PHYSICAL EDUCATION is an integral part of the educational process at University School. The physical education program provides unique contributions to the total growth and development of each boy primarily through movement experiences. The National Standards and Grade-Level Outcomes guide our program for Junior Kindergarten through Grade 12 Physical Education developed by the Society of Health and Physical Education and the Ohio Content Standards. 

Early in the physical education experience we focus on the mastery of basic movements. The skills progress to the development and refinement of more complex skills. To teach these skills, it is essential that students participate in a wide variety of physical activities. The program is designed to be sequential while paralleling the physical, emotional and social development of boys. In addition to learning new skills each year, previously taught skills and concepts are reinforced and refined.
 

The physical education facilities on the Shaker campus are many and include a football field, two soccer fields, an outside teaching area, a six-lane 400-meter artificial surface track, three baseball fields, eight tennis courts, a double-size gymnasium, a wrestling room and a four lane 25-yard indoor pool.

GRADE 5
Physical education focuses on sport-related activities, physical fitness, and recreational and lifetime activities. Emphasis is placed on refining specialized skills in sport-related activities, team-building activities, and simple game strategies. Fourteen sports activities are offered and include soccer, floor hockey, swimming, and baseball.

GRADE 6 
The sixth-grade curricula are large-group initiatives that incorporate different types of communication, thinking of unconventional solutions, and allowing leaders to emerge by verbally stating to the group the various solutions on how to solve a problem.

GRADE 7 (Problem Solving)
The seventh-grade curriculum is based on the boys solving initiatives that use their hands with pieces of equipment. These sets of challenges engage the boys to consistently build on the skills they have been applying in fifth and sixth grade (communicating, developing a plan, developing strategies to solve a problem).

GRADE 8 (Challenge by Choice)
The eighth grade is based on trust and a philosophy called Challenge by Choice, a virtual contract between the teacher and student. Each student makes the choice between what is a safe or what he perceives as an unsafe challenge. The group is given directions to solve a problem during each initiative and plans how to best solve it while incorporating safety, spotting, and trust into the solution. The boys come away with a sense of accomplishment and trust amongst their peers.