1.  Complete One Web Site Evaluation

One of the skills we need in our own practice is the ability to evaluate web sites you visit.  This is a skill your students need to learn also, and it can really be a safety issue for your students, especially when it comes to health information. 

Try out the student rubrics suggested by the webmaster at the West Loogootee  Elementary School - Evaluation Rubrics for Web Sites.  Choose one of the three rubrics, print it out, and complete it for a health-related web site of your choice.   The rubrics are:

• Primary - designed for use by primary students
• Intermediate - designed for use by intermediate students
• Secondary - designed for use by secondary students

Don't forget the Mark Twain quote,  "Be careful when you read health books.  You could die of a misprint."

2.  Safety and the Net

You will use a number of technology tools in your classroom, but the Internet and email probably cause the most concern to educators.  Visit the Safe Kids web site - SafeKids . 

• Locate the list of "Child Safe Search Engines."  Limiting searching to these tools is one approach to safety.  These sites also include primarily listings that will be accepted by a school district's filtering system.
• If you are teaching older students, locate the SafeTeens.com  link.
• Complete this Online Safety Quiz from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

3.  Assess Your Risk with a Health Risk Appraisal

There are a number of web sites that offer you a quick quiz to assess your longevity or life expectancy.  Visit this site - The Living to 100 Life Expectancy Calculator - and complete the activity.   Pay attention to the explanations about the different behaviors.  Did you learn anything new?  What could you do to increase your life expectancy?  Name at least three actions you could take.

4.  Check Your BMI

On February 28, 2002 syndicated newspaper columnist George Will wrote a column titled, "Obesity Epidemic Is Killing Us."  Read Mr. Will's column in print or online - http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/60224_will28.shtml

• What does BMI stand for?  Read more about BMI for age here - http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/bmi/bmi-for-age.htm
• Based on the results you got, what health and fitness plan would you recommend for yourself and how would you realistically monitor your effort?
• If you taught your students this information within a nutrition and fitness unit, which of the Health and Fitness EALRs could you cover?

5.  Consider Health Literacy - Homework

Visit the PBS TeacherSource website, and read the article, "Achieving Health Literacy."  The National Health Education Standards and the Washington State Essential Academic Learning Requirements (EALRs) for Health & Fitness are based on the concept of health literacy.  Email me with or write up and bring to class your definition of health literacy.  Becky Smith did a good job with the article she wrote, but I'm interested in getting a definition of health literacy in your own words. 

Now add two or three examples or even a short list of behaviors your students would demonstrate or comments you might hear them make that would indicate to you the students were developing a more health literate approach to life.  For instance, after completing a safety unit, your students might wear a bike or scooter helmet more often.  With more nutrition information, you might hear one student explain to another why and when it is important to drink plenty of fluids.  Include at least three examples in your answer. (Extra credit if you locate the TeacherSource article authored by Margo Harris and name the title!)

"Extras"

Review Syllabus Sites

The syllabus notes that you will be able to describe the following resources, including their importance for teaching health.  Click and go to find:

Healthy People in Healthy Communities 2010
National Health Education Standards
National Standards for Physical Education
Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey (YRBSS)
WA State Essential Academic Learning Requirements (EALRs)

Visit These Hot Sites

The Health & Fitness EALRs really focus on three areas:

• Fitness
• Nutrition
• Safety

You will help yourself if you find some basic web sites that will get you the resources you need to teach health and fitness and place them on your "Favorites" or "Bookmark" list.  Consider:

1. Health Teacher - Visit HealthTeacher.com and find one lesson plan you could use in your classroom.
2. PE Central - Visit PE Central and find one lesson or other fitness resource you could use in your classroom.
3. Nutrition.gov - The Federal government has build some large "gateway" sites that organize a large number of resources on one subject.  Visit Nutrition.gov and find one federal government resource you could use.

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