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No Excuses! - A Documentary about Quality Physical Education
QUALITY PHYSICAL EDUCATION ADVOCACY
EFFECTIVE TEACHING STRATEGIES
TEACHER RESOURCES

Planning Physical Education Units

  • SHAPE America Appropriate Practices
  • Related Pages
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  • 3.1.1 The physical education curriculum has an obvious scope and sequence, based on goals and objectives that are appropriate for all students and that are derived from national or state standards.
  • 3.1.2 The physical educator includes motor skill development, physiological and biomechanical concepts, health-enhancing physical activities that lead to a physically active lifestyle, and opportunities to develop appropriate social behaviors.
  • 3.1.3 Instruction follows a scope and sequence that is designed to scaffold prior learning and develop mature forms of skills and strategies.
  • 3.1.4 Teachers design progressions that allow students to build on previously learned content and skills, by focusing on lifetime activities.
  • ​Content should also be revisited throughout the year.
 
DIAMOND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK: A K-12 ROAD MAP FOR PHYSICAL EDUCATION
​The diamond conceptual framework helps illustrate the progression of skills and concepts taught in physical education, which are guided by national and state standards and research on physical activity and physical education. 
  1. Students should first learn the fundamental skills needed to be successful in physical activities (physical literacy), just as they would need to learn to read before tackling Mark Twain.
  2. Next they should experience a variety of activities with the goal of finding a few they enjoy; we wouldn't want them to go through life thinking the only way to stay healthy and fit is by running, playing basketball, and/or lifting weights.
  3. Lastly, students should become proficient in a few chosen activities with the hope that they will continue to participate in them throughout their lives. 
Diamond Conceptual Framework for physical education
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DESIGNING STANDARD BASED UNITS
  • Overview with Example
  • Unpacking Standards
  •    SLOs and Domains of Learning  
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**Select standards based on the developmental level of the students (which may differ from their grade level) and
​include additional learning objectives to meet the needs of your students and community.**
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​Standards are often comprehensive and include multiple Student Learning Objectives. After reading each Standard, ask yourself “What do my students need to know and be able to do to meet this Standard?” The table below shows how many SLOs can be created from one Psychomotor Standard. Find more information on unpacking standards from The Physical Educator.
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Below are examples of student learning objectives (SLOs) for each domain of learning. For more information see our ​Domains of Learning and Writing Learning Objectives page.
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DESIGNING STANDARD BASED LESSONS
Key Questions from Instructional Models for Physical Education, 3e (Exhibit 6.7, p. 147), by Michael W. Metzler. Copyright ©2011 by Holcomb Hathaway.
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Below is a video on how to create standards based lessons from Terri Drain. Also see this video for an example of a standards based lesson.
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Articles on Planning
  • Changing the "Culture of Games": "...​This "culture of games" exists in our physical education history and will exist in our physical education futures unless we are prepared to acknowledge that it exists and take steps to create better physical education experiences for our students...."​
PHYSICAL EDUCATION'S "HALL OF SHAME" ACTIVITIES
Hall of Shame characteristics
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Here are additional characteristics listed in the Physical Education "Hall of Shame" articles that we omitted from our table and the reasons why:
  • Requires little training or pedagogical skill to teach - Complexity of a task does not relate to its quality.
  • Overemphasis on and concern for fun - A standards based program negates this issue​.
  • Does not address the proposed student learning objectives - A standards based program negates this issue​.
  • Lack of emphasis on teaching motor skills and lifetime physical activity skills - A standards based program negates this issue​.
WHY DODGEBALL IS AN INAPPROPRIATE ACTIVITY
​Promoting Quality Physical Education through Advocacy and Free Access to Information and Resources