P.E. Program

Our P.E. program utilizes the guidelines of the Archdiocese as well as the California State Education Framework for physical fitness. We will focus on muscle strength, endurance, flexibility, and aerobic capacity, as well as nutrition, by incorporating various activities that encourage a child to become physically fit for life. We will accomplish these goals through the introduction of group sports, dance, and personal exercise. We do not focus on “winning” or “losing”, but try to encourage cooperation, teamwork, sportsmanship, and self-esteem.

We realize that not all students enjoy the same activities, but we expect that each student participate to the best of their ability. Students will be meeting twice per week for fifty (50) minute periods. It is mandatory for students to be dressed in official P.E. uniforms and we ask that students wear appropriate athletic style shoes that fit securely on your child’s feet. Athletic tennis shoes are built to provide support to your foot and ankle during physical activity, and as a result they help reduce the risk of fractures and sprains while active. Please understand that the necessity of wearing proper shoes is 100% instruction and safety driven. Although Vans & Converse tennis shoes are appropriate for daily school wear, they do not provide the kind of support we feel is necessary for our P.E. program. If possible, we would prefer that those type of shoes not be worn on P.E. days. We appreciate your support and understanding in this matter. Please refer to the St. Jerome Policy Manual for guidelines on color options for shoes.

As stated, each class will meet twice a week. On one of these two days, your child will be participating in our “Jog Across America” program. This activity is designed to increase cardiovascular fitness by allowing each child to fitness walk, jog, and/or run for a designated amount of time at their own pace. As an incentive to keep them moving, and so that each student can monitor their progress throughout the year, we will be offering a chain with a bead on it as they complete a certain amount of mileage. 1st & 2nd graders earn a bead for every mile that is completed, and 3rd through 8th graders earn a bead for every 5 miles completed. We have asked the students to place these chains on their school backpack or tote bags. If a student replaces their backpack throughout the school year, we are asking that the chain they have earned be removed & placed on their new backpack. We do not have enough chains to replace any that are lost or thrown away.

Although our class will be meeting outside most of the time, we expect students to behave in a manner that follows policy and procedure as outlined in the SJS Policy Manual for classroom behavior. Physical Education is not an extended recess. The same rules for conduct and discipline that apply to other subjects also apply to P.E. For the Junior High (Grades 6, 7 & 8), we will be utilizing a behavior “dot” system. This policy will be sent home to the students by their homeroom teachers.

Physical Education is a graded class. Our grading criteria for Grades 1 – 8 are based on effort, behavior, and skill, as well as individual testing. All are combined into a letter scale of O to U. All criteria are given equal weight. Please see the SJS Policy Manual for further definition on grading. Only those students who are at the Needs Improvement (NI) or Unsatisfactory (U) level at the mid-point of the trimester will be issued a progress report. This progress report must be signed by the parent and returned to the P.E. teachers the following day.

For Kindergarten, physical education will be geared towards developing motor skills (running, skipping, hopping), stamina and the ability to throw, catch, and bounce a ball. At the end of each semester, each student will be assessed in these areas.

When a student is not able to participate in a P.E. period due to illness or injury, a written note from the parent must be submitted to the P.E. teachers. If a student is unable to participate due to the same illness or injury for two or more consecutive classes, a written note by the doctor must be submitted to the P.E. teachers. The doctor’s note must include a release date for the student to resume participation. This policy is enforced for the student’s best interest and safety! It is our hope that you will encourage your child to actively participate. If for any reason a child does not feel able to participate in a P.E. class, or becomes injured while playing, the student will be sent to the health room, and a note will be sent home advising the parent of the absence. It follows that children excused from P.E. for medical reasons also should not play during recess and lunch periods.

We at St. Jerome are fortunate to have an outdoor play structure. While the structure is for the enjoyment (and enhancement) of our students, there are also rules that must be observed. At no time shall students use the play structure unless under the supervision of yard duty personnel and/or teachers. Students must observe rules of safety as deemed necessary by St. Jerome personnel. Students have the option to use the structure during lunch recess on a rotating basis as follows: Monday = 1st & 2nd grade; Tuesday = 3rd & 4th grade; Wednesday = 5th & 6th grade; Thursday = 7th & 8th grade. We are also fortunate to have a Hot Lunch program offered to us at St. Jerome. The hot lunch program can be very convenient to use on a daily basis. Please be reminded that our hot lunch program doesn’t always meet the nutritional needs of a growing child. It is up to us, as parents, to model behavior that we want our children to learn. Therefore, we ask that you consider using our hot lunch program on an occasional basis and not every day.

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