Indeed, classical education causes our scholars to rise up – to work hard – to take on complicated ideas – to stand toe to toe with their unknowing to discover the satisfaction and joy that comes from the struggle that is knowing. But we also play and laugh and wave at each other and relish the memories and time spent on the playground being children.

So far this year there has been a nice long and dry warm snap, and while I
acknowledge the drought brought on by the lack of rain, it has allowed for recess to be outside every single day of the first quarter accept one – that’s amazing and its own blessing. We like to go outside – recess and free play are important to what we do in the world of classical education. We work hard at our studies, we pay attention, take in several stories at a time, and put effort into learning the orthography of our language and the concrete, pictorial, and abstract paradigms of math.

So, we play.

We run.

We jump.

We tag.

We climb.

We laugh and giggle and chase.

I have the pleasure of monitoring both the morning and afternoon recess at Columbus Classical Academy. Getting to watch the imagination bring other worlds to life, tying shoelaces that rebel, and brushing off scrapes and scratches is a gift to my schedule of administrative tasks.

Even the older scholars have the opportunity to go outside during their leisure time and when they have finished their lunch. When the Upper School scholars request to go out, we rarely turn them down – they need the play, too. They take to the ‘field” for a football game, climb up to the top of the slide to wave to passersby, and swing on the swing set.

So, we toss.

We catch.

We run.

We tap-tackle.

We climb.

We swing.

We take in the sun’s rays and fill our lungs with fresh air.

CCA added a new piece of equipment to the Physical Education program this year – a regulation volleyball net. So far, we have used an incredibly large air-filled ball to volley.

Sometimes we play just for fun at recess. Recently, with the end of our first quarter, we had the Upper School play each other in bracket fashion with Mr. Buller narrating the event. It was a rip-roaring fun time watching the teams battle it out playing for glory.

Upper School scholars donned cool sunglasses, the freshmen gathered their teams and played while Lower School, faculty, and staff cheered everyone on. An equally gratifying event was when the faculty and staff played the 8th and 9th graders coming back from a deficit to take them. Smiles, high fives, and delight demonstrated joyful hearts at play.

Sure, there will be sunny days in November, but we know winter is afoot, ready to bring us the cold and brisk winds of the deep winter to come – it’s central Ohio after all. It also ushers in a time for us to remember – to be thankful for the times of warmth, fall breezes, and beautiful games outside. Don’t worry – we go outside in the winter, too – bundle up!