Do you remember the Canada Fitness tests?

I don't remember the specific tests, but I do remember being miserable at them. I was an uncoordinated klutz and gym was a bi-weekly torment.

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I hated them, I was a fat kid and sucked at running, but I remember being really proud of myself when I got the silver badge one year. It was the best I ever did.

Trying to figure out why your birthday mattered? Even if the test was based on exact age, kids born in Jan would be younger than those in the same grade and born in the fall so would have to do less than about half the class.

It seems we had do etching similar in US. Hated all aspects of phys Ed.

I read the question and got a knot in my stomach. They were the two worst days of the year! I hope kids are not subjected to them ever again!

Ours were the presidential fitness exams....the horror of the mile run. Anyone else ever get to the far end of the track and contemplate escaping into the woods? It cant be only me.

GOT_Obsessed wrote: »

lorrpb wrote: »

Trying to figure out why your birthday mattered? Even if the test was based on exact age, kids born in Jan would be younger than those in the same grade and born in the fall so would have to do less than about half the class.

It seems we had do etching similar in US. Hated all aspects of phys Ed.

Nope. I was one of the older kids in my class, I started kindergarten at 5 1/2. (Feb. Birthday)
Some of my class mates started at 4 1/2. ( oct. nov, Dec birthdays)

That was it for me. I was older so I had to do more.

I think it was in grade 6. I was 12 come January and everyone was still 11. I had to run almost twice as far as most of the class. I think there was one girl who had been held back a grade and one boy who also turned 12 early.

Then there were the kids who were just turning 11. Up here, you have some choice about when you wish to start school if your birthday is between October and January (I believe). My mom started me a bit late because I was very shy. Two of my kids have winter birthdays and I chose to start them a year early because they are outgoing, bright ad we were homeschooling them all. My grade 8 son is still 12 and my grade 10 son turns 15 tomorrow. If they were shy or struggled with academics, I would have held them back to start so they'd be in grades 7 and 9 instead.

GOT_Obsessed wrote: »

nvmomketo wrote: »

I liked them, but I was a fit, tall and strong kid. Phys Ed classes were usually marks in the 80-90s for me. If I was less fit I can see where having fitness tested would be less fun. I'm sure the same would be true in any other class. In a math class getting tested in algebra would be no fun for someone not good at algebra. If you were a poor speller, I am sure spelling tests were no fun either.

The only part I did not like is that my birthday was in January so I had to do more than most of the other kids in my class: run farther, hold on longer, etc.

I am a Feb. Birthday so I sort of remember feeling shafted. Was it based on your exact age at the time of testing or something?

A solid bronze recipient here! The "Endurance walk" was always horrendous for me.
And I remember always having a sore neck from those damn Situps. Awesome form I must have had.
But I did find a silver badge in my keepsake box but it may have been my brother's. Lol

I remember saving my gold and red badges. LOL

In junior high, we always did the push-ups and sit-ups timed. The most you can do in a minute.

The push-ups were awkward because your sternum had to touch the fist (on the floor) of your counter. It was other girls but it still seemed awkward. LOL

I can clear up this confusion about January birthdays, since I was born and raised in the US, and have young kids now in Canada. In the US, the cutoff for birthdays for a particular year did not correspond to the calendar year, but a date corresponding more to the school year. So, kids with birthdays from September of one year to August of the next year. This meant that kids born in January of, say, 1985, would be in the same class as kids born in September of 1984. In Canada, the grade corresponds to the actual year, so kids born in January would be the oldest in any school year.

And those Presidential Fitness tests were THE WORST. As a tall girl with tight hamstrings, I couldn't even sit on the floor with my legs flat out in front of me, let alone reach past my feet for any distance. They seemed designed to make most of the class feel like absolute crap.

saralukies wrote: »

I can clear up this confusion about January birthdays, since I was born and raised in the US, and have young kids now in Canada. In the US, the cutoff for birthdays for a particular year did not correspond to the calendar year, but a date corresponding more to the school year. So, kids with birthdays from September of one year to August of the next year. This meant that kids born in January of, say, 1985, would be in the same class as kids born in September of 1984. In Canada, the grade corresponds to the actual year, so kids born in January would be the oldest in any school year.

And those Presidential Fitness tests were THE WORST. As a tall girl with tight hamstrings, I couldn't even sit on the floor with my legs flat out in front of me, let alone reach past my feet for any distance. They seemed designed to make most of the class feel like absolute crap.

nvmomketo wrote: »

It varies from school board to school board in Canada. I could legally start my December 2002 born child in grade 1 in 2008 or 2009, when he was 5 or 6, because the cut-off date was you must be 6 before March 1st but you need to be 6 at some point in your grade 1 year. For those born September to February, you can choose to enter grade 1 at age 5 (and graduate at 17) or age 6 (and graduate at 18).

For me, a January kid, I could have been one of the oldest OR one of the youngest. Being the oldest helped in sports and gym... and maturity. My winter born kids are the youngest in their classes. One is big so being young does not affect him much (just a bit less coordinated). My oldest is small for his age though, and being that he is on the young side of his grade anyways, he is very small. PE class is harder.

My July born son had no choice. He had to start school after turning 6 in the summer. He'll always be a bit on the young side in his classes. He's another big kid though so in PE there is no disadvantage.

And Kindergarten is not mandatory here, thank goodness.

nvmomketo wrote: »

It varies from school board to school board in Canada. I could legally start my December 2002 born child in grade 1 in 2008 or 2009, when he was 5 or 6, because the cut-off date was you must be 6 before March 1st but you need to be 6 at some point in your grade 1 year. For those born September to February, you can choose to enter grade 1 at age 5 (and graduate at 17) or age 6 (and graduate at 18).

For me, a January kid, I could have been one of the oldest OR one of the youngest. Being the oldest helped in sports and gym... and maturity. My winter born kids are the youngest in their classes. One is big so being young does not affect him much (just a bit less coordinated). My oldest is small for his age though, and being that he is on the young side of his grade anyways, he is very small. PE class is harder.

My July born son had no choice. He had to start school after turning 6 in the summer. He'll always be a bit on the young side in his classes. He's another big kid though so in PE there is no disadvantage.

And Kindergarten is not mandatory here, thank goodness.

Yes, this. The "cut off" for school when and where I grew up was March 1 as well, so a kid could start kindergarten at 4 and not turn 5 until February. March kids were usually the oldest and February the youngest, unless parents had decided to hold their Dec-Feb kids back for the next year. I started kindergarten at 4 and was 16 for the first half of my grade 12 year, along with quite a few of my peers.

I was always on the small side, but my parents taught me to read early and I never had attention issues, so it worked for me, but many of my childhood friends were kids with winter birthdays whose parents held them back and were a full year older than me in the same grade.

It definitely showed in phys ed for me, I really had nothing going for me since I was undersized, bookish, uncoordinated, not fond of physical exertion of any kind, and a lefty to boot. By grade 6 I was already beyond adept at avoiding actual participation.

I always wonder if school could have done better for me at making me enjoy physical activity, since I balked at anything resembling a sport until I was like 25, but I got there in the end once I figured out people that run get to eat more and skiing is amazing if your legs are strong.

omg. I think in the states we called them the "presidential fitness test" or something equally horrifying

GOT_Obsessed wrote: »

In my school the bar for the flexed arm hang was only ever used for that purpose once a year.

But it was often used as a spot for the intramural floor hockey referee to sit upon with their whistle.
I really hope nowadays nobody tries to sit up there. Very unsafe. But back then stupid risks like that were just so much more acceptable.

Ha, our bar was hung in the entrance to the girls' washroom! So whenever a fitness test was taking place the door was kept open and that washroom was not available for use.

I am a December kid so I was the youngest in the class. I did well in some things (running and situps) and horrible at the push-ups and long jump.