multiple tasks that helped us with trust/ team building. Our class started with a few ice-breakers, and moved on to a trust fall. After that we were able to try and cross an "island" without touching the "water", using only 2 boards. We struggled the first couple of tries, but after we were told not to talk with one another we were successful. It took quite a while to get our half of the class across but afterwards I hada feeling of accomplishment. Finally we were given the opportinity to try climbing up an obstacle that led into the rafters. Needless to say I made it about ten feet before failing, but I would love to give it another try someday. These types of activities are something I will undoubtably implement into my teaching curriculum because it builds trust, teamwork, and companionship amongst a class!

Golf it Like it's Hot

After driving to the completely wrong golf course we found ourselves in for an interesting day. Dr. Briggs helped us out with the basics, and after a quick instructional moment we were able to hit some balls. I was confident in my swing after I cracked the first ball with such precision and grace, but after that it was down hill. Aaron let me borrow his clubs, but that was a poor decision. I managed to swing the club head right off his 3 iron, and shank most balls after that. We were given the opportunity to play a few holes, and I was impressed with some of my classmates. Megan and Jason hit awesome, and as a class we did pretty good. Golf is something I am interested in persuing, but I need to work on my game before I step out onto a course, or teach my future students!