Bulletin Board Ideas for Physical Education

     

Title of Bulletin Board: STEM in Physical Education (Tennis)

Category: Tennis

Suggested Grade Level: 6-8

Materials: Bulletin Board paper, letter cutouts, tennis racquet, popsicle sticks, pipe cleaners, tennis balls, zip ties, mounters, table tennis net, STEM laminated letters, paper clips, colored tape

Description:

This bulletin board ties the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) concepts in with physical education, and more specifically tennis. Under the "S" letter are racquet mechanics such as the sweet spot, the best bounce spot, and the dead spot. Under each green piece of paper is an explanation of each. Under the "T" letter are the different types of technology used in tennis. Footwear, which I spoke with the school's STEM liaison, and she said footwear was a part of technology, ball machine which the school has and the student's use, and the shot spot technology used when watching tennis on tv. These flaps had pictures and descriptions under each green piece of paper as well. Under the "E" letter are vibration properties, racquet properties, and mechanical properties all dealing with the racquet. Under the "M" letter, I figured out the perimeter and the area of a tennis court, both a singles and doubles court. All information was found on http://www.odec.ca/projects/2005/wong5i0/public_html/index.html.

The flaps make it interactive and I cannot tell you how many times I saw the students lifting them up and reading the board in between classes. The racquet, court, and tennis balls that say "Tennis Anyone?" all tie the tennis theme together.

Since STEMs is the focus in the classrooms (at least in Maryland) I thought it would be a great idea to show the students that these themes are in fact in the specials too.