Dear Parents,
We can’t believe that spring is already here, and it’s time for round two of our Presidential Fitness Testing program for grades 1-6. Introductory testing took place in September and spring testing is scheduled for the second and third weeks of April during scheduled PE classes. Parent volunteers, organized through the PTA’s Health, Safety and Welfare Committee, will be assisting Mrs. Wertner, our PE teacher, with this activity.
The Presidential Fitness Test measures children’s level of physical fitness (strength, agility, flexibility, and endurance) in five activities: Sit-ups, Shuttle run, Push-ups, Sit & Reach, and Endurance run/walk.
During the week of April 16-20, we are planning to begin testing with the endurance run/walk and sit & reach outside on the grass field. We have moved the sit & reach testing to follow the run with the hopes that warmer, looser muscles will help the students stretch further. We will finish up testing the week of April 23-27 by running students through the remaining three activities in the gym. If, however, the weather does not cooperate with us for the run we will flip-flop the testing activities/locations. At present, we are anticipating that testing make-up sessions will take place each Friday.
To celebrate his/her achievements, each child will receive an award in May based on his/her performance. They are as follows:
Presidential Physical Fitness Award – For those who score at or above the 85th percentile on all five activities based on national benchmarks.
National Physical Fitness Award – For those who score above the 50th percentile on all five activities based on national benchmarks.
Participant Physical Fitness Award – For those who have participated in all five activities, and one or more of their scores fall below the 50th percentile.
Please remind your child that qualifying for the Presidential and National Awards is not easy. This fall only one student met all of the requirements for the Presidential Fitness Award, and 58 students met all the requirements for the National Fitness Award. Many students performed at either the Presidential or National level in one or more event, but not all five, and therefore, did not qualify for the award overall.
In order to make the fitness test run as smoothly as possible, and be enjoyable for the children, we would appreciate your help in reminding your child to wear appropriate clothing on his/her PE day. Class PE schedules are as follows:
Monday: Krause, Taylor, Sharp, Chacon, Snow
Tuesday: Larson, Chiu, Asay, Anderson (5th), McBride, Anderson (1st)
Wednesday: Brand, Owens, Johnson (4th), Johnson (5th), O'Rourke/Watts, Haggerty
Thursday: Abercrombie, Smooth, Pixton, Heywood, Pearson, Lee
For those who would like additional information on the Presidential Fitness Test, please go to www.presidentschallenge.org. We hope that the Presidential Fitness Test will boost your child’s desire to be active and healthy. Your encouragement and support is greatly appreciated!
