At New Providence High school, Physical Education is many students’ favorite class, because it’s fun, and a relaxing aspect of their stressful schedule.

Students enjoy physical education because it’s like a break from their harder day-to-day classes. In gym class they can relax and pick what they are interested in, and get physical activity out of it too. A lot of high school students have a lot of energy, so getting to exert that energy in the middle of the school day before they can get out to sports after school is something that physical education can do for them. For example, gym class first period might wake students up and get them energized and put some physical activity in early in the morning. Likewise, having gym in the middle or near the end of the day provides that same opportunity but as more of a break from classes and a time for students to release energy and stress.

So how do the Phys Ed teachers decide what activities we will engage in?

Mrs. Halpern explained that “there’s a couple different things that we take into consideration. One is the weather. Normally in the fall we try to get outside and do activities that are outside. In the winter, obviously, it’s very cold and we have limited space, so we end up staying inside and doing indoor sports. And then as the fourth marking cycle comes around, we try to get outside again. So depending on the weather, that’s an option. Step two is going to be [when we have] an elective program where we ask the class what they want to do and then we figure out the majority rules and how many teachers we have. And then we go with the activities that way.”

What sports do NPHS students enjoy the most in gym class? According to a survey of 100 random NPHS students, the favorite is also the activity that occupies the most time: 48% of students said that volleyball is their favorite sport.

Other activities come in with much lower approval, notably speedball at 8%, and basketball at 7%.