Parkour in Gym Class

[Anonymous]

My DD just came home and told me that they will be learning Parkour in gym class tomorrow. I think that's a little odd. Is it just me? Why would they teach kids how to run up the side of buildings and do backflips off walls in gym class? What happened to track & field or basketball?

Thoughts?

(Middle school)

[Anonymous]

Wow, I think that sounds awesome. It's okay to learn a variety of activities in gym class.

[Anonymous]

Really? I think learning how to do a backflip off a wall sounds like a recipe for disaster.

[Anonymous]

I doubt they will be learning how to do back-flips off the wall. I think this is just re-branding of what we called an obstacle course in my days.

[Anonymous]

Sounds fun, but I wouldn't think they had the insurance for that! I bet they just run down balance beams.

[Anonymous]

I'm sure that they're going to start with more basic moves, like jumping and vaulting over stuff and doing forward rolls. It's not more dangerous than hurdles or gymnastics at the basic level. It also sounds pretty fun.

[Anonymous]

Well if they will only be learning it "tomorrow" then one day is not enough to 'learn' a sport like this so they will probably only be learning about it -- that it exists as a sport/activity -- and not actually learning to do it.

If she means that they are starting a longer unit on it tomorrow, then I agree with your initial assessment that it is odd but honestly I think it is a rather great idea. Unfortunately, many kids do not seem to get enough physical activity or incorporate it into their lifestyle. Gym class at school is seen as 'boring' or 'stupid' by a lot of kids who dislike the traditional type of gym activities.

Parkour is probably different enough, interesting enough and enough like 'getting away with something the kids didn't think they would actually be allowed to try' that it might grab these kids' interest and get them involved in a more physically active lifestyle.

If you have concerns about safety or something definitely inquire at the school out of curiosity what will be taught, how, and what will be done to emphasize safety. That is your right and obligation as a parent if something concerns you. But, I think schools are concerned enough about liability that they will be very safety conscious and teach a pretty toned-down version.

I would be very pleased if my child had the opportunity to learn this in school gym class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I doubt they will be learning how to do back-flips off the wall. I think this is just re-branding of what we called an obstacle course in my days.

No, actually, they will be learning that. No safety harness or anything of that sort--not set up for that. (OP here)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well if they will only be learning it "tomorrow" then one day is not enough to 'learn' a sport like this so they will probably only be learning about it -- that it exists as a sport/activity -- and not actually learning to do it.

If she means that they are starting a longer unit on it tomorrow, then I agree with your initial assessment that it is odd but honestly I think it is a rather great idea. Unfortunately, many kids do not seem to get enough physical activity or incorporate it into their lifestyle. Gym class at school is seen as 'boring' or 'stupid' by a lot of kids who dislike the traditional type of gym activities.

Parkour is probably different enough, interesting enough and enough like 'getting away with something the kids didn't think they would actually be allowed to try' that it might grab these kids' interest and get them involved in a more physically active lifestyle.

If you have concerns about safety or something definitely inquire at the school out of curiosity what will be taught, how, and what will be done to emphasize safety. That is your right and obligation as a parent if something concerns you. But, I think schools are concerned enough about liability that they will be very safety conscious and teach a pretty toned-down version.

I would be very pleased if my child had the opportunity to learn this in school gym class.

Thank you, appreciate you taking the time to respond. It's the beginning of a longer unit, I should have been more clear. DD plays travel sports, so I have no concerns about getting enough exercise in general--and ym class is normally taken rather seriously at this (private) school. I am somewhat concerned about safety, since they have a fairly Laissez-faire attitude towards that. I think I will speak with the teacher and ask exactly what's planned. I really just don't need DD, who is a bit of a daredevil, deciding to 'practice' these types of things outside of school. Not like I can watch her 24/7, not do I want to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: Thank you, appreciate you taking the time to respond. It's the beginning of a longer unit, I should have been more clear. DD plays travel sports, so I have no concerns about getting enough exercise in general--and ym class is normally taken rather seriously at this (private) school. I am somewhat concerned about safety, since they have a fairly Laissez-faire attitude towards that. I think I will speak with the teacher and ask exactly what's planned. I really just don't need DD, who is a bit of a daredevil, deciding to 'practice' these types of things outside of school. Not like I can watch her 24/7, not do I want to.

I'm the poster you replied to. Speaking to the teacher about your concern sounds like a good plan. If your school is anything like our public high school the first thing the teacher will do before starting a "risky" unit is try to scare the heck out of the kids about all the stuff that can go wrong if they mess around or don't follow instructions, so I think if both you and her teacher emphasize that learning this stuff is something that should be done with someone around who knows what they're doing then hopefully DD will get that and not try anything silly while outside of class.

[Anonymous]

Speaking as a former daredevil girl, this sounds great! I would have loved to have this in gym class, rather than dodgeball and basketball and all the other boring team sports I disliked.

Of course my DD is only a toddler, so I guess I'll see how I feel about it in a few years if she inherits my daredevil tendencies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Really? I think learning how to do a backflip off a wall sounds like a recipe for disaster.

A backflip off the wall is a pretty advanced parkour technique. Just like they aren't teaching round off double back flips during the two weeks of gymnastics, they aren't teaching advanced parkour moves in a middle school gym unit. Instead they're teaching simple things like a simple vault or a parkour style forward roll.

[Anonymous]

A backflip off the floor is a considerable achievement. I highly doubt a roomful of middle schoolers will be doing back flips off the wall.

They likely have mats and protective padding. before you go overboard why not find out what is actually going to happen.

My reaction would be that it sounds like a lot of fun. Then reinforce that landing on your head isn't so fun.

Here is a class learning parkour. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=On0_PpQwDZI

Parkour in gym class https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7rzutIs_L8

[Anonymous]

That is SO AWESOME!

[Anonymous]

Please watch 20:41's second video - it is really cute and shows about what I expected to see for gym class parkour. Everything seems very safe and there are mats and teachers all over -- nothing I saw would give me any safety concerns. In fact, I hate all forms of exercise due to having a physical disability that makes it difficult and painful, and even I think that looks fun and like something I could try and feel safe doing it. There's stuff that some kids might not be able to do, but I don't think anyone would get hurt in the attempt. There's clearly a wide range of different levels of "daredevil-ness" from the students, but everyone seems to be enjoying themselves safely. Just emphasize to DD that you only practice when you have the same safety equipment and level of supervision that you have in class.