I don't know if gym class was required in all schools, but it was most definitely required in mine, at least through 9th grade. I like the idea of fitness being taught in schools, but is "gym" class really teaching kids fitness, or just another excuse to make the already healthy and fit kids feel great about themselves, and ridicule and torture the not-so-fit ones?
My experience was definitely not a positive one! I pretty much was a fat kid from the 1st grade on. I remember getting excited for the days where we would play dodgeball or sports that utilized strength a little more than the aerobic/cardio activities. Dodgeball was my game! I was a pretty strong kid. I could take them out! That was probably the only activity where people were eager to get me on their team, rather than picking me last.
I hated when we would play Red Rover (theoretically a game with no losers..ya right!). I was always the last kid standing and instead of them belting out "Red Rover, Red Rover, send Debbie right over" with enthusiasm, they would always just kind of sigh and say "come over Debbie". They knew I would break their link. No one could hold up against me. I was a big kid. Then the game would go on forever because I would break the line and then someone would need to come back over and join me and the cycle would just continue. Then they would all hate me for that because the game got pretty boring. Our gym teacher loved it, because then she could sit in the bleachers and read her book.
The worst was the "fitness test" days. It seemed there were far too many of these! On these days we would start out by going out to the track and running a mile. Running?? This was not something I could really do (or maybe I could, but I was never encouraged). I would always start out believing that this was the time I was going to do it, but I would get a quarter way down the track and feel like I was going to die. I would walk the rest of the way. It was supposed to be 4 laps around the track to complete a mile. The others would pass me several times and by the time I finished one lap they had finished their 4! For the first few years the gym teacher would always make me keep going and walk all 4 until I finished. I would usually clock about a 30 minute mile. The other kids always came in between 6-8 minutes. It didn't end there though..after the mile we would go inside and we had to do bleacher sprints (running up and down the bleachers...I always fell), then we would go to the pull up station (as if!), then push ups, then sit-ups, then running sprints! I sucked at all of the above. Instead of the gym teacher encouraging me, she would always just say things like "going to give up again Debbie?", "think you might be able to even do one this time?", "all the other kids can do this, you just don't try". Shouldn't an educator (whether it's PE or Math be supportive and encouraging?). If other kids made fun of me, she would laugh to. I remember once she told this kid that was always really mean to me "good one!" after he made some cruel joke to me. I started trying to create reasons why I couldn't participate. I would purposely scratch the inside of my nose to make it bleed so I could say I was suffering from nose bleeds. That worked for a long time. By the time I was in 6th grade, the gym teacher would just tell me "Debbie just sit this out." Thanks, really. Maybe if someone had given me the time of day, pushed me a little, gave me the tiniest encouragement, I could have learned the importance of fitness much earlier than I did!
Once the principal realized the teacher was sitting me out of most of the activities in class, he stepped in, but not to discipline the teacher. He talked to me and suggested that choir, orchestra, or band might be better options for me and I could substitute one or more of those in place of gym class. Of course I jumped at that chance! You are probably thinking that it's a happy ending. No more gym class! Well, not quite.
I decided to try choir first. I thought I could sing. My mom always told me I could sing well. She said I had a beautiful voice. I was still young and naive enough to believe that what my mom told me was the truth and not just what mom's are supposed to say! I was in choir about 6 weeks. The choir teacher worked with me quite a bit. I guess I just wasn't getting it, because she finally suggested to me that my musical talent may be in an instrument and not my vocals. She said she had already talked to the orchestra teacher and I could join them right away. So, off I went again, rejected. So, first I chose violin, I thought it seemed cool and was a nice instrument to learn. My mom went out and rented me a violin and I started learning how to play in class. I didn't take to it right way, I definitely wasn't a natural, but I thought I was showing progress. I finally mastered "Old MacDonald Had a Farm", with a few squeaks here and there. I just couldn't seem to get anything else. My teacher suggested I try a different instrument. Over the next few months I went through the clarinet, flute, and trombone. I didn't really take to any of them. Then came band class. First was the guitar...then was the trumpet...then the drums. Nope. Debbie's got no talent! Thank goodness I was good at academics!
Once they realized I sucked "artistically" and "physically", they suggested I spend the class time helping out with the Special Education students. I wasn't thrilled about this at first, because I thought they were saying the only people I could relate to were Special Ed. I was very wrong to have that attitude. Working with those kids was one of the better experiences I ever had. They ranged from 4 years old to 12 and some of them were the sweetest kids I've ever known. I even learned some sign language. It was pretty rewarding. So, at least elementary and middle school weren't a total wash for me!
Oh, and I had one other talent! Photography! My 4th grade teacher, Mr. Torgerson (who sadly passed away last year), saw something special in me and taught me some of his photography skills. He even had a dark room at the school and taught me how to transfer the film to the reel (basically blind) and how to develop a picture. It was a pretty cool process and I picked it up pretty quickly. They let me take all the pictures for Kite Day! Ya, that's right, Kite Day...show me some respect!
I could have let all these bad experiences keep me from wanting to try new things or take risks, but really it did the opposite for me. It triggered something inside of me that made me want to try anything and everything, because I wanted to prove to people I could do it! Plus, I became so used to the teasing, ridicule, and rejection that none of it really phased me anymore.
To this day I still sing my little heart out in my car, shower, and anytime I'm just in the mood! I still believe my mom...I have a beautiful voice! Bring on my triangle (I can play like no one else)! I do have talent!!
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