On Saturday, 15 February 2020 our regular Learning Activity Day, due to the previous night’s downpour, the event had been delayed and changed from 7.30 a.m. to 10.15 a.m. The entire Junior One gathered at the ball court applauded and shrieked with excitement as our P.E. Teacher, Mr Lee Wei Le, the marshal for this activity, studded onto the makeshift stage. He then announced the purpose for this event was to provide the students with techniques and the correct posture when it comes to doing basic exercises, as well as to raise awareness on the subject of keeping a healthy lifestyle.
Mr Lee proceeded to explain the procedures one must follow when an injury occurs. What should one do if such a mishap were to happen in school? The answer, of course, was to get a teacher. But, suppose you are outside of the school compound and that option is unavailable? Mr Lee introduced to all present the concept of “P.R.I.C.E.”, the five-step process for treating a muscle or joint injury such as an ankle sprain, which is short for Protection, Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation.
Protection: Protect the injured person and the area being treated but also protect yourself. If the injury occurs on the sports field, stop the game. Rest, which is pretty straightforward, Ice for when an injury occurs, and you apply an ice pack onto it to promote blood clotting. Next up will be Compression, where the application of pressure onto the area near the injury will slow down the blood flow and reduce bleeding. And last of all, Elevation, in which you place the injured limb or body part at a higher position so that bleeding, too, will cease.
After that, Mr Lee called out onto a few fellow colleagues to help demonstrate the correct, as well as incorrect postures while doing push-ups, sit-ups, and planks. He even meticulously went into the details of each different posture for each exercise. He also selected students from the audience to take part in his presentation, as well, much to the delight of many. The lively demonstration, coupled with Mr Lee’s jovial personality, induced enthusiastic laughter from all. With that, the Junior Ones were given time to try out and practice doing sit-ups, push-ups and planking. Although it was tiring, most enjoyed this part of the activity.
Through interviews, a student said that they had learned many things about these basic exercises that even she had not known about. On the other hand, one student revealed that the presentation was a little lengthy and kind of lost some interest. Another student, too, agreed on that fact as well. Although the reactions towards this event were rather mixed, it is inarguably that it had delivered its main purpose well and true. This, in any book, is deemed a success.