Purpose
The purpose of my proposal is to request that physical education be made mandatory at Salida Elementary school. Children are not getting an adequate amount of activity during the school year. Obesity in children is on the rise in the United States. Therefore, we need to teach children how to make healthier decisions while they are young so they will have the tools to live a healthy lifestyle.
Summary
Currently, at Salida Elementary school, I am not seeing any physical education being taught. Children are given free time, but most children just walk around or sit at a table. Teachers do not have PE equipment available in their classrooms to construct any type of activity.
I would like to propose that Salida Elementary school start teaching physical education on a regular basis. With each age group, the curriculum would be simple. Staff could work together and come up with easy and fun activities that grade levels could do together or separate. Teachers should also try to be good role models when it comes to snacks and drinks they bring into class. Children believe that if their teacher is drinking a soda then it’s alright for them. Also, children should not be given candy as rewards or special prizes the majority of the time. They should switch it up to stickers, erasers, pencils, and markers. Make it fun!
However, in order for physical education to be part of daily curriculum, the schools would need proper equipment. Each grade level would have to share equipment recommended for PE time only. Teachers could have separate play equipment in their classrooms for use at recess.
Therefore, the school district would have to purchase PE equipment for each grade level. There are six grade levels on the campus, kindergarten thr...
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...ble (Figure 2) show childhood obesity rates from 2011 in children ages 10-17. Obesity rates remain high in ages 2-19 and adults in the United States and have not changed between 2011-2012 (“Childhood Overweight and Obesity Trends”).
Figure 2: Map and table of obesity rates from 2011
The article in Idaho State Journal titled, Teacher Defends I.F. elementary school P.E. class: State Proposal to mandate 60 minutes of gym per week, states, “…gym classes aren’t just lessons in basketball, aerobics, or even body sculpting. They’re lessons in life.”
Experiences
Salida Elementary has academically successful staff members. Together everyone could collaborate and come up with a program that would be motivating and exciting. We could also work physical education into the day where extra hours would not have to be added and learning in the classroom would not be affected.
Childhood onset overweight and obesity and its’ associated health consequences are quickly becoming major significant public health issues facing America today. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) define overweight as a body mass index (BMI) between the 85th and 95th percentile while obese is defined as BMI above the 95th percentile for children of the same age and sex . The prevalence of overweight children, defined based on 2009 CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics data, has more than tripled in the past 30 years. Between 1980 and 2006, the incidence of overweight among children aged 6 to 11 years increased from 6.5% to 17.0% while overweight levels for adolescents aged 12 to 19 years increased from 5.0% to 17.6% . Not only has prevalence of child and adolescent overweight and obesity increased dramatically over the last several decades, but being an overweight or obese child puts one at a heightened risk for adult overweight and obesity .
This article from CDC talk about the basics about childhood obesity. It provides information on how childhood overweight and obesity is measured by calculating an individual’s body mass index (BMI). It also states some consequences that are related to childhood obesity, both consequences that can happen now and later...
There is an alarming rise in childhood obesity throughout the United States, making it an epidemic in our country. Obesity has become a threat to the health of many children. Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years. The percentage of children aged 6–11 years in the United States who were obese increased from 7% in 1980 to nearly 18% in 2012. Similarly, the percentage of adolescents aged 12–19 years who were obese increased from 5% to nearly 21% over the same period.(Childhood Obesity Facts, 2015)
For the first time in years, schools are considering imposing an extra mandatory class on students with the hopes of solving a deadly problem; however, it could be causing more problems rather than diminishing it. A statistic recently released by the Kaiser Family Foundation, has stated that in America, 31.3% of 10-17 year olds are either obese or overweight. To combat this issue, The President’s Council on Physical Fitness has introduced a proposal that would require every high school in the United States to have a daily and mandatory physical education class in order to promote healthy lifestyle choices. Very few states require P.E. daily for high school students; however, many states are considering adopting the proposal. Doing so seemed like a great way to combat the growing problem until I thoroughly researched the topic and found that the negatives outweighed the possible positives. Calvin Christian adopting the proposal created by the President’s Council on Physical Fitness regarding mandatory daily P.E. classes would be a huge mistake due to the negative effect on student’s physical and emotional health, the likelihood of an increased budget, and the possible cut of valued classes.
Schools serve as an amazing venue to provide students with everyday physical movement, and to instruct the essentialness of general physical action for wellbeing. Shockingly, most individuals' get little to no general physical activity while in school. Budgetary obligations and the pressure to increase test scores have brought on school authorities to address the worth of PE and other physical activity programs. This has prompted a significant lessening in the time accessible for PE, and in a few cases, school-based physical action projects have been totally eliminated.
Physical activity should be encouraged at an early age. It would be best to make physical education a required school curriculum. A student taking a physical education class will have many benefits. For example, a child taking a physical education class will learn about proper exercising. It would also be wise if the instructors integrated information about healthy eating habits into the curriculum to further increase a child?s knowledge on good dieting. This will help a child develop physically more in strength and endurance which in turn will build healthy bones, muscles, and muscle development. Furthermore, at the same time a child will maintain a healthy weight from eating a nutritional diet. Having studied some physical education classes from personal experience, the coach was very passionate about being healthy. Before leaving P.E. class everyday, he would review all the major food groups and stress that the students stay away from fried foods and consume more fruit in their diet.
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) about “17% (or 12.5 million) of children and adolescents aged 2-19 years are obese” (Moreno et al., 2013 P.157). “Surveys administered in 1976-1980 and 2007-2008 show that the prevalence of obesity has changed from 6.5% to 19.6% among children 6-11 years old age and from 5.0% to 18.1% for those aged 12-19 years (Moreno et al., 2013 P.157).
P. E. teachers teach skills that I know are necessary to mold healthy children for a healthy future. In order to achieve such skills it is also important that children have a safe environment in which to exercise motor skills. As children grow, they become more interested in the world around them through the use of motor skills .
Gabbard, C., LeBlanc, B., & Lowy, S. (1994). Physical Education for Children: Building the Foundation, 2nd edition. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, inc.
This will hopefully lead them into living healthy lifestyles as adults that will help them live a longer and happier life. Children in elementary school are the easiest humans to influence, partly because they do not quite know the difference between right and wrong. However, teaching children about physical health from the start is the best way to begin the process. Daryl Siedentop, a physical education expert, says that elementary taught classes aim to teach basic motor skills and seek to influence young children to be individualistic in their sport. Most people do not see these lessons taking place.
Physical education in school systems is beneficial because it improves students’ health. Without physical education the child’s overall health will decrease. Despite these benefits, some people believe that physical education has no value to children in schools. Physical education is significant in schools because it improves children’s health.
motivated than past students. Many of these young people would prefer to be sitting passively in front of the television rather than to do something physically active. Most high school students believe they do not have sufficient time, opportunity or guidance to participate in physical activities. The ideal place in which students would be able to find adequate time, opportunity and guidance are in the high schools themselves. Politicians and educators responsible for the mandatory physical education program at the junior high school levels (grades
Over the past decades our culture has changes dramatically. To which our nation was once a physically active nation. Yet now it seems that society discourages physical activity. The human race has been dependent on automobiles, discouraging people to walk or bike, increasing the chance of a poor life-style. Yet there are many factors that affect the achievement and maintenance of a healthy life. Young people are growing into a diverse society, which is characterized by rapid change, inactive work and leisure practices that influence unhealthy behaviors. By incorporating physical activity into peoples daily routine will increase their chances of being healthier, reducing certain diseases and learning how to avoid injuries. Physical education helps students improve their knowledge about health issues and practices that will lead to a more enjoyable life. Students playing and working in a team together develop social skills, teamwork, achieving goals, and development of self-esteem. Overall physical education provides the potential for a better life style.
Kelly, L. E., L. Kelly, and V. Melograno. Developing the physical education curriculum: An achievement-based approach. Human Kinetics Publishers, 2004. Print.
Physical education takes place in the school curriculum which is timetabled and taught to all school pupils. This involves a range of different skills, learning basic movements