PE Tennis Reflection

In PE, we just finished our tennis unit. The movement pattern we were focusing on was the rotation of our bodies when we swing. Here are a few sentence prompts/questions I had to answer. My swing is shown at 2:34 in the video above.

A. Two things I think I am doing well with my forehand swing are... WHY?
I am doing well with my follow through because I bring my racket over my shoulder, and make that and the swing one motion. This is effective because it makes the ball travel faster and smoother. I am also positioning my body well for the ball, because I have a low, athletic stance, and I drop my back foot for the ball.

B. Two things I’d like to work on with my forehand swing are… HOW?

One thing I want to do is consistently keep the ball low, and close to the net. I can do this by keeping my racket face parallel to the net, and pushing the ball straight through instead of bringing it upwards. Another thing I want to do is rotate my entire body, instead of just my arm. I should do this by making sure my hips turn. 

1. Are you in a forward facing ready position? 

Before I hit the ball, I am facing forward, in an athletic stance. 

2. When ball comes, do you move by dropping your racquet foot back?

I do drop my racquet foot back when the ball is coming. 

3. Does your wrist stay firm? 

I think I kept my wrist firm because my racquet didn't wobble. 

4. Do you start stroke low, then swing up and over the ball to impart topspin to the ball? 

For my backhand, I did swing over the ball. But in my forehand I went straight through more than over the ball. 

Health & Wellness Reflection

What does wellness mean to you? Wellness is overall health, and doing what's right for your body. For example, when you are consistently eating foods from different food groups, you are practicing proper wellness. Wellness can be the right eating, the right physical fitness, or the right amount of sleep. It's really how well you treat your body.

Which habit of 54321+8 is your strength? Why? (Review your earlier blog post) Looking back at my presentation and my blog post, I think my best habit is the +8 sleep. I know I get at least 8 hours of sleep per night, because I go to sleep at 8:30 or 9pm on school nights, and wake up at 6am. This gives me a minimum of 9 hours of sleep per night. One thing I didn't get a lot of at the start of the year that I do now is 5 fruits and veggies per day. After learning about the positive effects of fruit and vegetables, I was more mindful about adding those to my meals. For example, my breakfast is normally just a grain, protein, and milk, but now I try to throw grapes, blueberries, or strawberries in.

Which habit do you need to continue to improve on? I have been trying to drink more water, but I think I need to keep that a consistent. On some days, I'm really thoughtful about how much water I drink, but on others, I don't have as much water as I should. One thing I got from making my 54321+8 presentation is drinking healthy flavored water, to be able to drink more. I tried this, and really liked it, so that is something I can continue doing to build this into a real habit. Flavored water I made at home! Another thing I have been doing to work to this goal is taking my water bottle to my classes, so I can keep taking sips of water. Bringing my water bottle to class! So, for me, this goal is about keeping it consistent and making it a habit.

How physically active have you been this year on a weekly basis? Share as many things that you can remember. As the year has gone on, I have gotten more and more physically active. In the first trimester, I didn't have a whole lot physical activity. I was doing the basketball intramural once a week, and had tennis lessons once a week, but most other days only had miscellaneous activities. In the second season, I got into the basketball team, which took up 4/5 school days, and I also continued with my tennis lessons on the weekends. Finally, I really got into the track season, by training 3/5 or 4/5 school days a week for that. In addition to that season, I also started running at home much more often. For example, on Saturdays I would run 5 kilometers with my dad. At this point, I normally exercise on both days of the weekend by running, biking, playing tennis, or going to the gym with a parent. On weekdays, I play basketball with friends or run with them. Where I am right now with my physical fitness is really a result of what I've done all year, because I have made so many friends while playing sports, whom I can still play with in an unstructured way. I can also take the workouts I have learned while playing on a team, and apply those to my own time. I went back to my Daily Physical Activity Doc, and saw that in November, I was only getting 60 minutes of physical activity 3/7 days a week. Now, I get that on almost all days of the week.

What is your strongest area of physical fitness? (strength, flexibility, cardio respiratory endurance) Which are do you need to work on? For the whole year, cardio respiratory endurance has been my strength. I have always had strong KM times. I think the track season really helped me as a runner, especially with my running form and mental strength. I have been trying to improve my core strength all year for the push-ups test. With the track season, I learned about how core is important for running. This is why I have got into the habit of practicing with the plank exercise at least once a week. So my physical activities have really helped me with my fitness tests.

Why do you think being physically active is important? After getting and increasing amount of physical activity this year, I have seen that it has helped my body's strength and wellness. Being physically active gives you fresh air, which is really good for your wellness. It helps your body stay strong, which helps with daily life.

How well do you eat ‘MyPlate’ 3 meals a day? My dinner definitely meets the 'MyPlate' meal, because it always has foods from all food groups. My breakfast normally has every food group, except for vegetables, which can be hard to incorporate into breakfast. My lunch normally has 3/5 food groups, or 4/5. So I have at least one meal that meets 'MyPlate,' but my other meals are almost there.

What is your food goal? (Review your earlier blog post) Did you achieve your “food goal” or do you need to continue to work on it? My food goal was to incorporate more fruits into my meals, which I think I have achieved. Now, I have fruit with my breakfast, and after my dinner. It is quick and easy for me to throw these into my breakfast and dinner.

How stressed have you been this semester? On a scale from 1 to 10, I have been at a maximum of 6.5. Sometimes, I get really stressed about homework and school projects. But unlike the last semester, I have learned how to deal with stress better.

What two strategies work best for you to reduce stress? I am a thinker, so I like to think through things to reduce stress. So, sometimes, I think through or plan through something that I'm stressed about. For example, if I'm stressed about homework, I use the 'Reminders' app to help stay organized. Using 'Reminders' to stay organized. Another thing I do is talk to one of my parents. My mom is always great help with staying organized with homework. For example, if I am worried about a project, I may ask my mom what she thinks, so I get solutions, and stay calm.

What do you do on a daily basis to promote wellness? If I am ever talking with a friend about wellness, I will bring up my ways to do it. For example, in Math class the other day, I was sharing 'Reminders' with some of my classmates, so they can reduce stress as well. Sharing 'Reminders' with friends

Health Germ Poster

In Health, we learned about how having good hygiene is important. We had to choose an activity to do that showed our learning about good hygiene. My partner and I chose to make a poster that teaches people how many germs can be in their hands, and in other places they may not have known about.

Health- My Plate Meals

In Health, we have been learning about eating foods from all food groups (grain, fruits, vegetables, dairy, protein). We made a presentation to show our meals, then reflected on them at the end. Here it is:

Stress Buster Tool Kit

In Health, we've been learning about stress and how to deal with it. So, our class made a presentation called the Stress Buster Tool Kit. Everyone had their own slide where they described what they did to get rid of stress. My slide is Slide 7, and my stress buster is doing my hobbies.

Fitness iMovie- How to Improve Your Pushups

We made this video to show people the importance of fitness. This movie helps people improve their push-up score, and doing these exercises can help one to continue improving; that helps personal fitness. It teaches someone that they should keep improving, and these are some ways to do that.
My role in this video was one of the 'trainers' who was trying to help this student's pushup score. This plot was meant to show someone that these exercises help them specifically for pushups, and it's not to hard to do them.
Making this video taught me that I need to strengthen the right muscles to do the right exercises. I, myself sometimes struggle with pushups, and now I know that I can use these. Doing that research helped me understand that you don't need have a hard workout to do pushups.

Sportsmanship In Everyday Life

Sportsmanship is playing a fair game, how you play the game, and your general attitude during the game play. Sportsmanship is how you act during the game. An example of good sportsmanship would be shaking your opponent's hand at the end of the game. One way I have demonstrated sportsmanship this year is congratulating the other team in the floor hockey unit. When the other team scored a goal, my team would compliment them on that.
In PE, some ways anyone can demonstrate sportsmanship are playing by the rules, trying to avoid arguing with the opponent, congratulating the opponent when they score, and shaking the other team's hand at the end.
Sportsmanship can be used in everyday life as well as on the sporting field. Some ways you can do this are: encouraging others, helping people who are injured, and congratulating others when they win or triumph in something.
1 new way I want to try demonstrating sportsmanship on the sporting field is by congratulating the opponent when they score more often, because I know that this is a really good example of sportsmanship and that I don't do this very often.

Sportsmanship Poster

Today in PE, we learned about sportsmanship. Here is my sportsmanship poster:

54321+8 Promoting Wellness in My Community

Here is my Google Presentation for 54321+8. I worked on a SMART goal and sharing this presentation with my parents, then interviewing them about their wellness and this presentation.

Laptop Care Poster

This is a poster I made about one of the important things to do to take care of your laptop: Keep your laptop away from food and drinks.

Using Your Laptop

Digital Citizenship Agreement

As a responsible Digital Citizen at SAS, I, Kavya, promise to respect and protect myself, others, and intellectual property while learning, sharing, and collaborating online.