Adapted Physical Education and Wheelchair Athletics

BRIAN FAHEYDAN KASTNER

DANIELLE MCCONNELLARIELLE PENUELAS

BRANDON SIBLESARA TOTH

Local SchoolsChampaign Centennial H.S.,

Jefferson M.S, Mahomet-Seymour M.S, and Edison M.S

When?

Jefferson M.S.- 30 minute class period Teacher felt like she could use more time but using

the time she has as efficiently as possible Only five students in class with one teacher and two

teacher aides Mahomet Seymour H.S.- 40 minute class

period Teacher has to split time between children with

disabilities and children without disabilities Integration being a good and bad thing

When?

Centennial H.S.: 50 minute class period Good amount of time

Allowed students to participate fully in their activities

Edison M.S: 40 minute class period Good amount of time

Allowed students time to warm up, complete activity, and have free time

Edison Middle School – Who?

Total of 6 students:• 2 sixth graders• 3 seventh graders• 1 eighth grader

Disabilities• Down’s syndrome• Autism• Mental impairments• Hearing impairments

• No students in a wheelchairs at all times• No vision problems

• Teacher aide to assist students during class

Edison Middle School – What?

• Each individual student has their own IEP• Keep the same routine everyday

• Jog/Walk 2 laps• Stretching• Group Activities (volleyball/parachute/bowling)• Individual Activities (bouncy ball/scooters)

• Reverse inclusion • Regular PE students join class and 8th graders give up their

lunch/recess to help out• Majority of the students enjoyed interacting with others, a few

were more reserved and tended to keep to themselves• Impressed at the ability and capability of these students to perform

certain tasks.

Edison Middle School – Where?

School is 100 years old and PE was held in the ‘newest’ gymnasium

Equipment was plentiful and they especially enjoyed playing with the scooters

Edison Middle School – How?

Observations were not long enough to note any physical changes or progress in the students

However, it was evident that a majority of the students enjoyed the extra social interaction that we provided

The teacher enjoyed teaching adapted PE and was enlightened to share additional information and any helpful tips for teaching in the future

Champaign-Centennial- Who?

Types of Disabilities Wide range of disabilities

Autism Down Syndrome Learning Disabilities Behavior Disabilities

Some students seemed as if they could easily be integrated into the regular classes.

Others seemed like they may have been better off in a PE environment in which they could get more attention from teachers.

Champaign Centennial- How?

Centennial H.S. One of the girls in class on the first day we went there

did not participate at all Laid down most of class and did not interact well with

teacher while the other kids played kickball Next time we saw her she was really excited to

participate Talking to us, excited to play soccer, wanted to play

goalie

Centennial Contd.

Some students seemed like they would do really well in regular P.E.

They were even able to beat some of us college students in soccer

Champaign-centennial- What?

Goals- The teacher just said that he would like to get everyone to at least be active and participating. Did not go over specific IEP goals.

Activities- Students played kickball and soccer on days that I observed. Students were much more involved during soccer.

Obstacles were that there are so many students in one class that it’s hard to meet everyone’s needs.

There were aids there in the class room with the teacher.

The students tended to interact with each other well, and were very encouraging to each other.

Jefferson Middle- Who?

Types of Disabilities Non-verbal Down Syndrome Girl with spinal problems. Used walker when not in

PE.

This was a smaller group of children than at the high school, consisting of only 5 students. With the exception of the non-verbal student, they all seemed to be in the right class for them.

Jefferson Middle- How?

Jefferson M.S. On the first day we went one of the students with

disabilities was not talking at all and was sitting on the bleachers and was very unresponsive

The second time we saw her she was helping the teacher and was playing Frisbee She was talking and responding to the teacher

Jefferson middle- What?

Goals- Wanted to work on the walking of the child with the spinal problems and tried to get a few words into the non-verbal’s vocabulary.

It was free day on Fridays so basketball/volleyball/soccer for the most part.

She did not seem to have many obstacles.There were a few teachers in the room to help her

out, they seemed like they were the classroom aids.The children all got along from what I could see,

and were very friendly to the teachers and volunteer as well.

Mehomet-Seymour Middle- Who?

Types of Disabilities Severe Hearing Loss Down Syndrome

This is the one integrated class that I observed and they only had three children with disabilities.

The child with hearing loss only came for half of the school day, and had previously lived in a home specifically for children like himself. This was a whole new environment for him.

Mahomet-Seymour Middle- How?

Mahomet Seymour H.S On the first day a male student who was deaf was

misbehaving and acting out a lot The second time we saw him he was enjoying P.E.

more, participating, and not getting frustrated The teacher said that he was misbehaving so much

because it was so difficult to explain the directions to him

Mehomet-Seymour Middle- What?

Goals- They were trying to get the hearing impaired child adjusted to school life, and were just trying to get the others active as much as possible.

They roller skated my first time there, fitness day my second. Adapted by having an aid or a student helper skate around by the student’s side.

There did not seem to be any obstacles for this teacher.

Integrated, but there was a student teacher so she had a lot of help with the other children.

Students did not seem to interact with each other much, as none of them were big on talking.

Room One33

MJHS has set up a fully functional classroom that provides an adapted learning environment for students with special needs. Students that spend time in Room33 have disabilities

ranging from Down Syndrome to Autism to other learning disabilities

Goals of Room One33

Each student works at their own pace to achieve the goals that have been set in place on their IEPs. These goals help with daily living skills.

How to feed themselves Basic grooming Dressing Cooking and cleaning up afterwards Social Skills Academic goals

Faculty

Full time faculty work in One33. Ms. Marissa Manuel is the supervisor. Case managers and teacher aides are also present Bulldog Buddies

Bulldog Buddies

These are MJHS 7th and 8th grade students that go through interviews, a screening process, and training.

They are present in One33 and help the students progress as they learn new skills. Also helps the students improve social skills with

people of their same age.

Impressions of Room One33

I thought that the idea of Room One33 was very unique. I grew up in a school district that had one of the top Adapted Education programs in the area. However, none of our schools had a room like One33 that catered to helping these students achieve their IEP goals. We had aides for the students, but did not have a classroom that catered specifically to students in our special needs program.

Overview of Wheelchair Athletics described by the University

One goal of the University of Illinois Wheelchair Athletic Program is to take wheelchair sports to the next level.

Student-athletes in this program have the opportunity to be a part of cutting edge wheelchair sport science as it applies to strength and conditioning, equipment development, and individual and team sport skill development.

Student-athletes in the wheelchair sports program are supremely confident that they are getting training and wellness instruction that is unsurpassed in quality, quantity, and innovation.

From resistance and strength training that incorporates the latest research to skill instruction in the sports of basketball and track/road-racing, this program leads the rest of the field.

About the Teams

Who?Types of disabilities:

Amputees Cerebral Palsy Accidents Cancer (spine) Degenerative knee issue SCI

Wheelchair Athletes are just as competitive, and aggressive as any other athlete.

*Many of these athletes can walk, however they use crutches or braces for support.

U of I Wheelchair Basketball Team

Activities Observed on the Courts

Various skill drills were utilized during practice such as: Chair skills

They conditioned a lot doing various drills with their chairs, such as going backwards while another teammate is holding on to their chair forcing them to pull them.

Other Drills Women performed passing drills where the coach would

throw them a ball while holding on to another, they had to catch the ball with their free hand and quickly pass it back.

They performed a drill just to focus on their communication, so that in a game situation they are able to talk to their teammates affectively.

1 on 1, 3 on 2, etc. Scrimmage

Towards the end of every practice

Activities Observed in the Gym

Athletes are required to complete pre-designed workouts at DRES gym Exercises include:

Pull ups Bench press MB Chest passes Stair climbing/push ups DB Pullovers DB Flys Stabilization exercises Etc.

Setting

Where? They practice at the ARC in gym 1. DRES gym The coach noted that the gym floor is slightly smaller than

a normal basketball court they would compete on. Chairs?

There was a slight difference in chairs from person to person, however overall they were very similar basketball wheelchairs.

When? They workout Monday-Friday at 6:30-8:30, and each day is

a very vigorous workout, spent conditioning, working on skills, and scrimmaging. They also must schedule time at the gym.

Performance

Mastery skills observed: One of the male athletes successfully made a free

throw on every attempt made One player was performing a trick with the ball where

he would dribble it behind the back of his wheelchair. Paralympians:

There is 1 paralympian on the Japanese Basketball Team.

One of the players turned down the U.S. Paralympics team to finish their education.

Thoughts

• While observing I saw a variety of drills, and techniques used to improve skills.

• I found everything very interesting to watch, because I found it so amazing how powerful every movement is.

• I feel these athletes work so hard in every skill there working on whether it be a scrimmage game, or a one on one drill.

• Overall I was so impressed with these athletes, and feel they are all very talented.

U of I Wheelchair Track Team

Activities Observed and Performance

Women athletes were completing an indoor tempo workout while stationary on their racing chairs Some visibly were working harder than others Overall workout was very comparable to an able

bodied track workoutOther activities include:

Outdoor track workouts Outdoor rides

There are a number of paralympians on the track team

Setting

Outdoor TrackIndoor Cycling Room

Consists of 5 rollers, which the athletes place their racing chairs on

Carlie Cook

Classification: 1.0

Hometown: Holt, Michigan

Year in school: Junior

Major: Recreation, Sport and Tourism

Interview with Carlie Cook

Nature of Disability: “I have a spinal cord injury acquired from a car accident when I was 3.”

Pre-Accident Sports/ Youth Sports: “Although I was injured young I did do figure skating before I was injured.

 My mom always exposed me to different athletics from a young age by sending me to Camps and clinics. I was always into sports and enjoyed being active.  However it was not until about my freshmen year of H.S that I settled down with a sport and played it competitively and that is when I started basketball and fell in love.”

Adapted PE: “I did not have an adapted PE class. There was a year that a OT would

randomly come to try and adapt things  but that was only a hand full of times and I think it was more for the teacher to learn.  I had one really great PE teacher that would let me be part of what ever they were doing in some way but I also had one really bad one that would ask me to do stupid things (i.e. swing a jump rope next to me for when I 'learned how to jump').”

Interview with Carlie Cook

Interest in Wheelchair Basketball:  ”I had played it at camps and stuff but really got

hooked when I met a juniors basketball team and played with them.  I fell in love with every aspect of the sport right after starting.”  

Injuries Experienced Due to Sport: None

Sports impact/influence: It impacts my life in a very positive way.  It has given

me great opportunities to travel, get an education and so much more. I have also learned so much about how to work with people, accomplish goals and overall life lessons.   

Interview with Carlie Cook

Sports impact/influence: It impacts my life in a very positive way.  It has

given me great opportunities to travel, get an education and so much more. I have also learned so much about how to work with people, accomplish goals and overall life lessons.   

Recommend Wheelchair Athletics?: “I would definitely recommend them to a younger

person. I think that sports for people with disabilities have valuable benefits just the same as they do for able bodied individuals.  It helps keep people healthy, builds self confidence, and can teach valuable lessons, and so much more”