Perceptual Motor Program
This is a description of my experiences from assisting my mentor teacher, Sandra, with the Perceptual Motor Program (PMP) for kinder and prep children whilst on professional placement. I first describe the context of the program, what it is, who was involved, where it was held, and why the program was run. Following this I rationalise why I think the PMP is relevant as a professional portfolio item, demonstrating how I have developed as a professional, as well as an overview of student learning. I conclude with a final reflection on the experiences and knowledge I have gained from assisting with the implementation of this program. All names mentioned on this page have been replaced with pseudonyms to protect the individual’s privacy.
Context:
What is PMP?
Moving Smart Ltd (2010) describes PMP as being “a motor coordination program for school age children, comprising of sequential movement activities.” It involves hand-eye and hand feet coordination, fitness, balance, locomotion and eye tracking. The aim of a PMP is “to develop children’s motor skills that are foundation skills for many activities in the classroom.” PMPs are implemented because many children begin school lacking some or all of these skills, due to an inactive lifestyle (Moving Smart Ltd).
PMP, according to Moving Smart Ltd:
The PMP that I assisted with was held in the general purpose room at my placement school with the prep students and the 4 year-old kinder students from the neighbouring kinder. The purpose of this event is so that the prep teacher can get to know the kinder children (who they will be teaching next year) and for the children to get to know their new school, teacher and fellow students, to assist with a smooth transition from kinder to primary school.
The program was set up by my mentor teacher Sandra, several year 6 students, parent helpers and I. It is usually run by the prep teacher of the school but she was away on leave for a term. Sandra, who is currently a grade 1/2 teacher, but has worked with preps in the past, took over the event as she is an experienced early childhood educator of the school.
The event occurred over two hours and went by the following schedule:
Students rotated through the following stations:
1. Balancing on a rope / jumping across markers on the ground.
2. Crawling on their tummies.
3. Rolling on a large cylinder.
4. Stepping on tiptoes / squeezing through a ring.
5. Walking up a ramp / balancing on a beam.
6. Throwing a beanbag and catching the rebound.
7. Kicking a ball.
8. Bowling a ball.
9. Jumping on a trampoline while throwing and catching a ball.
10. Rolling around inside a cone.
My role during the program was to interact with students, assist them where necessary, ensure that the equipment remained safe, and take photos.
Rationale:
How the item demonstrates my development as a beginning teacher:
Assisting with the PMP for kinder and prep children has provided me with many experiences and learning opportunities, assisting with my development as a professional. These learning opportunities include:
Overview of student learning:
There was a number of learning opportunities for both the kinder students and the prep students.
Kinder students:
Prep students:
All students were provided with the opportunity to practise important perceptual motor skills. When observing the children I noticed that some struggled to successfully carry out the appropriate skill at first. After practising the skill a number of times, and being given some guidance, assistance and encouragement, all children were able to carry out the skill to the best of their ability.
Final Reflection:
This experience has taught me what a PMP is, and has provided me with the necessary knowledge to be confident with planning and implementing a PMP myself. From this event I have learnt the benefits of keeping children active, and the necessity of holding regular activities to assist them with developing their perceptual motor skills. This experience has also informed me of the benefits of holding a transition program for kinder children, before they begin their primary education. As a professional in the future, I will endeavour to hold similar programs for the children I work with.
Context:
What is PMP?
Moving Smart Ltd (2010) describes PMP as being “a motor coordination program for school age children, comprising of sequential movement activities.” It involves hand-eye and hand feet coordination, fitness, balance, locomotion and eye tracking. The aim of a PMP is “to develop children’s motor skills that are foundation skills for many activities in the classroom.” PMPs are implemented because many children begin school lacking some or all of these skills, due to an inactive lifestyle (Moving Smart Ltd).
PMP, according to Moving Smart Ltd:
- “is a holistic Movement / Language based development program
- helps children with motor coordination, cognitive development, self-esteem, social skills and ability to cope better in the classroom
- helps teachers recognise children's needs in relation to hand-eye, balance, locomotion and fitness
- helps to grow children's short term auditory sequential memory (STASM)
- gives children strategies for problem solving
- contains sequenced, fun activities
- is preventative rather than curative.
- covers many strands of the junior PE / Health Curriculum”
The PMP that I assisted with was held in the general purpose room at my placement school with the prep students and the 4 year-old kinder students from the neighbouring kinder. The purpose of this event is so that the prep teacher can get to know the kinder children (who they will be teaching next year) and for the children to get to know their new school, teacher and fellow students, to assist with a smooth transition from kinder to primary school.
The program was set up by my mentor teacher Sandra, several year 6 students, parent helpers and I. It is usually run by the prep teacher of the school but she was away on leave for a term. Sandra, who is currently a grade 1/2 teacher, but has worked with preps in the past, took over the event as she is an experienced early childhood educator of the school.
The event occurred over two hours and went by the following schedule:
- Come together as a group. Read a story to settle students.
- Explain to students what will be happening for the next two hours.
- Break students off into ten groups with a mix of prep and kinder students in each group.
- Rotate the groups through each station.
- Come back together as a group and debrief on the event.
- Share a fruit platter and read another story.
- Say goodbye.
Students rotated through the following stations:
1. Balancing on a rope / jumping across markers on the ground.
2. Crawling on their tummies.
3. Rolling on a large cylinder.
4. Stepping on tiptoes / squeezing through a ring.
5. Walking up a ramp / balancing on a beam.
6. Throwing a beanbag and catching the rebound.
7. Kicking a ball.
8. Bowling a ball.
9. Jumping on a trampoline while throwing and catching a ball.
10. Rolling around inside a cone.
My role during the program was to interact with students, assist them where necessary, ensure that the equipment remained safe, and take photos.
Rationale:
How the item demonstrates my development as a beginning teacher:
Assisting with the PMP for kinder and prep children has provided me with many experiences and learning opportunities, assisting with my development as a professional. These learning opportunities include:
- Knowing how to run a PMP: From this experience I have been made aware of and observed firsthand what a PMP is. I am now familiar with how to organise one and what is involved with setting and packing it up.
- Transition programs: I am now aware of the importance of transition programs for kinder children as they advance from kinder to prep. These programs are beneficial for both the students and the teachers involved. They help teachers get to know the children they will be working with the following year and they help familiarise the students with their new school, teachers and classmates. Before assisting with this program, I wasn’t aware of the necessity for transition programs and only thought that kinder students had one day of orientation before beginning primary school.
- Interacting with new children: The program gave me the opportunity to interact with a large group of new children. I felt very comfortable doing this, learned their names quickly and begun to get to know them. To me, building relationships with students as quickly as possible is an important part of a teacher’s job and the program allowed me to practise doing this.
Overview of student learning:
There was a number of learning opportunities for both the kinder students and the prep students.
Kinder students:
- They were introduced to their new school environment, their new teacher and the current preps (who will be in grade 1 next year).
Prep students:
- They were introduced to next year’s prep students.
- They experienced a sense of responsibility as they had to be role models for the kinder children. This involved them being on their best behaviour and being team leaders.
All students were provided with the opportunity to practise important perceptual motor skills. When observing the children I noticed that some struggled to successfully carry out the appropriate skill at first. After practising the skill a number of times, and being given some guidance, assistance and encouragement, all children were able to carry out the skill to the best of their ability.
Final Reflection:
This experience has taught me what a PMP is, and has provided me with the necessary knowledge to be confident with planning and implementing a PMP myself. From this event I have learnt the benefits of keeping children active, and the necessity of holding regular activities to assist them with developing their perceptual motor skills. This experience has also informed me of the benefits of holding a transition program for kinder children, before they begin their primary education. As a professional in the future, I will endeavour to hold similar programs for the children I work with.