Field Day Shorts began as a practical solution to a series of real-world problems. Construction, weather, and scheduling challenges made my traditional field day impossible to run in its previous, familiar form. Instead of one large event in June, the experience was deconstructed and spread across six themed “shorts” held throughout the school year. Each installment features four primary and four for intermediate activities running concurrently, with students rotating every ten minutes during a 45-minute block. This session shares the planning process, structure, and helpful tips that turned a beloved tradition into an improved series of manageable celebrations from September through June.
University Chopped Challenge: Get Your Heart Pumping, Future Professionals The challenge: Future physical educators team up for a fast-paced competition that puts creativity, collaboration, and professional knowledge into action. How it works: Teams tackle challenges inspired by the SHAPE America Standards at the elementary and secondary levels. Each round brings a mystery box of equipment, instructional requirements, and teaching considerations. The goal: Create a developmentally appropriate, inclusive, engaging, and standards-based PE experience that impresses the judges and keeps your team advancing. Be Competitive: Judges will be assigned. A winner will be determined. Think fast. Work together. Find your rhythm. Show us why future professionals are the next heartbeat of physical education!
Thursday November 12, 2026 8:55am - 9:40am EST Victory Hall
TechNO Dance is an innovative, low-pressure workshop designed for educators who want to bring movement into the classroom without the "stage fright" of traditional dance instruction. The session focuses on breaking down the barrier between creative expression and technical mastery, proving that you don’t need to be a choreographer—or a tech wizard—to get students moving.
This session is designed for beginning teachers and undergraduate students looking for practical ways to integrate fitness into elementary physical education. Attendees will learn how to make fitness fun and engaging while focusing on fundamental movement skills, instant activities, and minimal equipment. Participants will explore easy-to-implement activities that develop upper and lower body strength and aerobic conditioning, all while keeping students motivated and active. The session will highlight “instant activities” that maximize movement time and require little setup, along with strategies for seamlessly embedding fitness into skill-based lessons. Emphasis will be placed on developmentally appropriate, inclusive practices that ensure all students can succeed and enjoy movement. Attendees will leave with a variety of adaptable games, station ideas, and teaching strategies they can immediately apply in their classes to create positive, high-energy fitness experiences.
Are you looking for dynamic and useful activities that will instantly energize your program? Then this sessions is for you. This session will feature highly engaging activities that you will want to use next week, and your students will be asking for on a regular basis. In this session, you will learn instant activities, main skill focused activities, as well as fun and novel assessment pieces. This is designed for a K-12 audience.
