Individualized Physical Education Classes

by

Debbie W. Wilson

For many of us time-strapped home schoolers, finishing the day's academic work and household chores can overwhelm us. It is easy to let something slide. For me that something is frequently physical education.

Because my sons are not interested in playing on the support-group basketball team and because going into town in the middle of the day to a local college program arranged by our support group hasn't always worked out, we have had to find alternatives for physical education. Our program has utilized individualized activities.

In our high-schooling years, the boys have lifted weights, run, biked, climbed ropes, hunted, target practiced, shot trap, and done a little archery . The weightlifting and rope climbing built strength; the running and biking agility , endurance and cardiovascular conditioning, and the hunting, target practice, trapshooting and archery hand-eye coordination.

Develop your program. In physical education, as in other classes, I find developing the classes easier if I am familiar with the activity before I begin. However, sometimes a new activity that interests the whole family encourages consistency better than some activity that bores everyone.

First, research potential sports that satisfy your concerns for your child. Perhaps you might prefer canoeing, ice- or roller-skating, skiing, hiking, throwing horseshoes, conditioning, bowling, walking, swimming, paintballing, horsemanship, martial arts or something else. If the library doesn't have books on your subject, ask the librarians to help you find some through interlibrary loan. Talk with others who enjoy the sport and with equipment providers.

Next, consider the reasonableness of your choice. If the nearest ski slope is in Michigan and you live in southern Indiana, downhill skiing would not be a good choice for you. You need something that can be done two or three times a week without much hassle. The more involved your choice is, the harder it will be to do it consistently. Can you afford the equipment to begin? Perhaps grandparents would help with the purchase of it, you could find it used, raise money as a family or share the cost with another family. Some choices can be as inexpensive as tieing a rope to a stout branch for climbing, putting up a bar for high jumps into the hay pile, building a long sandbox for long jumps, or making boxing gloves out of thick polyurethane foam and duct tape.

Do you have or can you make the facilities for doing it? If you live near a park with a tennis court, tennis would be a reasonable choice, but if you don't, badminton might be better.

How difficult will it be to learn? Because my husband had lifted weights as a teenager, he set up the boys' program with some help from library books. Other activities might require a teacher while the basics are being learned. You could hire another teenager, a college student, or someone from your church to give lessons quite reasonably.

How interested is your student in the activity? Often, if you are enthusiastic about something, your children will approach it with a good attitude, especially if you are enthusiastic about their interests. However, if your child has a natural interest, he will be more consistent in his exercise than if he hates it. A friend of ours combined his boy-scout interests in hiking and camping with a program of biking and walking and lost over thirty pounds.

Teach the activity. In weightlifting form is important. Lifting weights that are too heavy for you or handling them incorrectly can hurt you. In some exercises a spotter is required to make sure that you don't drop a heavy weight on yourself when you reach the end of the cycle.

Show your children how to do the activity. Check their form.

Make sure the children know the dangers if there are some. Rules, such as, "never dive without being sure of the water's depth" and "never point a firearm at someone" must be followed assiduously. A child who chooses to disobey the rules or forgets the rules is not mature enough to participate. When we taught our older son the safety rules for shooting the twenty-two rifle, his little brother wanted to learn too. We allowed him to listen and learn the rules, but he could not shoot until he showed the maturity to obey the rules.

Supervise until the child knows what he's doing. For some sports, such as swimming or shooting, you will need to accompany him even after he has mastered the sport.

Encourage progress. Don't let him become content with just doing the exercise. Check with him about his progress. Brag on his progress. Perhaps even videotape him so he can study what he can do to improve.

Chores, such as shoveling snow, gardening, pushing the lawnmower, and raking leaves, can be counted as exercise.

Maintain records. We haven't always done so well on this, but it needn't be difficult. Determine how you will know whether your child is meeting your goals. Is your daughter able to add another routine from her conditioning tape? Perhaps she can do exercises now that she couldn't do at first and she isn't as winded. You could record which exercise routines she's doing by writing the date next to the name of the routine each time she exercises. This is what we do for weightlifting.

Seeing progress encourages any of us to continue.

Overcome problems. Most of us face obstacles from time to time. If a new baby or an illness disrupts the schedule, reform your habits as soon as you can. If your child has been away from the activity for a while, help him adjust his expectations. He may need to spend longer than usual stretching and warming up before he runs, or drop his weights a few pounds, or do the easier gymnastics routines for a few days. He should build up again quickly.

Some people enjoy sedentary activities, such as reading, watching TV, playing computer games. They hate getting sweaty. They dislike changing clothes for exercise. To them exercise is the cod liver oil of existence-- they may have to do it, but they may never like it. I'm sorry to admit that I tend in this direction. For that type of child you can soften the blow by trying to find something he likes to do and doing it with him. Talk to him about how good it feels to see yourself progressing. Sometimes weight problems and others' rude comments have made a child hate certain activities. If he hates basketball, find something else for him to do. But make sure he does the alternate activity. You may need to restrict his TV viewing or reading until he has done his physical education class. Perhaps you need to limit those activities anyway for his eyes' sake.

Also consider combining a hobby or activity he does enjoy with the dreaded physical education class. If he enjoys bird watching, encourage him to take a bird book and a journal with him on his bike ride. Then if he sees a new or unusual bird while riding, he can stop, look it up in the bird book, and record it with the date. Perhaps he would like to take a sketch pad with him as he hikes. Be creative. Use what he enjoys to help him conquer what he dislikes.

When possible, provide variety. If a sudden snowfall offers good sledding, call off the jogging that was scheduled. Climbing hills through the snow gives a good workout.

Celebrate being together with activities. Shovel off the ice on the pond together. Then invite friends to go skating with you. Build a big bonfire for hot chocolate and marshmallows. For my older son's graduation party, we invited friends over to shoot clay pigeons and eat a favorite meal. One of the boys said, "This beats my brother's graduation party all to pieces."

In the past, life required young people to help in the family with chores. Running errands, lifting hay bales, and shoveling manure provided a lot of exercise. When children had free time or a recess at school, they ran, jumped, climbed, and used their bodies. Few sedentary activities promised to be more interesting. But now a parent's fears for a child's safety and easy entertainment seduce youngsters into laziness. Even on playgrounds at recess, many children talk instead of play.

As parents we need to ensure that our children get the nutrition, rest, and exercise they need to accomplish the tasks the Lord sets before them. Being active when young can build habits and self-discipline in them for the years ahead.

(Copyright 1999, Debbie W. Wilson)