Focus: Our school participates in whole school weekly runs every Friday afternoon. We wanted to improve our students’ attitudes towards getting daily physical activity. As well, we wanted to create more of a connection between our younger and older students as our school changed from K-5 to K-6 elementary school.
Plan: A primary class and an intermediate class were buddied up to work together on this project. Initially students participated in activities to help them get to know each other and develop a positive relationship. The younger students then met with their older buddy to discuss and set a goal for the whole school run (the distance and speed at which they would work towards).
Action: The students met to complete the whole school run together each week. At three different intervals during this project the students were timed on the run. Halfway through they met with their buddy to revisit their goal to see if they needed to adjust it in any way. The older students (mentor) provided support and encouragement to their younger buddy.
Results: Due to job action we did not get a chance to have students reflect on this activity and give us feedback. From our observations, we noted that the primary students showed more enthusiasm and strived to work towards the goal they had set thus improving on their previous level of participation. Students also became more aware of their capability and showed an improvement in their ability to set an attainable goal.
Plans: We found this a valuable project and would like to continue to work in this area. Therefore we are planning to take on another project to further enhance our students ability to set and work towards attainable goals as well as increase enthusiasm for physical activity. In partnering up a primary class with an intermediate class it will also help develop our school connectedness as we have now become a K-7 school.