The Talking Adapted P.E. Podcast

Longtime Adapted PE teacher Ron Usher joins the show this week to discuss his long career and the creation of his YouTube Channel @coachronandbaru and his website www.coachronandbaru.com

Danielle Musser joins the show this week to discuss what the APE world in the state of Colorado looks like and to discuss what it is like navigating the intricacies of being an expecting parent, a new parent, and a teacher.

Matt Barker was the first-ever guest on the show and he's back to discuss his website, www.justadaptit.com. Justadapt.com is a sponsor of the show and quite possibly the best resource on the internet for Adapted P.E. Teachers. Chris and Matt walk through everything that is available on the site and discuss how it can support one's teaching. Please be sure to comment, like, and subscribe to the show!

Justin Haegele a professor at ODU joined the show to discuss his book - Teaching Disabled Children in Physical Education - (Dis)connections Between Research and Practice. We also get Justin's thoughts on trends in the field and if an everyday teacher should consider going on for their PhD.

I am joined this week by Heidi Ambrosius. Heidi has been teaching for 25 years and is currently an APE teacher in the Moreno Valley Unified School District. She is also an adjunct professor at Cal State San Bernadino and is the new Chairperson for California's State Council on Adapted Physical Education. Heidi and I spent most of our conversation talking about Adapted PE in Pre-School and the nuances that come with it. Heidi and I could have talked for hours as we both have a passion for our field. We'll have to bring her back for another sit-down. Please Enjoy the episode and be sure to like and subscribe!

Former National APE teacher of the year and current Program Manager for APE in the Fairfax County Schools in Virginia, Brad Weiner joins the show. Brad discusses what it is like to oversee a department of over 50 APE teachers, the PD opportunities he offers, some of the great teaching practices taking place in his district, and then we go into all of the great content he's created for the field, specifically his creation of non-standardized assessments. Brad's work can be found at myphysicaleducator.com.

Dr. Melissa Bittner from CSU Long Beach discusses assessment in adapted physical education, covering topics such as the assessment process, legal requirements, standardized vs. non-standardized assessments, listing hours on an IEP, factors for writing goals, and the importance of ongoing assessment for students with disabilities.

Kasia Givenrod, SHAPE America Teacher of the Year, discusses assessments, Unified PE, and advocacy work. Topics include positive language impact, journey into APE, benefits of Unified PE, favorite teaching tools, budgeting wisely, and continuous learning in education.

This week we have National Teacher of the year, Jen Heebink, from Minnesota. I first connected with Jen during Covid when we shared resources back and forth. Jen’s passi on comes through in this episode, especially when discussing Unified PE. Catch her on Twitter at @jeneebink and TikTok @mrsheebinkadaptedpe. Jen will be presenting at the SHAPE America conference in Seattle next month. Try and catch her session. Thank you to those of you that have reached out via email and Twitter about the show. I love getting the feedback. If there are topics you want on the show, be sure to connect with me on Twitter @chrisahrens. Enjoy the show!

Welcome to episode 4 of the Talking Adapted P.E. Podcast! Due to the long holiday weekend, we’re dropping on a Tuesday this week. Please be sure to go rate and follow the show on your favorite podcast platforms. This week we have Eric Kohl (@MrKohlPE - Twitter). Eric teaches a specially designed program to students designated as socially and emotionally disturbed. He provides excellent insight into the benefits of consistency, connecting with students, and working with Para educators. I think you will really enjoy the show! Episode 4, starts now! Links mentioned in the show - https://www.intervaltimer.com/ (seconds pro)