Creating Caring and
Equitable Communities for
Children of All Abilities
I will not play at tug o' war. - I'd rather play at hug o' war, - Where
everyone hugs - Instead of tugs, - Where everyone giggles - And rolls
on the rug, - Where everyone kisses, - And everyone grins, - And
everyone cuddles, - And everyone wins.
- Shel Silverstein
Paul T. Stuhr, Ph.D.1
Esther M. Ortiz-Castillo, M.A.2
Maria Gies, M.A.2
1California
State University San Marcos
2The Ohio State University
SESSION OBJECTIVES
• The theory and benefits of Adventure Based Learning (ABL).
• Sequencing, facilitation, and debriefing ABL activities that
promote community and cooperation for all ability students.
• Selection and necessary modifications to help students with
physical, cognitive, and emotional disabilities experience equitable
physical education.
124th AAHPERD Convention
Saturday April 4, 2009
Tampa Bay, FL
Sport Images
Are Teachers,
Parents, and
Administrators
Creating
Ecologies
Conducive to
Desired Learning
Outcomes?
What More Can Be Done
Creating the Ideal
Learning Environment
Synergy can be a power
contributor to student learning
(Stuhr, 2008).
Children who feel better
about school do better in
school (Search Institute, 1997).
Inclusive Physical
Education
• Inclusion starts with building a reciprocal caring classroom
community.
• Educative care requires each teacher to meet the needs of
all students in terms of learning.
• Community is an inclusive ecology where all members
accept others and celebrate personal differences.
• Community requires having common goals and working
toward accomplishing tasks as a whole.
What is Adventure
Based Learning
• Adventure Based Learning (ABL): The deliberate use of
sequenced activities for personal and social development
(Cosgriff, 2000).
• ABL encourages fun and challenging ways to experience
life skills that de-emphasize a win-at-all-cost mentality.
• Experiential Education = Doing with Reflection
Processing or the “debrief” is critical in ABL.
• ABL through participation and active reflection during the
debrief can promote a caring classroom where all
students feel and have equitable opportunity to be
successful.
Benefits of ABL
Intrapersonal
•
•
•
•
•
•
Increased confidence
Willingness to take risks
Improved self-concept
Enhanced leadership
Greater reflective thinking
Positive experiences
Interpersonal
• Enhanced cooperation
• More effective
communication skills
• Greater trust in others
• Conflict resolution skills
• Improved problem-solving
• Enhanced leadership
ABL can be used in virtually all settings to help:
promote inclusion,
start working on breaking down walls of social isolation, and
celebrate personal differences.
Themes in Adventure Based Learning:
•
Community
•
Cooperation
•
Emotional trust
•
Physical Trust
•
Problem Solving
•
Challenge
There are activities associated
with each theme
ABL Sequencing
• Activities should move a group through the following
sequence:
–
–
–
–
Build Community (cooperation and communication).
Empower students establish Trust.
Cultivate Problem Solving.
Challenge students to take risks and further responsibility.
• Knowing when to move a group through the next phase of
the sequence is crucial.
• Facilitation includes: (a) Brief, (b) Activity, (c) Debrief.
Experiential
Learning Cycle
(David Kolb)
The Brief
Experiencing
Now What?
What?
Applying
Reflecting
Generalizing
So What?
The “Brief” in ABL
• Short Stories
• Poems
• Quotes
• Personal Experiences
• Classroom Experiences
• Analogies
• Metaphors
• DVD Video Clip
Examples:
• Hug O War by Shel Silverstein (Poem
on Building Community)
• The Tree Climber Story (Short Story on
Full Inclusion)
• Two Famous Quotes (Quotes on
Problem Solving)
Facilitating the
Experience
• The key to this curriculum model is that you give the
group a problem to solve and then let them work at
achieving that goal.
• You do not teach how to achieve the goal.
• It is the group processes that are of importance here.
• You are there to ensure safety - physical and emotional.
• You can guide the group to rethink the problem if they
are getting frustrated.
Debriefing the
Experience
• Students reflect on the experience.
• What - Discuss what was learned, how S’s feel, what
was interesting, what was realized, any ah-ha moments.
• So What - Why was this experience important for you
and why important for overall class/peers.
• Now what - Make the transfer to other areas of life.
• The facilitator guides the group through the debriefing
process.
The Debrief
• Ensure that the debrief is related to the objective of the
activity.
• Specific Debriefing Strategies:
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Quick Whip
One Word
Dyad or Triad
Drawing
Feeling/Picture Cards
Thumbs up, thumbs down
Song or Dance
Journaling
Experiential
Learning Cycle
(David Kolb)
The Brief
Experiencing
Now What?
What?
Applying
Reflecting
Generalizing
So What?
ABL Activities
Our ABL Activities/Modifications for Today:
Community
1.Evolution
Cooperation
1.Fitness Charades
2.Pairs Tag
We will debrief the modifications at the
end of each activity
Evolution
Modifications
• Cognitive impairments:
–
–
–
–
Fewer morphing stages.
Play Rock/Paper/Scissors prior to activity.
Change Rock/Paper/Scissors to a more simplistic motor movement.
Use pictures or cards to express the motions.
• Physical impairments:
– Create morphing stages that all students can perform.
– Use another creative way to express the stages for some students.
– Modify the Rock/Paper/Scissors motions to more simplistic forms.
• Visual impairments:
– Feel the shape of the Rock/Paper/Scissors.
– Allow them additional time to recognize each shape.
– Demonstrate Rock/Paper/Scissors in a recognizable location for certain
visual impairments
Fitness Charades &
Pairs Tag
Modifications
•
Cognitive impairments:
–
–
–
–
•
•
Slower speeds for all students for motor movements
Pictures or diagrams with demonstrations for fitness activities
Rehearse fitness activities prior to start
Pair students with a peer partner
Physical impairments: The motor skill (e.g., walking, skipping, slow motion,
running, etc.) being performed in traveling can be modified. Use scooters or
wheelchairs to help create movement equity. Reduce the size of the activity area.
If necessary, provide these students with a foam noodle to help extend their
reach.
Visual impairments: Pair up each student with another student or an instructional
aide for assistance traveling. In pairs, have one student try wearing a blindfold
while their partner communicates (verbally or through touch) to them which
direction to travel. Note: When using blindfolds make sure to use safety bumpers
(i.e., arms straight out in front of their body with hands out in case they bump into
another person).