Replacement for PE

[Anonymous]

OP--no suggestions, but just wanted to offer a word of support. I can't believe people are giving you a tough time. I hated public school PE throughout middle and high school where it was definitely an exercise in humiliation for me. I ended up getting a partial excuse due to a very minor medical condition, then ended up with an arrangement where I took my PE credits through a summer school program that was much less painful for me. I can imagine that, for a child with a real disability, an hour a day of running laps, climbing ropes (or falling down while trying) and being pummeled in dodgeball, would be very counter-productive. I would think you could deal with this in an IEP or 504, but if not, you might want to explore if he or she can get the credit through partial homeschooling or in a summer school makeup.

[Anonymous]

Thanks PP. That's very helpful. Does MCPS offer a partial homeschooling option? That would be ideal for so many kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You want to do away with PE just so your child can learn to swim after school?

I don't want to do away with PE at all. I think PE is extremely important. I want to reduce stress during the day on 2 days per week out of 5, set my child up for success by reducing time in group PE class, and save his energy on those 2 days per week for learning an essential survival skill on one of those days, which *is* physical education, and targeted physical education tailored to special needs on another day.

[Anonymous]

Wow, pardon me for offering my advice. I was 5:44 and was coming from the perspective of having a child in a wheelchair who actually won an award last year for PE participation, spirit and enthusiasm.

You know, if your child hates PE and has a bad time in PE, then his PE class sucks. And his teacher is doing something wrong. And you as a parent should step up and do something about it. Which does not mean asking to skip it. How does that help? Okay PP, you hated PP and you got an "Excuse" to stay out of it. Do you think that's the right life plan for a disabled child? Is he going to skip college because he finds it demoralizing? Is he going to drop out of high school?

You know, disabled kids have a high dropout rate, and it's because of scenarios like this. I'm not trying to put the weight of the world on your shoulders, but pulling your kid out is really not the best option. If your kid is being bullied and teased, STEP UP. If your kid needs flexibility, ask for flexibility. Asking that he not do an activity that is part of the curriculum is not flexibility. It's saying my way is better.

[Anonymous]

There wasn't room in PE first quarter last year, so they put my SN kid in Musical Theater. I thought it was going to be a disaster, but he ended up loving it.

[Anonymous]

We all come from different perspectives and have different goals. I think we have in common that we try to advocate for our kids. I am not trying to opt out of PE but just reduce time in PE to address other important PE-related goals. One size fits all doesn't work with kids with special needs and there are different ways to approach challenges and different ways to ask for flexibility. This is one of them.

If a school can decide that a child meets the requirements for PE by taking musical theater (which I think is a wacky but creative solution) then I think it's reasonable to ask for what *I* think would work to help my child get through the day and meet goals that I know MCPS (and I) thinks are important (PE). Perhaps they can propose a different solution.

Seeking alternative paths to a goal does not lead to drop out. Do SPED math pull-outs lead to dropping out or not coping in the real world? No. I just need to know who to talk to. But I think I can figure it out. Just thought someone who had done this would chime in.

[Anonymous]

Math pull outs are completely different from seeking to have your child excused from math altogether on the grounds that she attends math club.

[Anonymous]

I'm the PP who got the PE waiver and them took it in summer school (where I acquired some life long positive fitness skills). I'm really not a quitter at all, and Im a huge supporter of PE generally. But I recall my sadistic PE teacher who said she would fail every girl that could not double her bench press weight over an 8 week quarter (at the end of the day, we all ended up with Ds). I'm not saying its right, but it may be unrealistic to expect that the OP can remake the public school PE program. If she says her kid is better off not taking this class for certain days, then I trust her judgment and I don't know why everyone needed to jump down her throat, rather than answer her question.