
Flip
your
lid,
backboard
bank-it,
and
fan-a-war
do
not
sound
like
typical
field
day
events,
but
these
were
some
of
the
activities
that
McAuliffe
Elementary
School
students
enjoyed
during
their
virtual
field
day.
Field
day
events
are
a
spring
tradition
at
elementary
schools.
McAuliffe
Elementary
Physical
Education
(PE)
Teacher
Jeanne
Schlevensky
was
determined
to
not
let
school
being
closed
prevent
this
tradition
from
happening.
Schlevensky
saw
Online
Physical
Education
Network's
(OPEN)
National
Field
Day
Event
as
a
way
to
host
a
field
day
for
her
students.
Prior
to
the
day
of
the
event,
Schlevensky
sent
a
letter
to
parents
explaining
how
McAuliffe
students
could
participate.
She
posted
videos
of
the
various
activities
on
her
webpage
for
students
to
review
and
practice.
Students
and
their
families
were
encouraged
to
watch
updates
online
of
the
OPEN's
virtual
National
Torch
Run
across
the
country
during
the
week
leading
up
to
the
event
and
an
opening
ceremony
the
evening
before
National
Field
Day.
Michelle
Angry,
a
special
education
teacher's
assistant
and
wellness
committee
member,
produced
and
sent
a
video
to
parents
providing
more
details.
All
equipment
used
in
the
activities
were
common
household
items
such
as
a
laundry
basket,
spatula,
plastic
cups,
and
paper
plates.
Students
and
their
families
chose
at
least
four
events
to
participate
in,
tracked
their
scores,
and
were
encouraged
to
post
videos
and
photos
on
social
media.
Many
teachers
hosted
virtual
meetings
to
share
in
the
experience
with
their
students
and
provide
a
way
for
students
to
watch
each
other
complete
the
activities.
Schlevensky
joined
in
several
of
these
to
watch
students
enjoying
field
day.
At
the
end
of
the
event,
students
emailed
their
scorecard
to
Schlevensky
and
received
a
National
Field
Day
certificate.
"Field
day
is
such
an
important
tradition
to
students
and
staff.
Even
though
we
could
not
be
at
school,
I
wanted
to
be
able
to
provide
the
students
with
a
field
day
experience.
OPEN
presented
PE
teachers
nationwide
with
the
opportunity
to
do
this,"
Schlevensky
said.
Third-grader
Jordan
Armstrong
shared,
"I
enjoyed
all
of
the
activities
we
did,
but
the
spoon
relay
was
my
favorite."
First-grader
Ariyah
Hodnett
also
liked
the
spoon
relay
activity,
"At
first
I
thought
it
was
boring,
but
when
I
tried
it,
it
was
fun
for
me
and
my
brother."
Third-grader
Jayden
Armstrong
said,
"It
was
fun.
My
favorite
activity
was
the
penguin
race."
Fourth-grader
Ian
Hodnett
liked
the
backboard
bank-it
activity,
"I
liked
lobbing
socks
into
a
basket,
because
it
was
like
playing
basketball."
Coordinating
this
event
serves
as
another
example
of
how
teachers
across
the
Division
are
finding
creative
ways
to
continue
providing
educational
opportunities
for
students
and
staying
connected
as
a
community.