Seeking Solutions: Jaffrey’s Homeschool P.E. program combines fitness and socialization

Editor’s note: Solutions journalism looks at how people are trying to solve problems and what the rest of us can learn. Each story rests on four pillars: the response, the evidence it worked, the insights others can take, and its limitations. Our goal is a fuller view of our communities, one that includes both the problems we face and the people working to meet them.  

At Humiston Field in Jaffrey, a group of kids is warming up for their physical education class, doing sidesteps, grapevines, and short and long sprints.

Led by Jaffrey Recreation Program Coordinator Bethan Ouimette, the class is part of the town’s Homeschool P.E. program — a weekly, one-hour, outdoor class that runs during the warm months of the school year.

The children participate is warm-ups, and play games such as “Sharks and Minnows,” a form of tag, and “Get Your Trash Off My Lawn!” where they compete to get “trash” consisting of balls, beanbags and the occasional rubber chicken from their “yard” into their opponent’s, with the cleanest yard at the end of the time limit the winner.

The program draws from a regular rotation of P.E. games and activities, Ouimette said, but the small, informal class setting allows for flexibility. If students are especially enthusiastic about a game like Sharks and Minnows, she said, it’s easy to adapt the schedule and play it more often.

“If that’s what’s engaging them, then let’s do that,” Ouimette said.

Ouimette said the program started as a way to get more homeschooling families involved in Jaffrey Recreation.

“We developed it out of a need that we saw,” Ouimette said.

Homeschooling is an increasingly popular choice for parents, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, which found that about 5.22% of the school-aged population was homeschooled in 2022. That’s a growing number, as about 1.1 million students were homeschooled in 2003, about 1.5 million in 2007, and 3.7 million in 2021.

Only started last fall, Ouimette said the first class reached the program cap of 10 children, while the October, November, and May courses averaged between seven and eight participants.

In Jaffrey, the program does not operate during the winter months, largely because of facility limitations. Ouimette said Jaffrey Recreation lacks a large indoor space, such as a gymnasium, suitable for winter programming. Instead, the program runs in September, October and November, then resumes in April and May. Parents register in month-long sessions.

The Jaffrey class is only available for elementary-aged children, from first through fifth grade, and the class is capped at a maximum of 10 children. The class is held once a week on Tuesdays.

“It’s beneficial for age development,” said Ouimette, of children interacting with their peers. “It helps social skills, and communication skills. Children need to have peers to play with, and react off of, and see how others act and communicate.”

A 1991 study published in the American Journal of Public Health followed 800 kindergartners at four sites over 20 years and found that early social skills are closely tied to adult well-being. Children who demonstrated positive social behaviors in kindergarten — such as sharing and helping others — were more likely as adults to attain higher levels of education and maintain full-time employment.

Likewise, children who lacked social competence skills were more likely to have negative outcomes such as substance abuse or arrests.

For parents, there are multiple benefits, but socialization was a top one for those whose children attend the class.

Oliva Ohnsesorge, of Peterborough, has two children in the program and said that it’s been “wonderful” for her children.

“For where my kids are at, this is the perfect mix of teamwork, getting outside and moving their bodies,” Ohnesorge said.

Anna Vanyush of Jaffrey, whose son Robert is in the program, said that he also participated in the fall and was excited to return this spring.

“It’s good for him to work on his coordination, have a little bit of independence, and be with other kids of mixed ages,” said Vanyush. “Also, developing sportsmanship, winning and losing, and how to handle that.”

Access to the Recreation Department grounds and equipment also gives her son a chance to try different sports and activities that she can’t replicate at home, Vanyush said.

For mom Ariel Richards of Keene, one of the appeals for her was getting her children used to taking direction from another adult. She said her children were also participants in last fall’s class and were excited to come back.

“We go to homeschool meet-ups, and that’s fun, but it’s a valuable experience learning to listen to another adult in a kind of formal setting,” said Richards. “I think it’s a good opportunity for families.”

It’s also a way for homeschooling families to connect, said Vanyush.

“If you’re not actively trying to get out and find other families, you can feel kind of isolated,” said Vanyush. “It’s nice to have the opportunities for your kids to meet other kids, and for parents to meet other parents.”

Ouimette said that word of mouth and social media have been the main ways of finding homeschooling families interested in the program. She advised other recreation programs interested in starting their own programs to use social media and homeschooling groups to gauge community interest.

The Jaffrey Homeschool P.E. program runs monthly in September, October, November and in April and May in the spring, on Tuesdays from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. The cost is $20 for Jaffrey residents and $25 for non-residents each month. The program is available for children in grades 1 to 5, and is capped at 10 participants.