Early age children highly benefit from being active, not just physically but emotionally and socially as well. In physical education at Bayside Montessori, we focus on basic motor skills such as running, jumping, crawling etc., as well as stimulating games that include movement to music, communication, social interaction and body awareness.
We see physical education as a time to have fun and let the children experience multiple types of activities, such as yoga, stretching, dancing, aerobics and more. Our physical education allows for individual progress both physically and cognitively. Through the games like imitating animals’ movements, follow the leader and obstacle courses, the children develop motor skills, coordination and balance. We involve different elements from the classroom such as numbers and counting, colours, animals, body parts etc. into the gymnasium permitting the children to learn from a different perspective and develop their cognitive skills.
All through physical education, the children use their communication and listening skills, self-awareness and also awareness of their friends around them. By focusing on an “including climate” and games that encourage the children to socially interact, friendships are formed and allow the children to feel safe. From this foundation, each child can develop individually and as the child becomes more comfortable with the activities, the expectations can be changed to allow more challenges. Careful attention to each child’s ability helps to ensure the growth of their self-esteem and a positive experience during the psychical education which we hope reflects on the rest of the learning in our classroom.
