Being a parent, I think a lot about confidence and kids. I was especially wary when Thing 1 entered middle school back in September. Those were some awkward years…for me anyway.
Thing 1 had minimal trepidation. Her biggest concern was that the gym teacher she got was tough and they had to run a mile every week and repeat it if it wasn’t fast enough. You can imagine, this got my attention. I can count on one finger the number of kids’ races Thing 1 has done. I never forced her and she just wasn’t interested. Fine. I had no idea how this mile thing was going to play out.
Thing 1 surprised herself and discovered that, while it was hard, she didn’t suck at running. She wasn’t alone. The entire class improved week by week. She started to set goals of how she’d beat her previous time and would come home beaming when she reported her time.
It didn’t end there. The rest of gym class is boot camp style. Workouts are tough. But instead of whine, the kids rose to the occasion. Over the course of the of the school year, they got stronger, fitter, faster. MORE CONFIDENT.
I think what I love most about running for kids especially, is that it’s measured against the clock vs judges that can be less objective. Results are black and white. Losing isn’t fun but it’s a life lesson all the same.
Certainly there are other aspects of school where kids can excel. But kids at this age have so much physical potential that is often shrouded by insecurities, peer pressure and questionable judgement. The confidence built on the track carries over into academics. I am grateful to this teacher for demanding more and helping them work up to it.
Fast forward to spring: Thing 1 joined the track team. She’s a hurdler of all things. Mama is proud.
Were you confident in school? What helps you build confidence?
ohhh middle school, i hated it, people were not nice. I love that the kids are really taking to this challenge! I think we often don’t give kids enough credit for truly wanting to do better or achieve things and if we give them opportunities they will run with what works for them. aww a little track member, so fun.
Great story; I love it especially because it’s about a girl. The correlation between sports and healthy body image in girls is so high. With my daughter, my goal is always to have her focus on what she can do with her body, not how she looks.
Swimming has been the same for my son…he’s made amazing progress this year with an amazing coach and it’s so nice to see him gain confidence from that. This is his first year of middle school, too, and from what I can tell, he’s doing just fine! Big sigh of relief for now…
Your kid’s gym class sounds kind of like a kid’s nightmare, but parent’s dream. I wish my gym class had been like that, but then again, I probably would have hated it at the time 🙂
I work at a middle school. They are the toughest years. We require kids to take a sport (we don’t have gym) so that they all stay active, learn how to play on a team and are active every day for 55 minutes as “sports” is the last period of the day. I love it and think every school should do it!
I feel like, as a society, we’ve come to expect too little from our kids. I know I am guilty of this. But I think (and your story proves it!) that our kids benefit so much from being pushed and challenged enough to overcome – there’s nothing like it to instill confidence in them.
And hurdles? She is my hero!
Middle school was all kinds of awkward. I had a gym class like that in 7th grade, I loved it! I always stunk at team sports, so an individual one like circuit training and swimming was perfect for me. Funny that I’m still that way with running. 🙂
I wasn’t very confident in school. I always hung out with the “in” crowd but I always felt awkward. I played soccer but wasn’t very good. I look back now and laugh because I was pretty skinny but had no coordination. My daughter, she’s in middle school as well and she joined the track team this year! She’s had 2 meets so far and even though she’s only beating a few people each time she runs she seems to be happy with herself and what she’s doing WHICH THRILLS ME! She says “mom, this really isn’t my thing but I’m enjoying it.” Makes me happy for her.
I love this! Teachers can make such a big difference and running is such a confidence booster. I wish that I ran when I was in school. I would have had much better self esteem for sure! Confidence was not one of my strong suits in school unfortunately. So happy for your daughter:)
I love this!!
I always stunk at the mile in gym class, and I was a bit taken aback that the kids would have to re-do it if it wasn’t good enough. I would have been walking the mile the entire class! I do love how the class has rallied to challenge themselves individually as I think it’s such a great lesson. It’s awesome! But, what’s gym class without badminton?
Kim badminton is the best! Can’t wait to put our net up in the yard!
Wow, kudos to that teacher for setting high standards and letting the kids see that they can do it! And how fun for you to see her excel and start to enjoy running… yay!!
I love this! How great that the gym teacher made her run and she has found she is good and likes it!
People always ask me why I like math.
It was the only thing I was good at in school.
Ah, that’s so cool! Abbey was a hurdler in middle school, too. 🙂
What a great teacher! That is exactly the way to increase self-esteem and confidence in kids. Wonderful!
Sounds like she has an amazing gym teacher!
Middle school was an awful time for me – I went to 3 schools during 8th grade.
I was very quiet and shy when I started high school – fortunately I started running cross country and track and ended up being pretty good so that helped my self-confidence a lot!
That is so great. Congrats to your kiddo. And kudos to the gym teacher. Sounds like she’s pretty great at her job.
Gaye
It is important to meet a teacher like her. I am very happy for your daughter and the proud mom.
In middle school I left running because I finished…. only 6th overall in my first race among all the 4 schools of my city!
This sounds like a wonderful gym teacher that knows how to appropriately challenge the kids. So happy for your daughter finding something new that she enjoys! It is so hard at that age to step out of your comfort zone (more so than at other ages IMO) and she has risen to the challenge. You should be proud!
I definitely think teaching kids to push out of their comfort zone is the key to building confidence. I was really pushed as a kid, but it made me who I am and I am so glad my parents/coaches did this for me!
I love this post. I was “discovered” as a runner in middle school. I had no idea I was a runner and I still am! I gained SO much confidence via running and learned how to be a team player. I have made so many friends along the way too. Bravo gym teacher for pushing the girls!!
It’s easy to see that you are a great teacher! Excellent for the enduring personality characteristic!
Have a nice weekend!
Good luck to Thing 1 this season with track! For me it was nice just to have my parents encouraging us to try new things and always telling us we were doing a good job. That made me feel like I could do anything I put my mind to!
Awesome!! Yay for Thing 1!!
I was confident about some things, and not confident about other things. I went through some pretty tough times but I was usually always confident about swimming 🙂 My parents always believed in us (me and my brother) and they never pressured us to do things we didn’t want to do. My mom would always tell me that the body achieves what the mind believes!
Jamie that is an AWESOME thing for your mom to say! Love that!
Love this. No I wasn’t confident as a kid. My daughter is 14 and I never expected her to have a lack of confidence. Surprise! She is going through a rough time right now 🙁
I would never want to return to the middle school years!
WTG to the hurdler!!!
Catching up on old blog posts. This is fantastic! I have to say I’m surprised to hear a teacher doing this, and the kids liking it! I’m so used to hearing stories about people complaining about anything that might be remotely hard. This is great, what an awesome school and teacher.
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