"OSA’S PE PROGRAM IS VERY DIFFERENT FROM OTHER SCHOOLS, BUT IT STILL PROVIDES A SUFFICIENT PE PROGRAM FOR OSA’S MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS." - - Zara Quiter, Sixth Grade
At Oakland School for the Arts, most middle school students have PE four times a week with either Coach Jeff Foster or Coach Thomas Coleman. Activities during PE include jump roping, stretching, running, playing wiffle ball, frisbee, and soccer. Students also have the option to skateboard, and will start ice skating soon. PE classes often take place at either Snow Park, City Hall, Lake Merritt, Oakland Ice Center, and sometimes in the Student Center on the 18th Street side.
Coach Foster, one of the two PE coaches, has been working at OSA for 12 years, leading classes with a mix of sixth and seventh grade students. When explaining what is required from his students he said, “Just that they participate in our exercise routines to the best of their abilities. This is the most effective way to improve one’s health and athleticism.” Coach Foster also added, “Highlights to me are when students have that “AHA!” moment... that moment of progression when you realize that you can do something and do it well. It sometimes takes some persistence and a lot of effort, but I just love watching the evolution of someone going from 'I can't,' to 'maybe I can,’ to 'I got this.’”
According to the OSA website, “Middle school students (have) daily opportunities to exercise with emphasis on stretching, cardiovascular and core exercises. We will focus on different activities throughout the year.” Activities include sports, ice skating, running, and going to outdoor locations such as Snow Park and City Hall.
Sadie McMahon, a seventh grade Production Design student at OSA, who is officially in Coach Foster’s class but often joins Coach Coleman’s, sums up PE like so: “We go to different parks, Snow Park, Uptown and City Hall. We do some small workouts and then just hang out. We also sometimes go to Aroma Cafe at the end of the month on block day.” McMahon says that, “(PE) is pretty easy, but we also actually get some work in and I love Snow Park and the cafe.”
Liyon Clark, an eighth grader in Dance at OSA, has Coach Coleman. Clark says, “I like PE because mostly so I can hang out with my friends, but when we run Lake Merritt I feel really good inside and feel good about myself after.”
Anjali Falbo-Nicosia, a sixth grader in Theater, said, “PE is harder in a lot of ways than elementary school. Everything about middle school is harder. The overall attention level required for every class compared to middle school is a big jump by itself.”
OSA’s PE is very different from many other Oakland middle schools. The OUSD website states that, “Physical Education is an integral component of a comprehensive education program. The benefits of the program offer development of knowledge, understanding, and positive attitudes concerning human movement as well as physical fitness. Through movement, children are able to formulate impressions about self and environment while utilizing nonverbal communication and expression.” The statement is not very specific, and there is a variety of PE across Oakland middle schools.
At Montera Middle School, a public middle school, students have PE only two to three times a week instead of four. Hana Sahakian, a sixth grader at Montera says, “We start off with warm ups, and then we do two laps which are like two thirds of a mile. And then it's like free play or we do some challenges or fun things or activities.”
All of this is done inside of Montera, not outside in Downtown Oakland. An even bigger change is that Montera requires a dress code. “It does require uniforms. It’s a white top and black pants. I don’t really have an opinion on my uniform, but I think it should be an option to wear a uniform, but I know it’s so they know if you’re in your class or not,” Sahakian says.
However, the Montera website provides contradictory information about the dress code. After a paragraph about what Montera students do during PE, the website states, “Please note that the PE Department's uniform policy is optional, but highly encouraged. If students choose not to wear a uniform, then they must wear a plain white t-shirt and plain black shorts, sweatpants, or leggings - no logos or other markings allowed.”
At Hillcrest, a K-8 school, Charlotte Fisher, 8th grade student, says, “PE is pretty easy. We do units on different sports. It depends on your skill level, but I’d say it’s like a three on a scale of 1 to ten, so not hard.” Fisher said that they didn’t have a gym, but instead, “We have an outdoor area, kind of like a courtyard. There’s a soccer field, basketball court, with a couple other miscellaneous basketball stuff, there’s a playground, a kickball field, and there’s a gaga ball pit.”
At Hillcrest, “We have to participate, and that’s basically it. There’s not very many requirements. My coach, Coach Mark in particular, gets kind of angry if people aren’t paying attention.” says Fisher.
Lila Hanifan, a 7th grader at Edna Brewer Middle School, says the difficulty of PE, “varies from person to person. I feel like the more people who have been in sports and can run well don’t struggle with it as much.”
At Edna Brewer, they have a very different area for PE than OSA does. “We have the lower field where the track is on, where the football field is, and it’s also a soccer field. There’s also the upper field which is where we have our rock climbing wall, which is not as exciting as you’d think, and there’s the basketball courts. Then we also have the Gym, which just contains climbing ropes, and things to climb on. We don’t really use any of that anymore; we just use the bleachers and just the floor.”
Like Monterra, Edna Brewer also has a dress code. “We do have a PE uniform. It consists of a white t- shirt, the Edna Brewer logo is optional, black leggings or sweatpants, or red gym shorts. We’re allowed to wear stuff not from Edna Brewer; they either have to have no logos or have a small logo with no other colors,” Hanifin said.
At her school, if a student cannot afford a uniform, “We do free give outs, also if a student is able to give another student any item of the uniform, they are rewarded.” At Edna Brewer, they have PE three times a week, and have to put on uniforms every time.
Hanifan says middle school PE is much harder than it was in elementary school. “We had a good coach, but he was more lenient on the things we did. We were allowed to walk and talk while we ran laps, and none of us except the ‘try-hards’ tried hard. And the workouts were like pushups, and jumping jacks, and squats, and sit ups and all that jazz, but none of us really knew how to do it and wanted to do it so I feel like PE was more for the purpose of just getting outside and doing a little exercise and that also is nice too, but, yeah, I would say Middle School PE is harder.”
At Park Day, a private K- 8 school in Oakland, grades have PE twice a week. Ello Hoffer, a seventh grader there, says, “I’d say it’s not very hard. We just mostly play games.” At their school, they don’t require uniforms. “We don’t use uniforms, we just come in our normal clothes.”
Hoffer says, “Well, we have to wear sneakers, although I wear my crocs. And fully commit to our activities, which I also don’t do.”
OSA’s PE program is very different from other schools, but it still provides a sufficient PE program for OSA’s middle school students.
Another thing that sets OSA apart from other schools is Cafe Day. Cafe Day is a special thing that happens normally on block days around once a month. The cafe students have the opportunity to go to us Aroma Cafe, across the street from Snow Park. “Cafe day is when we go to the cafe on our block day in PE when we’re at Snow Park because Aroma Cafe is right across the street. My favorite thing to get there is gelato. My favorite gelato flavors are strawberry and cookies and cream,” McMahon says.
Another privilege that can be earned are awards. Awards are given out at the end of the year, two awards for each grade. “Awards are given at the end of each school year based on effort and athleticism,” Coach Foster said.
OSA does not have a gym; the only indoor spaces are the cafeteria when tables are moved out of the way and the dance studio. Coach Foster says, “We just need a proper facility, which would require a lot more funding. We could do a lot more if we had a gym or a field of our own, but we make it work still even though we are using public parks. We have many allies in the area. Having friendly relationships with local business owners and employees helps a lot. As far as equipment goes, we can always use a new kick ball, soccer ball, football, jump ropes, exercise mats.”
Coach Foster says, “I don’t have a set date for ice skating, but hopefully during November. No promises!”
Coach Foster, one of the two PE coaches, has been working at OSA for 12 years, leading classes with a mix of sixth and seventh grade students. When explaining what is required from his students he said, “Just that they participate in our exercise routines to the best of their abilities. This is the most effective way to improve one’s health and athleticism.” Coach Foster also added, “Highlights to me are when students have that “AHA!” moment... that moment of progression when you realize that you can do something and do it well. It sometimes takes some persistence and a lot of effort, but I just love watching the evolution of someone going from 'I can't,' to 'maybe I can,’ to 'I got this.’”
According to the OSA website, “Middle school students (have) daily opportunities to exercise with emphasis on stretching, cardiovascular and core exercises. We will focus on different activities throughout the year.” Activities include sports, ice skating, running, and going to outdoor locations such as Snow Park and City Hall.
Sadie McMahon, a seventh grade Production Design student at OSA, who is officially in Coach Foster’s class but often joins Coach Coleman’s, sums up PE like so: “We go to different parks, Snow Park, Uptown and City Hall. We do some small workouts and then just hang out. We also sometimes go to Aroma Cafe at the end of the month on block day.” McMahon says that, “(PE) is pretty easy, but we also actually get some work in and I love Snow Park and the cafe.”
Liyon Clark, an eighth grader in Dance at OSA, has Coach Coleman. Clark says, “I like PE because mostly so I can hang out with my friends, but when we run Lake Merritt I feel really good inside and feel good about myself after.”
Anjali Falbo-Nicosia, a sixth grader in Theater, said, “PE is harder in a lot of ways than elementary school. Everything about middle school is harder. The overall attention level required for every class compared to middle school is a big jump by itself.”
OSA’s PE is very different from many other Oakland middle schools. The OUSD website states that, “Physical Education is an integral component of a comprehensive education program. The benefits of the program offer development of knowledge, understanding, and positive attitudes concerning human movement as well as physical fitness. Through movement, children are able to formulate impressions about self and environment while utilizing nonverbal communication and expression.” The statement is not very specific, and there is a variety of PE across Oakland middle schools.
At Montera Middle School, a public middle school, students have PE only two to three times a week instead of four. Hana Sahakian, a sixth grader at Montera says, “We start off with warm ups, and then we do two laps which are like two thirds of a mile. And then it's like free play or we do some challenges or fun things or activities.”
All of this is done inside of Montera, not outside in Downtown Oakland. An even bigger change is that Montera requires a dress code. “It does require uniforms. It’s a white top and black pants. I don’t really have an opinion on my uniform, but I think it should be an option to wear a uniform, but I know it’s so they know if you’re in your class or not,” Sahakian says.
However, the Montera website provides contradictory information about the dress code. After a paragraph about what Montera students do during PE, the website states, “Please note that the PE Department's uniform policy is optional, but highly encouraged. If students choose not to wear a uniform, then they must wear a plain white t-shirt and plain black shorts, sweatpants, or leggings - no logos or other markings allowed.”
At Hillcrest, a K-8 school, Charlotte Fisher, 8th grade student, says, “PE is pretty easy. We do units on different sports. It depends on your skill level, but I’d say it’s like a three on a scale of 1 to ten, so not hard.” Fisher said that they didn’t have a gym, but instead, “We have an outdoor area, kind of like a courtyard. There’s a soccer field, basketball court, with a couple other miscellaneous basketball stuff, there’s a playground, a kickball field, and there’s a gaga ball pit.”
At Hillcrest, “We have to participate, and that’s basically it. There’s not very many requirements. My coach, Coach Mark in particular, gets kind of angry if people aren’t paying attention.” says Fisher.
Lila Hanifan, a 7th grader at Edna Brewer Middle School, says the difficulty of PE, “varies from person to person. I feel like the more people who have been in sports and can run well don’t struggle with it as much.”
At Edna Brewer, they have a very different area for PE than OSA does. “We have the lower field where the track is on, where the football field is, and it’s also a soccer field. There’s also the upper field which is where we have our rock climbing wall, which is not as exciting as you’d think, and there’s the basketball courts. Then we also have the Gym, which just contains climbing ropes, and things to climb on. We don’t really use any of that anymore; we just use the bleachers and just the floor.”
Like Monterra, Edna Brewer also has a dress code. “We do have a PE uniform. It consists of a white t- shirt, the Edna Brewer logo is optional, black leggings or sweatpants, or red gym shorts. We’re allowed to wear stuff not from Edna Brewer; they either have to have no logos or have a small logo with no other colors,” Hanifin said.
At her school, if a student cannot afford a uniform, “We do free give outs, also if a student is able to give another student any item of the uniform, they are rewarded.” At Edna Brewer, they have PE three times a week, and have to put on uniforms every time.
Hanifan says middle school PE is much harder than it was in elementary school. “We had a good coach, but he was more lenient on the things we did. We were allowed to walk and talk while we ran laps, and none of us except the ‘try-hards’ tried hard. And the workouts were like pushups, and jumping jacks, and squats, and sit ups and all that jazz, but none of us really knew how to do it and wanted to do it so I feel like PE was more for the purpose of just getting outside and doing a little exercise and that also is nice too, but, yeah, I would say Middle School PE is harder.”
At Park Day, a private K- 8 school in Oakland, grades have PE twice a week. Ello Hoffer, a seventh grader there, says, “I’d say it’s not very hard. We just mostly play games.” At their school, they don’t require uniforms. “We don’t use uniforms, we just come in our normal clothes.”
Hoffer says, “Well, we have to wear sneakers, although I wear my crocs. And fully commit to our activities, which I also don’t do.”
OSA’s PE program is very different from other schools, but it still provides a sufficient PE program for OSA’s middle school students.
Another thing that sets OSA apart from other schools is Cafe Day. Cafe Day is a special thing that happens normally on block days around once a month. The cafe students have the opportunity to go to us Aroma Cafe, across the street from Snow Park. “Cafe day is when we go to the cafe on our block day in PE when we’re at Snow Park because Aroma Cafe is right across the street. My favorite thing to get there is gelato. My favorite gelato flavors are strawberry and cookies and cream,” McMahon says.
Another privilege that can be earned are awards. Awards are given out at the end of the year, two awards for each grade. “Awards are given at the end of each school year based on effort and athleticism,” Coach Foster said.
OSA does not have a gym; the only indoor spaces are the cafeteria when tables are moved out of the way and the dance studio. Coach Foster says, “We just need a proper facility, which would require a lot more funding. We could do a lot more if we had a gym or a field of our own, but we make it work still even though we are using public parks. We have many allies in the area. Having friendly relationships with local business owners and employees helps a lot. As far as equipment goes, we can always use a new kick ball, soccer ball, football, jump ropes, exercise mats.”
Coach Foster says, “I don’t have a set date for ice skating, but hopefully during November. No promises!”
