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PHYSICAL EDUCATION & SPORTS

Health for Life

Health and fitness literacy are an essential part of a Parker student’s education. Students from lower to upper school spend weekly time participating in physical education, and gain an appreciation for competitive sports, lifelong activity, and wellness practices.

The Intersection of Academic Excellence and Student Wellness

Lower School

The physical education department at the Lower School strives to instill in students a joyful love of movement, understanding of new sports and fitness activities, and development of self-reflective and team-building skills. 

All Lower School grades participate in P.E. four times a week, for 30-40 minutes (depending on the grade). Dedicated weekly physical education has been shown to not only benefit physical health, but also improves academic performance, mental health and well-being, and social interactions.

Lower School students are exposed to a variety of sports and their respective rules, including: soccer, basketball, volleyball, flag football, softball, running, lacrosse, tumbling, dance, and even bocce ball.

During lunchtime recess, Lower School students have the opportunity to come inside to a peaceful environment to practice meditation and light stretching at mindfulness class, or can also join the dance program and explore modern contemporary, hip-hop, ballet, jazz, and creative movement.

Middle School

Through the combination of individual and team activities, middle school students are introduced to a variety of sports, and develop the fundamental skills needed for Upper School athletics and beyond.

Physical fitness concepts in Middle School include cardiovascular development, proper warm-up and flexibility exercises, gross and fine motor control, beginning strength and conditioning concepts, and fundamental skill development. 

Middle School students spend equal time in physical education as they do in core subjects, arts, and elective classes. This amounts to an average of 200 minutes of physical activity every week.

In Grades 6 through 8, students spend some of their physical education time attending Parker's Life Skills program. This course provides students with the skills and knowledge to positively impact their nutrition, stress management, adolescent development, mental health, and even personal finances. CPR certification and standard first-aid are also part of the Life Skills curriculum.

Middle School Sports

In the Middle School, students have the opportunity to join boys, girls, and co-ed interscholastic sports teams, and compete against other schools for the first time. Our Middle School is a great coaching and teaching incubator for students who may want to continue their pursuit of athletics at the varsity level. Middle School sport offerings include:

  • Cross country
  • Flag football
  • Golf
  • Lacrosse
  • Volleyball
  • Basketball
  • Softball
  • Tennis
  • Soccer
  • Cheer
  • Baseball

Upper School

Upper School students complete their physical education credits by participating in one of Parker's junior varsity or varsity athletic teams, or exploring new fitness interests in one of our unique P.E. class offerings.

Let's go Lancers! Upper School students have the opportunity to play on one of Parker's 20+ CIF sports. We believe that student-athletes benefit not only physically and emotionally by participating and competing in sports, but also develop critical skills (e.g., teamwork, resilience, leadership, tenacity, etc.) that promote success in the classroom, in college, and in life.

The Parker physical education department aims to educate students in a range of lifelong fitness activities and develop an interest in joyful movement and health concepts during their four years of Upper School. Students are given a wide variety of unique P.E. classes to take, including Yoga, Fitness for Life, Sports Medicine, Pilates, and Student Athletic Training.

All Grade 9 students engage in Life Skills courses as a complement to physical education. The Life Skills curriculum provides students with the knowledge and skills to develop healthy behaviors for Upper School and beyond. CPR certification and standard first-aid are part of the course curriculum. Additional topics include: self-esteem, drug and alcohol education, mindfulness, and sex education.

Upper School Athletics

At Parker, we believe that athletics is an integral and valuable component of our students’ overall educational experience. We believe that student-athletes benefit not only physically and emotionally by participating and competing in sports, we believe that one of our fundamental responsibilities is to help student-athletes develop critical skills (e.g., teamwork, resilience, leadership, tenacity, etc.) that promote success in the classroom, in college and in life.

The Athletics Department fulfills this mission by:

 
  • Emphasizing the importance of our coaches as educators – we expect our coaches to teach student-athletes the fundamentals of their sport and to be role models for sportsmanship, respect, and integrity;
  • Ensuring that our student-athletes understand that participation in athletics is a privilege, not a right – we expect all of our student-athletes to represent Parker as model citizens; and
  • Building school spirit, camaraderie and an atmosphere of togetherness across all of our sports teams – we strive to be a source of pride for our students, school, and community.

Explore Parker's Athletic Program

  • COACH AND PROGRAM CONTACTS
  • JK-GRADE 12 FITNESS & SPORTS
  • ATHLETIC TRAINING
  • SPIRIT STORE
  • ATHLETIC SPEAKER SERIES
  • NEWS

Francis Parker School is an independent, coeducational, college preparatory day school for students in Junior Kindergarten through Grade 12 from across San Diego County. Parker's mission is to inspire a diverse community of independent thinkers whose academic excellence, global perspective and strength of character prepare them to make a meaningful difference in the world.

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Non-Discrimination Statement

Francis Parker School values diversity and seeks talented students, faculty, and staff from different backgrounds. All employment decisions are made without regard to unlawful considerations of race, color, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and related medical conditions), gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, religion, national origin, ancestry, ethnicity, creed, age, mental or physical disability, medical condition, genetic information, military or veteran status, or any other basis prohibited by federal, state, or local law.  

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