My two out of three APE visits was on Challenger Middle School (CMS) at San Diego. Throughout the three visits, I had the opportunity to shadow and learn from Mrs. Linde Forte, an APE teacher of 19 years. I learned two different types of classroom structures and had the opportunity to observe the interactions of many students.
Before my first visit, Mrs. Forte explained via email how she primarily works in a push-in model, where she along with her staff works with the general PE teacher to incorporate their students into the mainstream PE class. This model primarily deals with high functioning students with great motor skills.
When I first visited CMS, I was with Mrs. Forte talking about her students when this young Vietnamese boy walked passed us, he was dragging his feet while whining to one of the APE teachers, he was saying something in Vietnamese, and the APE teacher payed little attention to what the boy is saying. He is new here, says Ms. Forte, as she introduced me to two students, Priscilla a high functioning twelve year old with Spina Bifida, and also Alex, an eleven year old with mild autism. I watched …show more content…
Forte adapted the game of bowling. She assembled a ramp for the students in wheelchairs. The ramp had a rectangular front for the students to be in front of. The first student to play was Jose, a paraplegic, but unlike the other students, he was on a mechanical wheelchair and he moved around skillfully and it impressed me how well he used it. He was accompanied by a teacher who explained the game to him in Spanish. He understood and as he was got in front of the ramp, he struggled to move his upper body, his arms and body were uncontrollably shaking as he slowly extended his hands to push down the ball. Seeing him shake that way scared me, but as the ball finally hit the pins down I saw him with the biggest grin, and all my worries
Before my first visit, Mrs. Forte explained via email how she primarily works in a push-in model, where she along with her staff works with the general PE teacher to incorporate their students into the mainstream PE class. This model primarily deals with high functioning students with great motor skills.
When I first visited CMS, I was with Mrs. Forte talking about her students when this young Vietnamese boy walked passed us, he was dragging his feet while whining to one of the APE teachers, he was saying something in Vietnamese, and the APE teacher payed little attention to what the boy is saying. He is new here, says Ms. Forte, as she introduced me to two students, Priscilla a high functioning twelve year old with Spina Bifida, and also Alex, an eleven year old with mild autism. I watched …show more content…
Forte adapted the game of bowling. She assembled a ramp for the students in wheelchairs. The ramp had a rectangular front for the students to be in front of. The first student to play was Jose, a paraplegic, but unlike the other students, he was on a mechanical wheelchair and he moved around skillfully and it impressed me how well he used it. He was accompanied by a teacher who explained the game to him in Spanish. He understood and as he was got in front of the ramp, he struggled to move his upper body, his arms and body were uncontrollably shaking as he slowly extended his hands to push down the ball. Seeing him shake that way scared me, but as the ball finally hit the pins down I saw him with the biggest grin, and all my worries