Patrick Noel, a PE teacher at Colvin Run Elementary School, is using trick shots to teach his students an essential life skill: resilience. During a recent class, he showed fourth graders videos of himself attempting challenging trick shots in the gym. He then encouraged them to create their own shots using various gym equipment, emphasizing that failure is part of the learning process.
“You’ve got to be ready to fail,” Noel told his students. He explained that they would miss more shots than they’d make but urged them to analyze their misses and adjust. The goal is to help students embrace failure and use it as a stepping stone toward success.
Noel developed this lesson during the pandemic while teaching remotely. In his first year at the school, he recorded himself performing trick shots, hoping to entertain and inspire his students. Each miss taught him valuable lessons about perseverance and problem-solving, which he now passes on to his students.
As the students tried shots behind their backs or off the walls, Noel moved around, celebrating their successes and encouraging them to keep trying when they missed. “They can use it to get frustrated or to get motivated,” he said, emphasizing that growth comes from persistence.
By the end of class, students reflected on how overcoming challenges made success more satisfying, learning that resilience is about not giving up, no matter how difficult the task.
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Photo: Getty