Mandatory daily gym class coming to Manitoba public schools

In-person physical education classes will soon be mandatory for students of all ages in Manitoba, the provincial government announced Thursday.

A two-year pilot health curriculum program, called “Every Body Every Day,” will begin at the start of the upcoming school year, Premier Wab Kinew said at a news conference Thursday. This program will require students from kindergarten to Grade 12 to participate in daily gym classes.

“Every single student in Manitoba will have to do gym class in-person,” Kinew said, adding that the program “has the potential to make Manitoba a healthier place.”

“The school system, in general, that we have is one of the best ways that we can reach every child.”

The first phase of the program will see 25 schools in Winnipeg, Brandon and rural Manitoba require mandatory gym class this fall, Manitoba Minister of Education and Early Childhood Learning Tracy Schmidt said. Other public schools will begin working toward enacting daily gym classes in the 2026-2027 school year.

For the following school year, 2027-2028, the province will require a qualified professional to provide at least 110 hours of in-person physical education classes for Grade 11 and 12 students, she continued.

While Every Body Every Day is in its pilot phase, teachers and parents can provide feedback as the curriculum is continually refined, the province said in a news release. Previously, Grade 11 and 12 could opt out of their in-school physical education credit, swapping it for an outside activity.

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To students who are anxious or want to find a way out of the mandatory physical education classes, the premier said, “we are going to change gym to work for you too.”

“This is as much about the kid who thinks that working out is no joke as the kid who cracks a joke to try and skip a turn,” he continued.

The newly updated teaching guidelines will make gym classes adaptable for students who need accommodations, Kinew said.

It also includes learning goals adapted for the modern student, he said. These upgrades include studying the mental health impacts of screen time, social media and artificial intelligence. Students will also examine the marketing tactics used by vape and supplement companies, as well as risks associated with e-scooters.

A recent report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information found that there were 837 hospitalizations related to e-scooter injuries from April 2025 to March 2026. That figure increased by more than 200 cases compared to the year prior.

“When we think about the future of our society, it has to be inclusive of an education that fosters health and well-being and exercise amongst the next generation,” the premier said.

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Junior high and high school students will also learn basic cooking skills. Schmidt said this will ensure they can prepare healthy and affordable meals as they transition to adulthood. The education minister also said the importance of movement, and avoiding a sedentary lifestyle, will be a part of the public school curriculum.

Dr. Brent Roussin, the provincial chief public health officer, praised the pilot program at Thursday’s news conference.

“Health is not only shaped in clinics, and in hospitals. It’s shaped at home, shaped at school, in workplace settings, (and) in communities,” Roussin said.

“Prevention is what matters. The choices and supports available to young people today will really influence their health in the future.”

He said daily, mandatory gym classes will help students feel included and learn practical skills, while forming healthy food and movement habits at a young age.

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