Brainstorming for Upcoming TOPGUN Competition

Welcome back from break, I hope you enjoyed yourself. Tommorrow is uniform day so be ready with your appearance, bearing, and knowledge.

Today we will break up into small groups (group leaders chose teams) and brainstorm potential TOPGUN events for the platoon versus platoon competition. I want each group to come up with events for two categories: 

IN CLASS EVENTS: can be done in school during the class period.

OUT OF CLASS EVENTS: can be done  after-school and online.

Come up with a group list and then give to designated class scribe (see below) to write input on a Google Doc.

Google Doc: PROPOSED TOP GUN EVENTS  (Click on Link) 

PERIOD 2: Group Leaders are Bonilla and Velmani. 

Scribe is Tom Mirabella

PERIOD 4: Group Leaders are Ceja and Fequiere. 

Scribe is Kevin Martinez.

PERIOD 6: Group Leaders are Micheal Ragusa and Christian Araujo. 

Scribe is Michele Veliz.

PERIOD 7: Group Leaders are Mercy Stevenson and James Gray. 

Scribe is Robert Chavez.

2014 Upperclassmen Final Exam: Using Your Summer To Set Yourself Up for Success Next Year

2014 Upperclassmen JROTC Final Exam

Purpose: The purpose of this final examination for Upperclassmen (9,10,11 graders) Cadets is to create a product that will have relevance to your plans this summer to prepare yourself for next year both professionally and personally. You should be able to use what you learn from this examination during your summer and to help you attain goals in the future.

Cadet Sposato and Chief Pascoe

Pre-Exam Preparation: Spend time prior to the exam analyzing your summer, consider the below factors (feel free to add any more you feel are relevant) and develop (synthesize) your summer plan.

Summer Tasks:

• Work
• How can you earn money this summer?
• Where, Doing What, Hours, Salary
• Volunteer / Community Service
• Where can you perform community service or volunteer?
• Where, When, For Whom
• Exercise and Health
• President’s Physical Fitness Program
• Other Physical Activity of Your Choice
• Relax / Vacation
• Traveling (with family if possible)
• Stay-cation: Day Trips from home
• Professional Development
• College Prep: Generic College Essay
• Check Out Colleges Online (Which Ones)
• College Tour (Local or while on Vacation)
• SAT / ACT Prep (How, Where?)
• Personal Development
• Family Relationships
• Parents and Guardians
• Siblings (Brothers & Sisters)
• Other Relatives
• Friend Relationships
• Reading (What Books?)
• Select two Books You Want To Read This Summer that will assist in your personal or professional development.

Your Final Exam: Using your pre-exam preparation, you are required to conduct two graded tasks (one written task prior to the exam and one verbal task during the exam):

• Pre-Exam Task: Complete a detailed two to three page 2014 Personal Summer Plan and turn it in at the beginning of the class period during the scheduled exam to the SNSI.
• List and explain all of the specific tasks (Work, Volunteer / Community Service, Exercise and Health, Relax/Vacation, Professional, Personal, Reading) you plan to perform.
• Place all of these specific tasks on a calendar. You will use this calendar during the Exam Task.   
• Exam Task: Using your 2014 Personal Summer Plan, and associated calendar brief the SNSI on your personal plan for the summer. Ensure you address not only the summer tasks but specifically how you plan to accomplish them and when by using the calendar.  

THE SCHEDULE FOR YOUR FINALS ARE PUBLISHED BY THE SCHOOL.

If you have any questions make sure you contact me AT BOTH rfkillackey@gmail.com and killackeyr@norwalkps.org .

Soliciting Your Inputs for TOPGUN (Interclass) Competition

Background. Every year our JROTC program conducts a competition between the classes. We merge a freshmen class with an upperclassmen class organized into a platoon. The TOPGUN (named after the US Navy Flying School) competition is designed to re-energize the cadets, build unit and class integrity, and for the cadets to have safe and organized fun with a purpose. Any effective organization solicits input from its members to ensure everyone's involvement and identify good ideas. That is what we are going to do today in class, before we solidify the TOPGUN schedule I want to harvest your input and ideas. 

Class Activities:  
1. Form into three small groups and discuss and brainstorm ideas for activities for 20 minutes. Everyone will take notes.
2. Near the end of class, each group will brief the class and provide a written copy of their suggestions. 
3. Make sure you are prepared for PT tomorrow for Friday and review the blog for the weekends homework. 

Spring Partial President's Physical Fitness Test (Friday, April 25)

Spring is upon us and we need to get out an exercise. We have to take advantage of the good weather and get moving after our partial winter hibernation!!!!  

For those cadets considering Leadership Academy / Sail Training (LA/ST) during the summer, today's test  (Friday) will function as Inventory Physical Fitness Test (PFT).

LA/ST Candidates will conduct the full PFT (cadence pushups, maximum  crunches in one minute, & 1 mile timed run), but all other classmates will conduct the partial PFT (cadence pushups & maximum crunches in 1 minute).  

Remember SAFETY and our ORM (Operational Risk Management) Plan:
1. If you don't feel well at any time or notice someone else not looking like they don't feel well, call a Training Time Out (TTO). Let the NSI or another teacher know ASAP. 
2. If you have asthma, you can't run without your inhaler. 
3. If anyone starts to encounter breathing difficulty or gets light headed (feels dizzy) let someone & NSI know ASAP.
3. NSI will have their cell phone with them to call school nurse or 911, if required 

Good Luck. Enjoy the weather and ability to exercise. 

Platoon PT Competition By Class Period (Friday)

Background. We are almost finished with our internal unit competition, called TOPGUN (after the Navy Fighter Pilot Aviation School). Today's event is a calisthenics competition where every one does a series of selected exercises to determine how many correct repetitions they can accomplish in one minute:

• PUSH UPS
• CRUNCHES
• BURPESS (Similar to 8 count Body-builders) 

Assessment: We are using the President's Physical Fitness Test standards for assessing a correct repetition of the Push Ups and Crunches. Students counting are supposed to correct improper technique as well as not count it as a successful repetition. Teacher supervises this assessment ensuring only credit for proper technique is given. 

Class Activity: 

1. Warm Up: Two class leaders are selected and will perform a group stretch and warm-up.
2. Pick a same gender partner for the competition. One person performs the exercise and the other person will count the repetition only if it is performed correctly. 
3. One line of students will perform the exercise while their partner across from them counts. Students are encouraged to have and bring water bottles with them as they exercise.
4. There will be a designated timer and results recorder.
5. Safety: Following each event they will be given a recovery window. Following the competition they will conduct a Cool Down. (Training Time Out) Any student not feeling well during the event is allowed to stop. Any student observed to not be feeling well or acting OK will be identified to Teacher immediately. 
6. Teacher will conduct a Cool Down where the class walks (column of twos, route step) down the hall to the water fountain to drink water and go to the bathroom if necessary. Then they walk back to class, if they have water bottles then they can fill them up. 

Give it your best effort and exercise safely!!!

Stress Management & the benefits of Meditation

You may be wondering what the heck does stress management and mediation have to do with JROTC...? It has a lot to do with our curriculum. especially Unit V (Wellness, Fitness, and First Aid) section of the Introduction To The Navy Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps Curriculum book.Unit V, Chapter 7 is about Taking Care of Yourself, and withing that chapter there is a section called Learn To Reduce Stress on page 263 and 264. Chapter 8 is titled Understanding and Controlling Stress (pages 269 to 281).

After the class on Stress Management (near the end of the second marking period) and your feedback from the End of the Marking Period 2 assignment; many of you were interested in this topic. Many of you wrote  about meditation and the desire to learn how meditation can help you to relax and manage your stress. Anticipating some change in the schedule due to pending snowstorm, we will focus on this topic today instead of Friday. Some people feel that meditating can even help the learning process. Lets watch this short video and follow along and mediate in your seats.

Classroom Activity:  Meditation

1. Place the mats out on the floor and sit down or lay down (space dependent) facing outboard, away from others.
2. Teacher will play some meditative music to enhance the meditation.
Music to Mediate By...
3. Use this time to get in tune with yourself and clear or order your mind and thoughts. This should have an impact on the rest of your day.
4. Think about how (what type, location, setting) and how often (frequency) do you specifically try to relax and manage your own stress. If you don't you might want to consider finding a way that works for you.


Homework:
1. Using First name only & class period (Ex. Luke Period 1) Make a blog entry by monday and state how you meditate or relax to manage your stress and what it does for you. If you don't have a relaxation technique or form of stress management, then post what you can develop that you can use and work for you.

Stress Management for High School Students

Many things happen to us in the course of a day, week, month, and a year. Some of the things are good, some of the things are bad, and others things fall in between. Identifying stress is important and then having a mechanism or activity you do to manage that stress is important, even critical to your physical, mental, and moral well being.

Ask the student's what the picture above means to them:  Solicit their impressions.

 Lets take a look at a video of Teens and Stress:

The video is presented from a parent's perspective so as young adults on the cusp of adulthood view this from both the parent-to-be and teenage child perspective.

Class Activity:

Have the students  put their heads down and close their eyes while seated at their desks and with the lights turned off. Before doing this they are instructed to think about the positive stressors and negative stressors in their lives, and how they manage or don't manage that stress. This will be used in the class discussion after the video.

Class Discussion:

1. What are your stressors?

2. What are some way you manage or could manage that stress?

Friday PT: Getting Stronger and Smarter

Warm Up:  Gather in a Circle Around the Class Leader and slowly stretch from head to toe. Remember ease into the stretch and don't bounce in the stretch. You are encouraged to bring a water bottle and drink from it as you desire.

Physical Fitness Event:  

1. We will split the class up into two groups. 
2. Each group will be asked a question based on information from Cadet Knowledge (General Orders, Uniform Info, Chain of Command, or other information taught by the NSI). 
3. If the group gets the question correct, the entire group only has to perform 10 repetitions of the selected exercise. If the group gets the question incorrect, they will have to perform 15 repetitions of the selected exercise. 

Selected Exercises:

• Mountain Climbers
• Crunches 
• Regular Push Ups
• Standing Knee Raises
• Crossed Ankle Push Ups
• Jumping Jacks
• Backward Claps
• March In Place

Cool Down: Class Leader remind the NSI when it is 6 minutes before the end of class. We will gather our backpacks and walk down to the water fountain to hydrate.

Presidents Physical Fitness Test Challenge

President's Physical Fitness Test Challenge Activities

Click on the Above Link to find out more.

The Physical Fitness Test* includes five activities that measure muscular strength/endurance, cardio-respiratory endurance, speed, agility, and flexibility:

• Curl-ups (or partial curl-ups)
• Shuttle run
• Endurance run/walk
• Pull-ups (or right angle push-ups or flexed-arm hang)
• V-sit reach (or sit and reach)