PYP Student Led Conferences - SUCCESS in PE!

Student Led Conferences have come and gone again for another year at Munich International School.

Last year was my first year doing SLCs for PE and I was at a loss as to how they should work given my non-existent experience with them as a single subject teacher. I had done them in my classroom with my 5 and 6 year olds and they had done them with their PE teacher at my previous school, but PE equipment was extremely limited and PE class consisted mostly of playing soccer. This experience was another reason why I wanted to give PE teaching a go as the potential was a lot greater than what was happening; often I'd join the students and the PE teacher to help him plan and do something other than soccer but my ability to help him with SLCs on the day of was pretty limited as I had my own classroom stuff to deal with.

I love Student Led Conferences. I think the idea of them is brilliant and I know that schools back where I grew up are starting to do them more, despite not being PYP schools. At MIS, we have Parent-Teacher Conferences near the beginning of the year and then SLCs towards the end which is a perfect set-up, in my opinion...but getting the parents on board with the idea isn't always the easiest task. Schools really need to hold workshops about SLCs for the parents so they can be informed and educated as to how they and their children can get the best out of this learning experience. On Friday, I had a few parents coming up to me and asking me how their child is doing, filling me in about issues with their child(ren) that may impact their performance in PE, etc., etc., but it was pretty obvious that I was on the move...and I didn't get the feeling that anyone wanted a formal conference or sit-down with me which is a good reflection of their understanding of what should be happening; a lot of the parents at MIS have been here for a while so they know how it works and that's great. But let's rewind...how do SLCs work? Well, obviously, everything is student led! The student is in charge, the student is the teacher and the student is in the spotlight showing you what he/she has learned over the course of the year! So, as a parent, you let him/her shine, be proud of what this fantastic opportunity provides for your child's confidence and make sure you ask questions about his/her work because it doesn't get much better (as a teacher) than seeing a child's face light up when they have the knowledge to answer or demonstrate an answer to you! As a teacher, you sit back, be confident that the child knows what he/she is doing and be on hand to answer any questions or offer support in case there are any hiccups.

For SLCs in PE, I spoke with the students I teach prior to the day, asked what their favourite activities were and then together with my PE team members, we chose seven stations that we'd set up in the Junior School Auditorium. In previous years (before my time), SLCs were held in the gym but with students having a limited amount of time to get through their conferences, PE was often skipped as it would take a couple of minutes to walk over to the gym. Also, Middle School and Senior School students have regular scheduled classes on this day and we have one gym booked and set-up for the IB Art Exhibition, so space is limited. By having PE set-up in the auditorium, it's hard for parents to miss or skip it and I must admit, it's quite enticing as it looks a bit like a carnival when it's all ready to go. To this end, a difficulty presents itself in that students and parents may think it's just a free-for-all space to run a muck and play in. Hearing the difficulties of past SLCs from my team, I came up with a system to help control the space:

I came up with a 'ticket' that had to be used by parents and students to enter the PE SLC area. When parents and students arrived, I had them come to me (or one of my colleagues) to ensure they had their ticket OR to see their route planner for the day and give them a new ticket if they didn't bring theirs with them for whatever reason. I then explained quickly to the students and parents that they'd be learning from their child today and I requested parents to fill-out the bottom of the ticket with feedback about how well their child(ren) did not only showing their skills, but teaching them the skills required for the activities. The students had been previously instructed to act as though their parents were 'aliens' having no prior knowledge of the activities and they were encouraged to get their parents to do the activities; obviously, not all parents were down with doing forward rolls but a number were...and all of them did at least one of the activities!

My favourite part resulting from the day, is reading the comments from parents...I've included some of my favourites above and I'll include the rest of them below. I did receive over 100 forms but reading them all was entertaining...and I couldn't narrow my top picks down to less than 11...so have a look! Some parents comment about taking action in getting equipment at home, others comment about how old age has hindered their skills and I just love comments of praise with an added, "Love, Mom". I will distribute the tickets to my PE team tomorrow so they can have a read of what their students' parents have written and then I'll give them to homeroom teachers to add to their portfolios as I feel it's another great piece of evidence of student learning! :)

So, this was just a little (or a lot? :P) of insight into how I have successfully run SLCs for PE...if you have any questions about how this could be adapted or just other general questions or comments, email me or add a comment below. I was having problems with my comments before and am hoping it's fixed now...? I can also be reached on Twitter and via email at: melindadasme@gmail.com 
Enjoy some photos from some of our parents and students in action below:  (I've gotta say, I was most impressed with students getting their parents to try partner balances with them!)