MY FAMILY TREE

By Heather Katz

A LITTLE ABOUT ME…

My parents put me in gymnastics when I was 4

years old.

I participated and competed in the sport until I

graduated high school.

THE TEENAGE YEARS

I joined my high school’s color guard when I was

16, and haven’t stopped spinning and dancing since.

ZUMBA!!!!!!

I took my first Zumba class at KU my sophomore

year.

I loved the class so much that I decided to become

an instructor.

I’ve been teaching Zumba for 2.5 years.

MY DAD

Height: 5’ 10”Weight: 204 lbsEducation: Associates Degree in Applied Science and Automotive TechnologyJob: Telecommunications Sales Executive

Current Physical Activity: Walking, Weight circuit at gym 2X a week.Previous Physical Activity: Baseball, Track, Fishing.Interests: BBQ, Acoustic Music, Bacon

MY MOM

Height: 5’ 1”Weight: 120 lbEducation: Associates Degree in Commercial ArtsJob: Stay at home mom

Current Physical Activity: Mini-trampoline, walking.Previous Physical Activity: Dancing, recreational physical activity.Interests: Dog Rescue, Photography, Beading.

SISTER

Height: 5’ 1” Weight: 100 lb

Education: Bachelor’s Degree in

CommunicationsJob:

Boutique Assistant ManagerCurrent Physical Activity:

Walking, Jogging, YogaPrevious Physical Activity:

P.E. ClassInterests: Music, Animals.

NEWELL’S MODEL

Constraints:• Structural- body build• Functional- behavior• Environmental-outside of body.• Task constraints- goals, equipment rules.

NEWELL’S MODEL AND ME

Structural• Body structure- members of both my mom and dad’s

side of the family are petite, which was passed down to me.

• Small body structure- aids in gymnastics, dance and running.

• Hinders contact sports such a football and wrestling. • Grandma and mom-asthma, makes cardiovascular

exercise difficult.

Functional• Mother-High anxiety (passed down to me).

NEWELL’S MODEL AND ME

Environmental• Unpredictable Kansas weather.• Gymnastics- lighting of the gym had an impact on my

performance.

Task Constraint• Mother’s rule- I wasn’t allowed to practice more than 7

hours a week until I got to high school. • Gymnastics- In competitive routines, we were required

to use the same foot to initiate skills (cartwheels, back-walk-overs, hand-stands) , but I preferred to start cartwheels on my right and back-walk-overs on my left.

NATURE VS. NURTURE

Nature- genetics are the primary factor in your

motor development.

Nurture- experiences, environment and upbringing

play the primary role in your development.

NATURE

Dad’s side- hand-eye coordination, muscular lower

body, high muscular strength, low cardiovascular

endurance.• Dad- sprinter, yo-yo champion.

Mom’s side- high flexibility, rhythm, hand dexterity. • Great grandma- aerial darts, tennis, hand work, dance. • Grandpa- dance, aerial darts.• Grandma- racquetball, dance.

Both sides- small body structure.

NURTURE

My grandma’s boyfriend introduced me to lake

activities, something no one in my family has every

engaged in before during my lifetime.

NURTURE

My parents brought my sister and I up listening to

a wide variety of music, something they both have a

strong connection with.

My sister and I both express ourselves through

music, just in different ways.• Emily- Involved with promoting bands, attends

concerts frequently, played the violin in high school.• Me- Movement (Zumba, color guard, other forms of

dance).

MATURATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

Motor development is heavily influenced by the

maturation of different systems.

Gymnastics:• 4-5 years old- I could put my hands on the floor and

hop over a mat.• 6-8 years old- my muscular and skeletal system

become stronger so I could perform a cartwheel.• 9 years old- My vestibular system enhanced my body

awareness, allowing me to do an aerial cartwheel.

INFORMATION PROCESSING

Brain takes in information, processes that information, then

output occurs.

Color guard- when I teach my students, information

processing occurs:• Step 1- I demonstrate the skill. • Step 2- Students use their prior knowledge of technique and

the general physics pertaining to piece of equipment they’re spinning to decide how they will execute the skill.

• Step 3- Students execute the skill. • Step 4- Students reflect and try to understand why or not they

were successful.

ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

Interrelationships between individual, environment

and task.

My parents were able to bring me to practice, my

coach taught me what to do, and I executed the

skills. All of these systems worked together in order

for me to compete in gymnastics.