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Physical Fitness Classroom and the Webquest

It's a test, but not just any test--It's one that involves teamwork, research and development, and statistical data.Surprisingly, it's so simple, a fifth grader can do it. With health and obesity two of the main topics of discussion in society today, incorporating children into becoming more aware of these issue has derived a whole new perspective in learning: Enter the Physical Fitness Webquest. This form of learning can encourage and educate at the same time.

This idea of incorporating internet use in the classroom goes beyond reading and math games. This task can be done in a variety of ways on different health topics that are being discussed.

One of the main things to remember when incorporating this type of learning is to ensure reachable goals. There is no need to inject new ideas if results cannot be seen in the end. Therefore, there must be a practical goal set forth that everyone can understand at the end. There must also be results or some kind of data that can be shared amongst everyone.

A Physical Fitness Webquest is not only a way to teach, but a group activity that challenges participants to either come together as a team or struggle through their task by themselves with the possibility of not completing the goal at hand.

Producing a set of general guidelines would also help. What role would each person play? Who does the research on how many calories are allowed in a day? Who is recording the data? Provide web links to aid in their project. Each person should contribute their part in the project so that others can benefit from the information.

For example, on the subject of caloric intake, broaden their horizons by suggesting different ideas like a chart that could record information such as:

*Long Work-Out Program: The length of the workout in contrast to calories burned
*Around the World: What is the data for obesity in other countries/Caloric intake
*Personal Trainer:The effects of having professional help in combating obesity
*Physical Activity: Day-to-day living and how many calories are being burned
*Dietary Suggestions: Proposing different foods that are low in calories

Other ideas that could be considered is what was the caloric intake goal and what do they feel this could do for people suffering from obesity?

In the end, what have the students learned? For those who took part in participating in the various categories listed, what happened? Did they have more energy or less? Answers from questions like these can be very interesting when compiled.

DELIVERING THE RESULTS

It should also be noted that how the results are delivered to you for analysis should be clearly explained. Will the results be presented via Power Point? Hard copies that will be passed out to your audience? Will this be conducted and submitted over the Internet?

LESSONS LEARNED

In the end, Physical Fitness Webquests combine the skills of teamwork, individual research, recording data, and project presentation with the Internet experience of how to fill in forms on the web(if needed), basic computer experience, and understanding terms like "hyperlink". Merging the classroom with the Internet never replaces the job and role of the school teacher but it does keep students in step with the wide world of cyberspace.