PE / Pre-Athletics

PE and Pre-Athletics at Downing

In the 6th grade, boys and girls are separated for PE/Pre-Athletics classes. 

If an incoming 6th grade student is signed-up for PE on his schedule, he will participate in Pre-Athletics. At Downing, due to our smaller school size, we do not have separate PE and Pre-Athletics classes at the 6th grade level. However, since over 80% of the male students go into athletics as 7th graders, the class is structured more like a Pre-Athletics class. In time, we may change the name of the course, or possibly separate the courses. After 6th grade, 7th and 8th grade PE classes are separate from 7th and 8th grade Athletics classes. 6th Graders do not need a physical to participate.

There are benefits of having all the 6th graders together. It does form a strong sense of community and cooperation within the 6th grade boys, as we all have to work together and support each other. Another benefit is we always have several students who were not planning on being in Athletics as a 7th grader decide to do Athletics as a 7th grader because they had fun in the Pre-Athletics. Ultimately, the Pre-Athletics class looks a lot like a normal PE class. Students who are not wanting to move into athletics do not need to stress over the class. Having fun and working together are major goals of our Pre-Athletics classes. 

In Pre-Athletics, we cover general fitness from cardio, speed work, strength, and footwork as well as play games like a classic PE class, but we also have units for football (non-contact), cross country, basketball, weight training (limited weight for learning), track & field, and soccer. If time allows, we do work in games and smaller units for kick ball, whiffle ball, and floor hockey. 

We also strive to instill strong character traits in our young athletes, so there is a high expectation of our core values in Pre-Athletics. This allows the students going into 7th grade athletics to have the mindset and abilities needed to represent Downing and the community at a high level. 

If there are any questions, please feel free to contact Coach Reiter at reiters@lisd.net. 

Updated: 6.17.24