Where physical educators come together to share ideas and build community.
Hi! I am Barb Selvey! I am a K-2 PE teacher in a school in Western Massachusetts. I am a proud Springfield College Alum (class of '87 - Wooooooooooo!) here in Springfield, MA. When I got this dream job of mine, it was exactly 20 years after I graduated from Springfield College with my Elementary PE degree. In the interim, just out of college, I worked for 6 years at the local Jewish Community Center as an Asst. PE director - an experience I wouldn't trade for the world! There, my duties were many, but I learned a lot! Then I went full time to get my Masters in the Teaching and Administration of Physical Education from Montclair State Univ. in NJ. When I returned to Massachusetts, the only job I could find at the time was a Health teaching job, so I taught health for the next 9 years until the health program was eliminated due to the budget cuts. For 2 years I was a stay at home mom which was good because my youngest son was diagnosed with autism during that time and needed to receive a large amount of therapy. Finally, the year my youngest turned 3 and went to school full time, the school system which laid me off called me up and said they had this K-2 PE teaching job available for me - MY DREAM JOB! It took 20 years to land it, but it was worth the wait! I love teaching PE to the younger students - I find it fun, extremely rewarding, and who doesn't like to be greeted each day like you are a ROCK STAR?!!! Lastly, I have supervised 4 student teachers since I have been back to teaching and I have found it to be just as much of a learning experience for me as it is for them. I highly recommend trying it if you are thinking of mentoring.