I thought I would mix it up this week and bring in another one of my passions: teaching. I have taught nursery and reception for the past 5 years, and in the 2 and a half years since I began running I have loved sharing my challenges and experiences with my students. In the lead up to my first half and full marathons in the Spring of 2017, I often shared my training, various races, the amount of time I was spending running, and how I found what I was doing to be a personal challenge. Sure, some of this was for selfish reasons to gain some sympathy from children as they watched my attempt to lower my sore adult self into a teeny tiny EYFS chair.
Another reason I felt it was important is that I feel it is important to share our passions, and struggles with children (even if we aren’t teachers). In school we constantly ask children to challenge themselves and feel a bit uncomfortable when learning to do something new. Running is much the same. We constantly feel the need to go that little bit faster, enter new and unique races, and set and achieve our goals.
The fact that I run is known quite school-wide. Children constantly ask my how races are going, colleagues begin the week demanding to know what “crazy” race or distance I have done on the weekend gone. I’ve even had a child come up to me and state in her own words: “Miss I googled you and I found that you are an athlete!! WOW!”. Running has also allowed me to make a positive impact on my school. One of my roles outside the classroom is as our healthy schools coordinator. I have been able to bring in the daily mile (Which is exactly as it sounds: at some point in the day children run up to a mile on a near daily basis) and often get the opportunity to join in with the children (some of them are getting seriously fast!).
Anyways, onto the fun stuff. One of the most fun parts about teaching is getting to hear all the hilarious and insightful things children have to say. So I thought it would be fitting to interview some of the children from nursery to year 6 about running, marathons and the fact that I would running one in a few months.
What is a marathon? (asked to a group of year 1s)
Child 1: “It’s like running!”
Child 2: “But with your arms AND legs!”
Child 3: “Is it like America? That’s where ostriches live.”
Me: “It’s like the daily mile but 26 of them in a row”
Child 4: “No no, that’s just too far to run!”
Child 5: “Oh I’ve already done that when I was 4”
Why do you think Miss Kandt wants to run a marathon? (asked to my nursery class)
Child 1: “Because people will come watch you!”
Child 2: “I have no idea…”
Child 3: “To get fit and strong…”
Child 4: “...you need to have big muscles” The child then flexed their own arms and continued “but you have small muscles!”
What am I going to need to eat before the race?
Child 1: “Pepperoni….. Pickles and pepperoni”
Child 2: “six eggs, or maybe even more!”
Child 3: “Carbohydrates like bread or pasta because they are good for you!”
How long will it take me to run the marathon?
Child 1: “6 hours”
Child 2: “100 minutes”
Child 3: “1, maybe 2 minutes”
Child 4: “Probably 10 days”
What is going to happen during and after the race?
Child 1: “You will be tired cuz you have to run fast and then have a nap”
Child 2: “You will win and then be happy with your new trophy”
Child 3: “You will be tired and your face will turn red.”
Child 4: “I think you will be tired and happy but also maybe a bit hungry.
So there you have it. According to the children at my school I will not only outright win the London marathon but I will do it sub 100 minutes on a diet of pickles, eggs and pepperoni. They aren’t wrong about some things:
I will continue my diet of delicious carbohydrates up to (and beyond) race day,
I will be very happy and I’m sure rather tired and in need of a nap (nothing new there)
And I will hopefully finish somewhere between 100 minutes and 10 days.
We’ve got just 68 days to see how these predictions pan out!