At St Xavier's High School, students are using unconventional ways to spend time that would have been better spent on physical education (PE). Instead of outdoor activities, the pupils engage in indoor games.

The school is located in Nakuru's CBD, so there is little space for students to play outside. This is perhaps a different story to what most people experienced during their high school years.

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Some would argue that high school was marked by outdoor activities, mostly sporting events and tournaments that would attract schools from near and far.

St Xavier students playing scrabble game.

Photo credit: Bret Sanya/Mtaa Wangu

But for the students of St Xavier's High School, Checkers, Chess, Snakes and Ladders and Scrabble are some of the games that have gained popularity among the students and even those involved in outdoor activities are slowly getting influenced and playing these fascinating indoor games.

The pioneer of these games was their PE teacher, Bernard Wandati, who joined the school in 2020. A fan of indoor games, he decided to take on the responsibility of introducing them to the students.

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"When I came to St Xaviers High School, a lot of the students were involved in outdoor activities, but since space is limited, we had to make the best of what we had and with the limited space in the school, we resorted to indoor games. I somehow found a way to get some of them involved in indoor games. It has been three years now and I can say that many of them are now involved in the games and the number is increasing day by day," Mr Wandati said.

This is perhaps a different story from what most people experienced during their high school years.

The students also say that the games have brought great benefits in terms of improving their creativity, interpersonal skills and critical thinking.

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From outdoor games to indoor games: Why PE is no longer fun for these Nakuru students

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Bret Sanya