P.E. Teacher of the Year

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It’s National Teacher Appreciation week, and our guest, Kyle Bragg of Scottsdale’s Anasazi Elementary School, is certainly appreciated. He’s been named the “National P.E. Teacher of the Year.”

The pandemic changed a lot of components in life, including education, “it’s been a crazy year. We’ve been in person for a while now, the online for about four months now…it’s tough. The cool thing is though, we can use those online lessons going forward,” Bragg said.

The transition to online learning created virtual lesson plans that will be available to students who are unable to attend a regular P.E. class. And that leaves Bragg optimistic for the future.

But what makes Bragg standout as an excellent P.E. teacher?

“I think what I’m really passionate about is getting them to understand it’s not just about how far you kick the ball, how long, it’s about how you treat people…so I’m trying to teach them things that they’re going to be, they’re going to be able to use for the rest of their life,” Bragg said.

Bragg believes teaching P.E. goes beyond the fitness and he emphasizes the importance of mental health.

“I want to be that person that they can count on, they can come to me and really, you know have trust, trust me and talk to me,” Bragg said.

With physical education can come some competition but Bragg utilizes this as an opportunity for students to be in leadership roles. If someone is good at one thing they can help and teach others who are at a different level.

“Everyone’s experience levels are different, but we all help each other instead of going against, we’re lifting each other up,” Bragg said.

Kyle Bragg, P.E. Teacher, Anasazi Elementary School

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