Review of Teaching Fundamental Motor Skills, Fourth Edition

From Joncie Albright, PGMT, Physical Education Teacher at Locus Grove Primary School in Orange County, Virginia

 MAY 2022

Teaching Fundamental Motor Skills, Fourth Edition, is the one must-have book for all new and veteran elementary physical education teachers! The clean, straightforward organization makes it easy to find exactly what you’re looking for. The foundation of the suggested techniques is based on the SHAPE National Standards and also the authors’ collective years of local-, state-, and national-award-winning professional experience.

It’s a comprehensive, user-friendly guide for how to simply and effectively teach 25 different skills (8 locomotor and 17 manipulative skills) in order to maximize the learning of elementary-age children. Each well-organized chapter begins with a brief synopsis of the suggested age at which each skill should be mastered and the SHAPE Grade-Level Outcome with which it is aligned. Two tables (one for locomotor skills and one for manipulative skills) at the beginning of the book are a great quick reference for the applicable standards, which are also simplified for each specific skill within its corresponding chapter. Each skill is broken down into a few key verbal cues that, when said aloud while performing the skill, allow even the youngest students to remember the critical components of each skill. A corresponding picture for each cue shows proper movement form, which allows students to see and say as they do to mesh auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learning. In addition, multiple suggestions are also provided to use with children of differing ability levels, and these are easy to find in an additional summary box area.

Numerous valuable videos are included within the highly recommended HKPropel Access. Fun minimal-equipment partner and small-group activities are also provided. As added bonuses, two types of partner skill check assessments (one using pictures and the other using words) allow for all elementary students to easily assess each other. Keeping relevant with today’s needs, this new edition also includes suggestions for promoting social-emotional health. Most teachers are on a stringent budget, and this all-inclusive guide packed with an abundance of updated resources is well worth the investment.