P.E. was my least favourite part of my high school education. I dreaded that infamous beep test. My one and only goal was to not be the first one to quit. I never improved my score by the end of the year because I hated P.E. so much I refused to do any more that was absolutely necessary to pass the class.
I did play sports in high school though. My mother refused to come and watch because it was just too embarrassing. I really don’t blame her. I only did it so it would look good on my transcript!
I feel like in some respects I have passed my distaste of sport and physical education on to my children. So I needed to change up my approach to how I was incorporating P.E. into our days. If I wanted my kids to enjoy it I had to be enjoying it and where I couldn’t enjoy it I was happy to delegate it to someone else by means of after-school classes or sending my husband off to do it with them because he likes all things sport!
Hiking
I love hiking I would do it everyday if I could. My kids love hiking too. No matter where you live there are more than likely some amazing and beautiful trails near by. We like to hike trails in summer where there is a swimming hole to cool off. A good swim is always a nice reward for that hard work.
If you are going to make hiking a big part of your life I would definitely invest in some hiking boots for your family. If you are just going to every now and then, sports shoes will do the job just fine. Keen branded hiking boots would be my top pick for the family. They are a well respected and trusted brand that has continuously put out quality products. They will last a long time which is great for kids as they can be handed down to numerous children without wearing out. So despite being a bit more expensive than others the quality means they will save you money in the long run. I really love their sandals for summer months. They would be perfect for walking the Narrows in Zion National Park. That is on my bucket list. Last time we visited it wasn’t safe so hopefully we time it better next time.
I find that kids just seem to open up to you while you are walking. You learn all sorts of interesting things about them! I am always surprised at my kids stamina while we hike too. They will complain about walking across a car park but will happily walk a 4mile hike without question.
Obstacle Courses
This is something I am going to implement next year. I have seen my kids outside trying to make up their own little obstacle courses so I want to build on that enthusiasm. They are on a bit of a Ninja Warrior kick at the moment so I think this obstacle course set would be perfect. I actually looked at buying all the bits and pieces to make one for them before chucking it in the too hard basket. I love that this one you just put up between two trees or posts voila done! I would probably add in some hoops or cones on the ground for added challenges or some old tires. You can find those really cheap or free on Facebook Marketplace.
Enrol in High school Sports Teams
In many places it is possible for homeschooled teens to enrol in high school just for the sports teams. This is a fantastic opportunity for your teens to get to participate in sports while still being homeschooled. Many homeschooled kids will use this opportunity to earn college scholarships or add to transcripts.
Sports in high school is more than just sports it is the whole social aspect as well. Many kids will love this part of it especially as the amount of homeschooled teens is much less compared to the younger grades.
After-school Sports
Just because you homeschool doesn’t mean you can’t do after-school activities! The world is your oyster here. My kids have done both gymnastics and taekwando for a few years. This is also a great way for kids to make friends. Here’s a few ideas to get you’re brain going:
- Dance
- Martial arts
- Gymnastics
- Swimming
- Horse riding
- Baseball
- Tennis
- Golf
- Football
- Soccer
- Fencing
- Running
Mountain Biking
This is something I am really excited about doing with our kids when the youngest is a bit older. It is in my opinion the perfect family sport. There is no time commitment, you can go whenever you like. You can complete in competitions or just enjoy it for the fun of it.
It would be a great sport for kids who aren’t into team sports. There is often so much emphasis and pressure put on having kids in team sports. Some kids hate teams sports. That is me! Some kids really just enjoy being their own competition and just enjoying the sport rather that having to rely on others or be relied upon to perform.
This could be a big investment sport but one that would last for years and years to come.
Youtube Workouts
I am way too embarrassed to ever go to a gym to workout so Youtube is my go to. There are so many amazing channels that have kids workouts. There is upbeat appropriate music that keeps things fun and exciting. Our favourite channel is Moe Jones but there are lots of other ones out there.
Kids love it when you join in with them so give it a go.
Yoga
Carrying on from the YouTube workouts for kids is an amazing yoga for kids channel called Cosmic Kids Yoga. AMAZING. I have found yoga to be one of the best ways to increase mindfulness, and calm the crazies.
Kids learn better when they are focused and yoga has some kind of magical powers that manage to do that. I have no idea about the science behind it and I don’t really care I am just happy it works.
I find that the morning is one of the best times for us to do it, before we jump into work for the day. We haven’t been as consistent as I would of liked this year but I plan on making it an every day thing next year.
We also have this flipping amazing mat that our friends bought us as a baby gift. It is called a Bubba Mat and it is super soft rubber like a huge yoga mat but even a bit softer I think. It is easy to clean, reversible and brilliant in my opinion. But this mat is in our living room in front of the tv and is big enough to be our one huge yoga mat for all of us. Seriously one of my favourite things I own. We are moving overseas soon and I told my husband that we can sell everything else but I am taking my mat!
Do a Park Crawl
Parks my usual go to. We live directly across from a play ground so we spend a good deal of time there. One awesome thing we are doing next week is a park crawl. We live in a city with a million new estates going up. There is one estate that is infamous for it’s awesome parks.
We are meeting up with about four other families, picnic lunches in hand to tackle 4 different parks in one afternoon. I am sure my kids will sleep like logs that night!
Individual Sports
Not every kid wants to do a team sport and that is okay. There are so many individual sports that you can get involved with. These are some great options for teens especially.
- Rock Climbing. Oh my gosh think of the places you could go with this once you have the basics nailed down. There are awesome rock climbing communities out these for your teens to get connected with who will be more than willing to guide them along.
- Skiing/snowboarding. The perfect winter sport if you live anywhere near snow. This can be a competitive sport or a fun social activity. I was always super jealous of friends who used to go skiing together every season.
- Running. I have a friend that coaches kids in cross country running. So while they are a team the sport is very individual. Have your kids get involved in 5K’s or other fun events. It is always more fun when you are training for something.
- Golf. One of my son’s best friends plays golf and is brilliant at it. He is on the autism spectrum and his mother has told me so many wonderful things that golf has done for her son. I feel like this is the perfect forever kind of sport. There are really old people still playing golf! My dad always likes to tell me his golf scores whenever I call home.
- Biking. Mountain biking or road biking. A good bike is a costly investment but after that it is pretty much free I am assuming. I am sure there are lots of other little bits and pieces you could buy but to start with all you need is a bike.
- Triathlons. Why not do a whole bunch of sports?! There are triathlons for even the youngest kids. It is a great motivator to enter into a competition, and a fun experience. It’s exciting to beat your own personal best.
Fit Dice
This is a really easy and fun way to get the kids moving. You simply write the numbers 1-6 on a paper and assign each number an exercise. Everyone then rolls the dice and either they or everyone completes the exercise.
You can download the fit dice game I made HERE Or click the picture below
Just Get Out of the House
Kids need exercise there is no question about it. There are million and one ways to go about incorporating physical education into your homeschool. It doesn’t need to be the traditional and horrific beep test or running laps around a field for it to qualify.
Just get outside and get moving. Go ride bikes and scooters. Visit the rec centre. Run around at the splash pad. Write a list of all the swimming holes and tick them all off one Summer. Go skating.
It doesn’t always need to be something that is well planned out and executed. Nor does it need to be something that costs a lot of money. You can make and obstacle course in your back yard with things you have lying around in the garage!
The most important thing is to have fun with it. It shouldn’t have to be the chore that it sometimes feels like.
