the specialized skills that correspond with each sport. It is at this point that the students are expected to apply the skills and concepts learned during the Pre-K/Kindergarten/ Omega programs to the team sports being taught. During game play, the boys learn the rules and strategies of each sport as well as application of skills, working together as a team, and showing sportsmanship and the expected attitudes and behaviors of a Saint David’s student. Much as the physical skills learned during the Pre-K/ Kindergarten/Omega curriculum serve as the foundation for the skills needed for participation in the activities during First and Second Grades, so do these activities serve as the foundation for the intramural sports program being introduced to our students starting in Third Grade and continuing into Sixth Grade. Having learned the physical skills, the importance of teamwork, sportsmanship, and respect from Pre-Kindergarten through Second Grade, the boys have an understanding of how these concepts relate to athletics. This makes the transition into a competitive intramural program a natural progression as they move toward the Upper School athletic program. This transition into the intramural program marks a stage of development focused more on the cognitive and affective domains rather than on physical skills. Each team is coached by a Saint David’s coach who, in addition to reinforcing the physical skills, challenges the students to learn and apply tactical concepts such as spacing, offensive pursuit, and defensive assistance during the games. The coach will continue to educate the students on the importance of respect and sportsmanship in an effort to prepare them for the more intense atmosphere they will be introduced to as they begin interscholastic athletics. Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Grade student-athletes have the opportunity to compete with their teammates against other schools during interscholastic athletic competition. Spatial awareness, fundamental and specialized movement skills, importance of cooperation and teamwork, sportsmanship, and understanding rules and strategies are all components of the education each student receives in the athletic program. These components serve as benchmarks in the overall development of each student-athlete. Whether it is a Sixth Grade all-star game, white soccer game, or red lacrosse game, our student-athletes use the overall physical education they received at Saint David’s to represent themselves, the school, and the team, with intelligence,
dignity, respect, and athletic ability. “It is the unique role of quality physical education programs to develop the health-related fitness, physical competence, and cognitive understanding about physical activity for all students so that they can adopt healthy and physically active lifestyles. Today’s quality physical education programs are important because they provide learning experiences that meet the developmental needs of youngsters which help improve a child’s mental alertness, academic performance, readiness to learn and enthusiasm for learning.” (NASPE, 2003) At Saint David’s, our program is designed with the goal of using athletics as an avenue to educate each student physically, mentally, and emotionally so they are able to apply these attributes in all walks of life. “That they be good men,” men who understand the importance of respect, commitment, and responsibility, while gaining an appreciation for the physical, mental, and emotional benefits athletic competition has to offer. While at Saint David’s these virtues are instilled early on and reinforced as they develop from Pre-Kindergarten boys to graduating young men, and it is certainly a “Rigorous Pursuit.”? M
References
McManus, M. (2010). Fundamental Movement Skills [PowerPoint Slides]. Retrieved from: http://www.ucc.ie/en/education/ SportsStudiesandPhysicalEducationSection/coachescorner/ Fundamental-Movement-Skills.ppt National Association for Sport and Physical Education. (2003). What constitutes a quality physical education program [Position statement]. Reston, VA. Pangrazi R.P. (