Curriculum: Physical Education at the School for Children

Physical Education Overview
Physical Education in the Lower School, 6/7s and 7/8s
Physical Education in the 8/9s through 13/14s

Physical education teachers introduce activities based on their approaches to children's cognitive and physical development in order to give all children an opportunity to succeed. In physical education, as in other areas of the curriculum, staff members encourage and support the participation of all students in activities, but allow the children to develop at their own pace, free from any pressure to perform at certain skill levels at a particular age.

The program has three goals. The first, and perhaps the broadest, is to help children feel good about their bodies. Teachers encourage students to take perfectly safe risks by trying out new activities, expressing themselves through movement, and engaging in spatial/physical problem solving. The second goal is to help children develop and refine skills, strategies, competencies, and fitness through their involvement in tumbling, gymnastics, games, and sports. In realizing this goal, children learn how the body works during exercise, and how to maintain the body's well being through regular exercise and fitness routines. The third goal involves social learning. This includes learning good sportsmanship, that is, how to play cooperatively with team members and by the rules, and the proper way to act when you win and when you lose. It also includes learning how to enjoy wholesome physical activity on a regular basis.

Daily information and supervised play supplement the Physical Education program in the school. The 3/4s through the 6/7s use the second floor play deck for an hour each day. The 7/8s through the 13/14s use the roof or the gym for a half-hour each day after lunch. During these periods, children play with students in other classes and organize their own games with the help of the classroom teacher or the recess supervisor. Younger children have the opportunity for dramatic play with greater physical scope than is possible in the classroom. Upper School students may elect to participate on sports teams in three sports: soccer in the Fall (10/11s-13/14). basketball in the Winter (11/12s-13/14s) and softball in the Spring (10/11s-13/14s).

The physical education teachers meet with the division coordinators on a regular basis to assess the program.