A Step-by-Step Plan for Fitness and Academic Achievement

The State Board of Education recently adopted a framework of goals and course content for physical education.

Yes, there really is more to PE than kids playing ball.

The “Physical Education Framework” outlines a sequential PE curriculum for kindergarten through 12th grade. And playing ball is the least of it.

The Framework responds to what it calls the “quiet decline in the physical condition of the average American youngster.” It notes the increasing incidence of obesity, higher blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and underdeveloped heart and lungs.

The causes are predictable: poor diets and too much time spent watching TV instead of exercising.

But how can PE teachers reverse the trend and produce healthier kids?

Here’s the path that the Framework suggests.

It all starts in kindergarten, when children learn motor skills, such as hopping on the preferred foot and rhythmic games, and non-motor skills such as bending and stretching, tensing and relaxing.

First-graders tackle concepts of time and space: moving fast and slow, and in different directions. Basic eye-hand and eye-foot coordination arrives with practice at rolling, tossing, and kicking various objects. The kids learn simple dances and a little about nutrition too.

The shift from learning alone toward working in pairs or groups comes in second grade, so the games and dances are more complex. Whole body movement (leaping, pantomime, dodging) is introduced, along with ways to measure speed.

Second-graders also learn about the heart and lungs, healthy foods, and people whose lives have improved from exercise.

Third-graders focus on increased teamwork and learn (we hope) to take turns. They combine movements into patterns (dribbling, volleying), and learn more complex dances. The concept of warming up and cooling down appears now too. Kids also study the forms of exercise available in their specific communities.

Fourth grade brings the hard facts of winning and losing, and how to be civil in both. But perhaps the highlight is learning to manipulate objects (such as ball-handling). Kids study dances from other cultures and some physiology about circulation.

Fifth-graders are generally interested in improving sports skills, so they focus on accuracy and speed. Partnerships give way to groups of three to five, so the concepts of rules and fairness are emphasized, along with offensive and defensive play. They also explore current dances, more of the circulatory system, and the relationship of food to exercise.

Differences in size, gender, and strength become more obvious in sixth grade, so students learn tolerance and methods of peer-coaching. Groups grow to four or five members, and games such as bowling and Frisbee are learned.

Risk-taking is popular among kids, and is the focus of seventh-grade PE. They do “controlled risk” activities such as climbing ropes, gymnastics, aquatics, and a category called combatives, which includes the martial arts, wrestling and perhaps fencing.

Eighth-graders work in teams to solve problems and reach common goals, so complex team sports are played. Kids study principles of offensive and defensive play, group loyalty, and the results of unfair play and broken rules.

Ninth grade brings some choice. Kids select a team sport, then learn its history, rules and methods. They must also learn water safety, devise a personal nutrition program and learn to solve team conflicts.

Four areas are emphasized in 10th grade: individual or dual sports, combatives, dance, and analysis of movement (review of ideas and skills learned since kindergarten). The human skeletal system is studied too.

Grades 11 and 12 are similar. In both, students choose one or a few activities to perfect, in hopes that they’ll be lifelong hobbies. Each unit spans 10 to 20 weeks and should accommodate individual interests and body types. Students also learn the physiology and diet for the chosen sport, and they are encouraged to help community organizations that offer similar activities.

Throughout the curriculum, efforts are made to link PE with academic studies. In fourth grade, for example, the study of tribal dances and the Greek Olympics correlates to the study of ancient peoples in history classes. In seventh grade, the controlled risk-taking activities and martial arts training coincides with a unit on medieval history in which the idea of youths training for Crusades through similar activities is presented.

There are several benefits to the revised Framework. The biggest ones, I think, are that students get variety rather than tiring repetition, and strengthen skills and muscles from year to year. They also see connections to their studies in history, science and the arts, and learn about the related subjects of nutrition, safety and socialization.

And, frankly, it sounds like a lot of fun. I cherished the optional medical excuse that got me out of PE from seventh grade on--even though my major spinal fusions never hurt or limited me--simply because I dreaded the boredom, pointlessness and humiliation of my PE classes.

If such a Framework had been in effect back then, even I would have stuck around.