Incorporating bike skills into the elementary- and middle-school physical education curriculum encourages students to be physically active in a fun way while also learning bike safety skills. Winston-Salem's (NC) Safe Routes to School program demonstrates how collaboration with the public schools' health and physical education program…

Softball is taught in many physical education programs throughout the United States. This article describes modifications that maximize learning outcomes and that address the National Standards and safety recommendations. The modifications focus on tasks and equipment, developmentally appropriate motor-skill acquisition, increasing number of…

Engaging youth in traditional physical education exercises or ball sports can be a challenging task, especially when they prefer novelty, entertainment, or excitement in their leisure-time activities. In addition, many youth are unaware of the opportunities that exist to exercise or recreate in nature, often preferring to spend time indoors…

The current educational climate emphasizes the inclusion of students with disabilities in general education. This results in an increased effort to enhance and maintain an inclusive environment. Consequently, the use of paraeducators for support has increased (Giangreco, Broer, & Edelman, 2002). This is particularly true for physical education…

The development of fundamental movement skills in physical education is an important contributor toward children's' lifetime interest and participation in physical activity. Physical education teachers and their curricula follow national and state standards to provide learning experiences and instruction that support the acquisition of…

The sport education (SE) model has been used extensively to teach sports at the middle and high school levels, and the flexibility of the model has been demonstrated in its application to fitness units as well. Infusing new content into this well-established and familiar curricular model can increase student motivation and interest while…

In 2007, the physical education program at Sunnyside Middle School in Lafayette, Indiana, was in constant flux. Teacher turnover occurred annually, facilities were subpar, the curriculum was outdated, opportunities for professional development were rare, and most importantly, students lacked maximum movement opportunities in physical education. In…

The Detroit Healthy Youth Initiative is a 10-year partnership between the Detroit Public Schools (DPS) and Wayne State University (WSU) with the goal of improving the quality of school health and physical education programs throughout the city schools. Drawing on the experiences of WSU and DPS faculty, administrators, teachers, and project staff,…

Compasses are useful tools for teaching the basics of navigation. Knowing where you are, where you are going, and how to get there are important facets of outdoor recreation. Compass games are a fun way to teach introductory navigation skills, and this article describes how they can be used as innovative, nontraditional activities in physical…

One of the central functions of teaching is formal assessment. However, formal assessment in school physical education often consists of attributing final grades to students at the conclusion of a unit (i.e., summative assessment). Moreover, grades have often been based on effort, attendance, and dress. Practical and authentic assessment…

Students' thoughts, feelings, and attitudes generally determine their level of interest in learning and participation in class. For this reason, getting to know and understand students should be a primary goal in teaching. The purpose of this article is to discuss how physical education teachers can get to know their students by incorporating…

This article discusses the challenges encountered by a middle school practitioner over a five-year period when implementing the tactical games approach within the sport education model. Included are genuine quotes (extracted from video tapes and written records) from the students, the principal at the practitioner's school, a guidance counselor,…

Today's youths seem to be facing more obstacles and receiving less direction than ever before. Rather than just focusing on trouble prevention and deterrence, many youth development and preparation programs are striving to help youths develop the necessary assets, skills, and qualities to become productive and satisfied adults, as well as…

Physical education time has been reduced or even eliminated in middle and high schools in favor of more time for standardized test preparation, especially in urban schools and inner cities. One way to replace the time lost is by providing it after school as part of a comprehensive program. After-School All-Stars (ASAS) is such a program, networked…

Two popular instructional models in middle and high school are the sport education model (SEM) and the tactical games model (TGM). The SEM prepares students to become competent, literate, and enthusiastic sportspersons. The TGM prepares students to be able to play games using a tactical approach. Combining the models to form a sport education…