To think that schools should have PE more than once a week

[ReallyTired]

My daughter's school has PE in one two hour block so that the teachers can have their non contact time in a two hour block. There is an arguement that the children spend more of their time running about and less of their time changing. However I feel that one two hour PE session a week is not enough for fitness.

Its interesting to see the chinese teachers making the children start the day with exercises. I would not want children to have chinese style PE lessons, but there is a lot to be said for regular PE. I feel that children who are struggling with PE should have a complusory after school PE lessons.

where I know a child with CP who does riding for the disabled during school hours, it's marked as 'educated elsewhere' on the register. Would that be possible for your DS? However it does require being picked up by a parent/carer.

hag I know many that would argue that ALL compulsory subjects are taught like that.

If parents valued PE like they did maths and English, there wouldn't be the same problems with health and fitness, as health and fitness is what is taught in PE GCSE.

I'm very shocked at the experiences some posters have had with PE teaching today. My school allows students time to take part in different sporting activities during school time, especially if they have needs that make it difficult to access the school curriculum, and do a wide range of sport to engage all learners. Such a shame that it seems from reading this, we're the exception rather than the rule. But even sadder to think, that it can be done, but isn't.

As the parent of a dyspraxia,hyper mobile child who has fought for support and has a child who will only just be getting it in year 6 I think schools should be forced to support those struggling in PE,regular reliable assessments should be mandatory and they should be held to account if they don't.

My daughter was picked up in year1 and then dumped.She was afflicted with some unpleasant and unsupportive PE teachers( one mocked her in year 3 for never having seen her actually catch a ball)and we are now at the stage in year 6 where she is PE phobic,has severe self esteem issues, is reported to be below where she should be for PE( can't even do a forward roll),is unfit and we have had to shoe horn OT in during a time that should be concentrating on sats prep.

I think she is now having some Thrive to correct her plummeting self esteem and to encourage her to get back to engaging more in PE lessons.Too little,too late.

Primary PE is often woeful imvho(dd's school has some PE award ironically),they don't differentiate and only care about the more able and the cups they put in the award cupboard. PE is part of the curriculum and as such should be treated the same as any other area- in school hours.

All that bluster post Olympics and extra money never went towards those that count the most ie those who struggle at PE and need to participate more.And we wonder why participation figures have fallen and the post London Olymoic euphoria has disappeared.

Rant over.

I would question the ethos of PE teaching in schools.

*The national curriculum for physical education aims to ensure that all pupils:

1.develop competence to excel in a broad range of physical activities
2.are physically active for sustained periods of time
3.engage in competitive sports and activities
4.lead healthy, active lives*

I am not sure these aims are achieved or desirable at all with the possible exception of 2.

1. I find useless- who cares I I can't throw a javelin or hurdle.
2. Why? To foster future athletes and sports people? All our successful athletes have had extra curricular training, most from a very young age. Many kids hate competitive sports and team games.

The most spectacular failure is 4. School PE is a destructive fore that leads well into adult life for many of us.
The humiliation, the dislike of being forced to compete and take part in rough team games, the lack of empathy shown towards developing kids perhaps with body issues. Nothing but misery for many kids.

Successfully curtailing any lifelong interest in physical activity or fitness for many.

I'd personally rather see PE dropped when children do their options in senior school and have the extra timetable space for lessons that they want. My daughter is in a fizz at the minute because next year she has to choose two out of about five subjects she desperately wants to keep. She'd much prefer to ditch PE to enable an extra subject choice within the school day, then use the fitness centre after school.

My son is at primary and PE is once a week, the school employs two coaches and they usually have assistants from the local college rotating in and out during the year. It's great for the kids as they get a full morning or afternoon of PE so can make the most of it. They have dedicated teachers who know their subject and interact with them well.

As an aside, my daughter used to go to a primary school where there were two hour long PE sessions a week, and ten minutes a day of activity such as skipping. The children were not permitted to get changed for PE. The sessions had to be done in their uniform. It was disgusting and the children hated it, especially the older pupils who were starting to go through puberty. Utterly disgusting. Before the change was made there was a consultation with parents, most of whom were against it. It was still implemented. Parents complained but the head refused to budge. One of many reasons I am glad we have bugger all to do with that school now.

Educated elsewhere would be great, but travel time would make it impossible as Ds would miss 1 and a half hours travelling taking into account traffic. M He misses enough school as it is with hospital appointments.

Which gets me back to my original point, I want Ds to be active and he is but it takes a lot of thought and time, and that is something which should be out of school. Not shoehorned into the timetable.

If our experience is typical activity is easy, childcare, holiday clubs etc all involve physical activity, but try doing anything after school or in holidays which does not involve physical exercise somewhere... I have tried and it is extremely difficult. Exercise/sport/ activity is much easier to find than anything else. School should be about education, learning, socialising not more bloody football, gym, dance. You can get that round here all over the place. The other things not so much.

compulsory after school PE lessons are ridiculous. YABU.

I was completely useless at PE, I hated it, was humiliated by it, it made me feel absolutely dreadful knowing I was doing it at school that day. However I was good at dancing and did that 5-6 days a week outside of school, I also went swimming with my mum once a week. I believe I got plenty of exercise and did well academically, being forced to play hockey, tag rugby and run long distance was no good for my mental health at all as it just made me feel completely inadequate and embarrassed in front of my class.

ScaryDinosaurs - yes, the French bac requires PE. Very good thing too!