Dear Editor,
Physical education (PE) is not a privilege or a reward, and in elementary schools – increasingly so during COVID times – it is being treated as so.
Many elementary schools have gone back to the classroom teacher teaching their students PE, as opposed to a PE specialist, to keep the amount of exposure to extra individuals lower.
This is resulting in some classroom teachers using PE as a reward, or skipping the subject when they see other classwork as a greater priority to complete.
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The bigger picture here is that many of these kids do not get active time in their day other than PE, recess, and lunch.
This time being taken away doesn’t only result in the obvious one – childhood obesity, but increased behavioural issues when there is no active outlet for release.
Another little known fact to keep in mind is that an elementary school class normally receives one 30-minute session of PE a week, possibly a second if the classroom teacher pushes for it.
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Classroom teachers do not have the right to take this time away, it is a subject in school as much as math, and should be treated as so.
Carys Krutz, Maple Ridge
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