Physical Education
Because we are educating whole persons--soul, body and mind–physical fitness is an important aspect of education. According to Joan Almon, “ Researchers and others focusing on play agree that children in the U.S. today have fewer opportunities to engage in play than did previous generations. This leads to a situation known as ‘play deprivation’ which is associated with a wide range of physical and emotional problems.”
The guidelines from the Department of Health and Human Services recommend that children and adolescents age 6 and older get at least an hour a day of moderate or vigorous aerobic activity. As we make our schedule, it is important to set apart time for physical activity. There are so many reasons to incorporate this into our school days–physical health, emotional health, mental health. As usual, Charlotte Mason brings us back to Scripture and provides the most compelling reason for incorporating physical activity into our days. We have a responsibility to our Creator for caring for our bodies so we can be of service to Him. Mason stated,
But if children are brought up from the first with this magnet––'Ye are not your own'; the divine Author of your being has given you life, and a body finely adapted for His service; He gives you the work of preserving this body in health, nourishing it in strength, and training it in fitness for whatever special work He may give you to do in His world,––why, young people themselves would readily embrace a more Spartan regimen; they would desire to be available, and physical transgressions and excesses, however innocent they seem, would be self-condemned by the person who felt that he was trifling with a trust (Vol 3., p. 103).
How do you incorporate physical activity into your schedule for your students and for yourself? Head on over to the Hive and leave your comments.
Notes
1. Narration: This 5-minute video–More important questions about narration–is a continuation of Shannon’s video posted in the July 22nd issue of The Buzz.
2. Science survey: We’re always evaluating our curriculum and would appreciate your feedback on our science lessons. If you’re using any or all of the Science lessons for any grade, we’d be grateful if you took a moment to fill out this brief survey about your experience.
3. Latin: A member brought it to our attention that there are iBooks available for the student texts of the Cambridge Latin units that include most or all of what is available on Cambridge Elevate and can be accessed on an iPad or iBooks app on your computer. The cost is $1.99 per unit. It has audio of the reading selections, games, etc.
4. Office Hours: Our next session will be Wednesday, August 17 at 3:30 p.m. EDT when we will discuss music and composer study with Kathryn Forney. We will be answering general questions, as well. Please submit your questions at least 24 hours in advance by commenting on the event in The Hive.
Queries
1. Science (Form 1): Under the Planning and Prep section of the lesson plans, it says to make a tree list. What does a "tree list" look like? I saw the examples for flowers and birds but I'm having a hard time translating that to trees. Are we keeping track of when the trees leaf out?
The goal of this list (per the cover page of the lesson plans) is “to be able to identify 6 local trees/living twigs by the end of the term.” The main point of the list is in keeping track of what the student observes. Then it can serve as a record of when it leafs out or when it flowers or when it produces nuts or fruit or a cone or even when the leaves change colors or begin to fall, based on the type of tree.
