I had the opportunity to submit a blog post to The Physical Educator about apps I use a Phys Ed specialist.
Here is my post. I hope it’ll be of benefit to others.
http://thephysicaleducator.com/blog/files/apps-we-use-blue-jay-bridge.html
Music Workout – Interval Timer (available at iTunes & Google Play) is a fantastic app created by @mrrobbo. At its core, it’s an interval stopwatch. However, it has the added ability of being able to play music from your devices while it’s keeping time of workout and rest intervals.
The set-up is very easy. You create a new workout. Give your workout a title/name. Choose how much time you want your workout (eg 2 minutes) and rest (eg 15 seconds) intervals to be. Choose how many repetitions of you want, if you’d like to add a warm-up and/or cool down period, and then press the complete workout button.
The workout you created is now available on the main screen along with any other workouts you’ve created.
When you begin a created workout a digital clock is shown. It counts up until the desired workout time (eg 2 mins) is completed and then restarts the clock for the desired rest period (eg 15 secs).
The app gives you some additional options. One of these being the option to include music that plays songs chosen from your devices stored music during workout periods. During rest intervals you can choose to have the music that is playing get quieter, pause the music, or have an audible beep sound to signal the start of the rest period.
I use this app many times throughout the school year. Particularly when we do class fitness circuits. Essentially my students are in small groups (2 or 3 students/group) at different exercise stations scattered throughout the gym. They do the exercise listed on the poster at their station for 2 minutes. While they are in their workout phase the music is playing over our speakers using the Music Workout app. When 2 minutes is up, the students have a 15 second rest interval during which they rotate to the next exercise station. The students know when they are in their rest interval because I set the music to pause during this phase. When the next workout interval begins, the music commences playing.
These audible cues of when we are in a workout or a rest interval are fantastic because it allows me to rotate through the different stations in the gym to give feedback and correct technique as opposed to watching my stopwatch and blowing the whistle every 2 minutes.
This app could also be used in a classroom setting. For example, any time you have students working at learning stations for set periods of time and then want them to rotate to the next learning station.
In an upcoming update I’d like the app to allow you the option of having the clock count down during workout and rest phases to allow for a better visual cue to the students of how much time is left in the current interval.
As well, I’d like to have the option of having an audible beep and having the music pause during a rest phase. Currently you can have one or the other, but not both audible cues at the same time. The reason I’d find this update useful is that it would differentiate between what is the beginning of a true rest interval, and what is just the natural pause in music between one song ending and another beginning.
I can’t recommend this app enough to any one that requires an effective and fun interval timer. It truly is brilliant!
How have you used the Music Workout – Interval Timer app? Connect with me on twitter at @MrBridge204.
In September 2012 I tried out an interactive whiteboard app called ShowMe to enhance my students learning in our touch football unit.
Many of the students have never played organized football, and thus have difficulty understanding the many rules, positions, and the main plays associated with touch football.
To assist my students I recorded a lesson discussing the positions/rules of touch football at HGI and the main plays (eg the buttonhook, the fly, the down & in and down & out, the slant, and the handoff) using the app ShowMe.
All of the positions, rules, and plays were taught and put into practice in our Phys Ed classes but the ShowMe videos were always available to students that needed to see or hear the information again via our HGI Phys Ed Weebly.
This proved to be beneficial as a number of students have watched these lessons, including The Slant which has been viewed over 140 times. This contributed to an increased level of understanding by my students which in turn led to an increased level of play in our touch football games. With this increased level of play came increased skills and knowledge of touch football.
One of the best attributes of the ShowMe app is its ability to share created lessons with educators around the world.
There are countless science, math, ELA, and Social Studies lessons that have been uploaded by educators…but very few Phys Ed lessons.
I have posted my touch football lessons as public (here) , essentially making them available for all physical educators to use. I hope that you’ll add to this by also posting your created ShowMe lessons as public.
As @pegeeks says, “Together we are stronger.”
If you are currently using ShowMe please let me know! I’d love to follow you and see how you are using the app to enhance the learning of your students.
If you’d like to follow me on ShowMe I’m MrBridge204.
I hope you’ll connect with me through twitter at @MrBridge204.
mrbridge204 