News & Press Releases
Survivor PE Curriculum Provides Essential Lessons in Teamwork
Each year at ICS – and back by popular demand – the Physical Education Department rolls out a “Survivor” TV program-themed curriculum. This year, during the first two full weeks of December, six teams of K-8 students racked up thousands of points in this unique school-wide competition as they tried to, in “Survivor”-speak, “outwit, outplay and outlast” the other teams.
Uniquely, every ICS grade was represented on every team. For example, the Pirate kindergarten team was part of the Pirate team at large throughout all the grades. This connectivity between age groups fostered a new dimension of team spirit that rippled throughout the school. Each day the new point totals were posted in the gym, allowing teams to track their progress.
During the ICS version of Survivor (which is kinder and gentler than the television show), the students learned many lessons, including team strategy, cooperation, compromise, communication, team and individual effort, and personal responsibility. Teams competed in Hula Hoop® contests, obstacle courses, dodgeball, cargo net and rock wall climbs, relay races, and puzzles. Contests such as “Gum Drop Hunt” – a tribal name spelling game – and “Don’t Lose Your Marbles” – a PVC pipeline marble relay race – exemplified the high degree of creativity PE teachers Shelly Stanton and Jenni McNeely brought to the unit in providing mental, physical, and social challenges for the student teams. Moreover, table work covering math, spelling, vocabulary, and music were also integrated into the competition.
As ICS Survivor played out, tribal headbands became a temporary part of the school dress code, as team pride overflowed out of the gym and into the school’s hallways. It just couldn’t be helped!
During the competition, a prolific amount of scoring took place, indicative in the tribes’ final scores (in order of placement):
Cosmic Crusaders: 34,379 points (winning team)
Pirates: 34,214
Zebras: 34,201
Spiders: 34,013
Penguins: 33,827
Stallions: 32,987
The Awards Celebration involved recognizing the winning team in each class and a choice of a sun, moon, or stars bracelet.
The spirit of the ICS PE Survivor unit is perhaps best epitomized in a comment by Mrs. Stanton at the conclusion of a 4th grade PE class: “If your tribe didn’t win today, don’t worry; you’ll probably win tomorrow.” That’s what it’s all about!