To believe sports day should be optional?

[SafeHeaven]

Dd is starting to worry about sports day, she hates it every year and always comes last.

She hates all the parents watching her whilst she struggles with the sack etc and always has tears when everyone has finished and she still has a way to go.

Ive asked the school if sports day can be optional as it’s not worth the anxiety leading up to it and the humiliation of it. I’ve been told they have never been asked this before and they will need to discuss it with SLT.

Listening to the radio the other day, many people have bad memories of it.

AIBU to request sports day is optional?

This happens too (not sport, apart from on sports day), but yes academic achievements are celebrated.

Sadly though sports day often has an audience and if it's something you aren't good at it's quite a unique humiliation compared to say, being in a bottom set, unfortunately.

PE in school is generally dreadful. It is a realmproblem, it is so outdated, sexist and negative. I used to mince my words on this subject for fear of hurting the feelings of PE teachers but no longer bother.

Both the curriculum and the teaching methods need an overhaul. PE teachers won't accept it, but they are responsible for putting huge numbers off exercise.

I don't engage with PE just sign off whenever I deem it necessary and my kids limit their effort to what is strictly required - despite the fact they do sport outside school. But sport outside school is taught better.

Problem is, achieving a successful career etc isn't a team sport

My son is quite good at sport, and enjoys it immensely. He’s not doing sports day though, as he can’t handle the rest of the bollocks surrounding it. All the noise, parents, stickers, awards, winners and losers, cheating, and hype makes him a wreck. I’ll be booking an opticians appointment for him that afternoon.

There really isn’t any value to a sports day; there’s no reading and writing day or maths day, so why should the whole school grind to a halt for sports?

Totally agree with you. I was terrible at maths too and we used to have to stand up while the teacher fired times tables at us - if you got one right you could sit down, if not you stayed standing. Imagine being the last one standing - but hey, we survived, and we learned that we are not all good at everything, and chances are it would be a different child still standing in the spelling bee or coming last at sports.
At the very least if they don't compete they should be helping/doing extra homework, certainly not lounging about at home.

Yep.

Also, we live in a society where schooling is important and where DC who aren't able to achieve certain standards and qualifications are liable to be disadvantaged. I'm not saying that's a great thing, but it's a thing. Whereas this is clearly not the case for sports day. Opting out of sports day doesn't matter in the slightest, opting out of academic school work does.

Immature because I don’t sneak a child out of school because they are bad at sports.If you say so dear.

Because if there is less kids competitng if it was option, it devalues the achievement because there is less competition to win said race.

Sports day is so boring , there’s too much sitting around. It’s even worse at secondary school - my son isn’t doing anything and not through choice but has to still commute to a remote location to watch others participate.

I think PE and sports day should be like English/Drama and the school play.

Everyone does the lessons, the public performances are voluntary.

Thank you for the support, starting to sound like the lone wolf on this thread😂

Absolutely, its so hard always being one of the slower kids or always being 'wrong' in the class. Totally right, its character building!!

Maths in most schools are differentiated based on ability - yes people may struggle (although I strongly believe that is because teachers are expected to teach 30 children with different ways of learning all at the same time) but generally there is not a winner or a loser and it’s not a spectator sport.
I would love PE to be differentiated and think that would have made a world of difference to how people including myself view sport. I also like the idea of activities in sports day being optional but if not participating - supporting your classmates. This doesn’t take away from those who are better at it as they can still compete and show their abilities.

Dd hated it. She used to say that it’s unfair that parents all get to see her fail even she’s successful in maths but no one sees that. Parents can be vile too (a small number but they’re loud with it).

that said, it’s a really good skill to be able to cope with feeling uncomfortable in a situation. Opting out would not teach that life skill. I hated sports day but I’m bloody resilient now.

Exactly.

Physical activities should be encouraged. We are in the midst of an obesity epidemic. More and more children are screen addicts

I think daily sport should be on the national curriculum . 30 mins minimum, Mandatory until 18.

Doesn't matter if you're rubbish at it. It's the doing it that counts.

No one should be forced to participate of course, but it should be kept on as optional participation and all students attending to cheer on.

Its true though isnt it in the context of sport (which is what we are debating here) or quite frankly other educational competitions like the Spelling Bee.

If you beat more people, its a bigger achievement.