Teaching Children Movement Concepts and Skills

Craig Buschner, a leader in the movement to replace traditional education curricula with programmes that teach developmentally appropriate movement concepts and motor skills, has pulled together his years of writing and experience to produce TEACHING CHILDREN MOVEMENT CONCEPTS AND SKILLS and TEACHING CHILDREN MOVEMENT CONCEPTS AND SKILLS VIDEO. "I hope these resources will help readers question what and how to teach children in school physical education," Buschner says. "It is time for educators to debunk and let go of the '20 games' approach to children's physical education." Published by Human Kinetics as part of the American Master Teacher Programme Content Series, TEACHING CHILDREN MOVEMENT CONCEPTS AND SKILLS is a state-of-the-art resource the provides strategies for teaching children fundamental movements they can use for a lifetime. The book explains why traditional physical education programmes are no longer acceptable and presents teachers with the why and how of teaching children movement concepts and motor skills.
Dolly Lambdin, EdD, elementary physical education teacher at Blanton Elementary School and teacher educator at the University of Texas at Austin, says "[This book] ties national trends and initiatives to local 'real world' teaching decisions in the gym. The section on assessment identifies underlying problems, reinforces the need for assessment, and then goes on to provide practical solutions. Well done!" Part 1 defines developmentally appropriate movement concepts and motor skills , explains why they should be taught in elementary physical education, and reviews their psychomotor, cognitive and affective benefits. The section also explains how these concepts and skills can be tailored to fit individual teaching situations, presents principles for teaching developmentally appropriate movement concepts and motor skills, and offers several methods for assessing psychomotor, cognitive, and affective development. Tom Sitzman, MS, elementary physical education teacher, Saratoga Primary Centre, Omaha, NE, says, "Learning to move is analogous to learning to read. Dr.
Buschner shows us how to move through the movement alphabet starting with the individual letters, moving from simple words to simple sentences and then into paragraphs of movement. [This book] is not a way to do the past better, it is a new way to think about the future." Part II shows teachers how to transfer theory into practice by presenting 23 practical, classroom-tested examples of movement activities (called Learning Experiences) ideal for grades pre-K through 6. The Learning Experiences are divided into four categories-body and space awareness, effort and relationship concepts, locomotor and non-locomotor patterns, and manipulative patterns. Within each category, the Learning Experiences are arranged in order of difficulty, from simple to complex. The activities are carefully described and include ideas for changing the level of difficulty. Selected readings for additional reference are also provided.The companion video shows three condensed lessons that provide real-world examples of effectively teaching movement concepts and skills to children.
The video includes these lessons: Jumping and Landing-upper- primary/lower intermediate levels; Punting-intermediate level; Striking With Racket: Preparing for Badminton-intermediate level