Physical Literacy & Black Holes

A couple weeks back I was in the middle of writing my student reports. If you’re a teacher like me, you’ll know that report season somehow always also turns into “learn new things/try new recipes/clean the house/take up new hobbies” season.

That being said, in the middle of my grade 2 reports, I somehow developed a strong interest in black holes and how they are studied.

Around 2 am, I stumbled across this quote from NASA:

Scientists can’t directly observe black holes with telescopes that detect x-rays, light, or other forms of electromagnetic radiation. We can, however, infer the presence of black holes and study them by detecting their effect on other matter nearby. If a black hole passes through a cloud of interstellar matter, for example, it will draw matter inward in a process known as accretion. A similar process can occur if a normal star passes close to a black hole. In this case, the black hole can tear the star apart as it pulls it toward itself. As the attracted matter accelerates and heats up, it emits x-rays that radiate into space. Recent discoveries offer some tantalizing evidence that black holes have a dramatic influence on the neighborhoods around them — emitting powerful gamma ray bursts, devouring nearby stars, and spurring the growth of new stars in some areas while stalling it in others.

What a crazy thought that black holes can’t be directly observed, but rather can only be inferred by detecting the effects on matter nearby.

That got me thinking about physical literacy (remember, I was still in the middle of reports). I’ve always had a beef with no one giving me a very clear answer on how physical literacy is/can be measured. I know there are some great tools out there, but I was annoyed with the fact that they only measured things related to physical literacy (e.g. fitness, skill profiency, regular participation in physical activity, desire to participate in physical activity) and not physical literacy itself.

However, if I think of physical literacy as a black hole, knowing that scientists cannot study the thing itself, but rather just its impact on the things around it, then suddenly these tools make a lot more sense.

I’m thinking that when I get back to my school after the break, I’m going to pitch Passport for Life to the leadership there. It’s time we start measuring physical literacy.

P.S.: FYI, all of my reports were completed on time. Also, here’s a good recipe you should try out, here’s a cool app for setting up chores around the house, and you should really check out Netflix’s documentary section (“The Vanishing of the Bees” is wildly interesting and provides the viewer with just the right amount of procrastination time).