LEARN: P.E teachers are incorporating academics in their everyday activities
By Emilie Bean, Opinions Editor
There is a pressure on the young minds of this generation, especially in the elementary school years. Classes are becoming increasingly difficult and the children are struggling to catch up. Their young minds are tired by the end of the day and then there is the tremendous amount of homework and studying that they have to accomplish before they wake up bright and early to do it all over again. If only there was a way to alleviate some of the stress we burden these young students with-a fun way for them to study during school.
Everglades Elementary School in West Palm Beach, Florida seems to have come across the answer. Although many gym classes in elementary schools are being cut to make room for academics, this school has found the happy medium. On a normal afternoon the third graders of Everglades Elementary may review words like “acronym,” “clockwise” and “descending,” as well as a few math concepts like greater than, less than and place values while in gym class.
“I don’t work for Parks and Recreation,” Ms. Patelsky, the physical education teacher at Everglades Elementary School, said to explain the new approach to what once was a break from all of the stresses of school. “I am a teacher first.”
Everglades is not the only school taking this step to help students better their education. The new standards for English and math that have been adopted by 45 states and the District of Columbia suggest that teachers incorporate more literacy instruction in all of their subjects. Now many of these schools are looking to incorporate literacy skills and informational text into gym classes.
While some are not happy about the new addition of academics during gym, this may be the saving grace gym classes need. They are now hanging on by a thread. Budget cuts are forcing schools to take out what isn’t necessary to getting those outstanding STAR test scores. Physical Education is next in line for the slaughter house. This is a way to make P.E. teachers more of an asset to schools and make gym class seem as important as the academic classes.
P.E. teachers are now posting vocabulary lists on the walls and teaching students the parts of the skeleton. At Deep Creek Elementary School in Chesapeake, Virginia, children now count in different languages during warm-up exercises and hop on letter mats to spell out words.
However, there should be a stopping point to how far academics can creep into gym class. Implementing academics in fun activities during P.E should be commended, but some gym classes are giving out homework and that is pushing it too far. Students are already drowning in the piles of busy work teachers are suffocating them with. There does not need to be another class added to the chaos.
Academics in P.E is a great idea. Some students have an easier time learning when they are up and moving around. There should be a push on academic activities in gym classes as long as the students are still being active and P.E teachers are not drowning students in even more homework. Gym has always been the class students did not have to stress about and it should stay that way.