Q about PE lessons and getting let off them

[NaughtyNigella]

DD dances. has ballet twice a week and now with an exam looming has 3 lessons a week. she also walks to and from school about 1.5 miles each way.
she has problems with her knees. it's called Osgood-Schlatter disease - basically her knees swell up and get really painful after any exercise.
GP has written her a letter to ask her PE teacher to let her off PE until after her ballet exam. The reasoning being that she could probably manage 2 ballet lessons but not PE as well.
She's just told me she got really told off on friday and her PE teacher told her that she shouldn't be doing ballet at all and should be doing her PE lesson.
i'm rather cross about this and will be phoning tomorrow.
the fact is she is rather good at ballet and a bit rubbish at team sports so would benefit more from givng her best to her ballet lessons, not overstraining her knees doing something she doesn't much like and ruining her chances to dance.

Has anyone had a similar thing with school? and how do i go about making the school understand that for DD ballet is rather more important than hockey.

and another thing - she also got told off because even if a child is excused PE for any reason (illness, broken bones etc) they have to change into their PE kit and stand at the side. what an utter waste of time. DD is expected to carry her rather heavy kit to school, change, stand around, change again, carry kit home, for nothing. wouldn't she be better getting on with some homework?

Sounds like nonsense to me (the getting changed for PE bit too).

Hopefully when you've spoken to the school tomorrow, they'll realise that the ballet is really important and it's not like she isn't getting lots of exercise as she walks that far to school and back. I'd go along the lines of her wanting to pursue ballet.
I'm sure that a sympathetic head would realise that some children are gifted in things other than at school and should be encouraing her to do her best at ballet.

There's a girl at DDs school who is extremely musical and good at acting as so she's allowed time off to pursue that.

If I were you, I'd go in and speak to the head, not phone and speak to teacher.
Good luck

Any chance of a doctor's note explaining that team sports are more damaging to the knees than the controlled exercise of ballet?

we had a similar thing last year i telephoned the pe teacher spoke to him rather harshly and questioned the unfairness of sitting on the sidelines dressed in shorts watching -he did apologise and rules are now if you have a note excusing you you can sit in the library if not its still sidelines.

Hi my daughter had Osgood-Shlatters and had to stop doing pe completely. The school were fine about it

My dd (hypermobility syndrome) does gentle physio during PE lessons, but as she can't do physio for as long as a whole lesson, she spends the remaining time in the library. And from the advice of the OT, this situation will continue even if she is able to resume her ballet lessons one day, as we hope.

will be phoning tomorrow. will try the unfairness route rather than the this is an utter waste of time route. may help.

Hi. My dd has Sinding-Larsons which is similar to Osgood-Shlatters. It is reoccuring and she has to miss out on p.e. every couple of months for a week or so, as, at the first sign of a flair up we have to rest her knee completely but her school and teachers have been wonderful. They want the best for her. Sorry to hear your dd's school are not the same. They should definately be nore understanding.

How old is she?

I think that the PE teacher ought to respect a letter from the student's gp. I would have thought that that 'outranks' the PE teacher. The teacher knows nothing about your daughter's condition, and if your daughter can only do one activity it should be one she enjoys. that is only fair. Not a huge thing to ask.

I don't know what age your daughter is, but beyond about 12 or 13 PE can feel like structured bullying.

I remember as new girl, first or second day, age 17, being on the volley ball court being screamed at to RUN by some mad old woman with a whistle round her neck. I didn't really want to rebel but a voice in my head said "wtf??"

DD is 12 she's fairly quiet and shy so not a one to stand up to being told off well. she burst into tears when telling me about what the teacher said. yo would think that having been examined by a Dr and a letter from the Dr saying that PE isn't a good idea would be enough. obviously not.