The lack of physical activity, low fitness levels, and elevated obesity rates as high as 32% of today's youth are well documented. Many strategies and grants have been developed at the national, regional, and local levels to help counteract these current trends. Strategies have been developed and implemented for schools, households (parents), and…

Getting students to be physically active outside of school is a primary objective of physical educators. Teachers know that motivational tactics are instrumental and they would benefit from understanding the research that has investigated how and why individuals adopt and maintain exercise regimens. The Transtheoretical Model is one…

Hidden disabilities (HD) are those disabilities not readily apparent to the naked eye including specific learning disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, emotional behavioral disorders, mild intellectual disabilities, and speech or language disabilities. Young athletes with HD may have difficulty listening to and following…

Many students settle indoors in the winter. However, this does not mean that winter should be a period of time with no physical activity. Several snow activities could be practiced during those months, such as ice-skating, ice-hockey, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, alpine skiing, or snowboarding. In order to counteract the tendency for…

Modeling physical fitness and healthy behaviors has been a topic of discussion in the profession for decades. Arguably the most famous research on this topic was conducted by Melville and Maddalozzo (1988) who found that a high school physical educator's body fatness could affect students' ability to retain information and their intent to…

This article discusses Impact Circuit Training (ICT) which combines dodging and striking movements to create a workout that increases physical fitness levels in participants. Participants of ICT will strike a heavy bag, mitts, and a speed bag, jump rope, throw and catch a medicine ball, and jog as part of their exercise program. No contact is made…

The linguistic diversity in schools is increasing throughout the United States and as state and federal accountability increases in the instruction of English language learners (ELLs), many teachers who never before were asked to work with ELLs are now required to contribute to the education of these students. In some states, all education majors,…

Dynamic stretching, which involves moving parts of the body and gradually increases range of motion, speed of movement, or both through controlled, sport-specific movements, has become the popular choice of pre-exercise warm-up. This type of warm-up has evolved to encompass several variations, but at its core is the principle theme that preparing…

The physical activity patterns of students with disabilities have been studied in order to understand how much moderate and vigorous daily physical exercise is obtained. Literature suggests that students with disabilities are less physically active as compared to children without disabilities. As a result of being less physically active, these…

The implementation of social skills into teaching helps students achieve such important affective outcomes as peer recognition or popularity, respect for others, acceptance of rules, pro-social values, communication skills, and positive social interactions. Within physical education, many professionals believe that students who engage in games and…

The path to becoming a physical education teacher traditionally involves a university-based teacher education program. It is here that aspiring teachers learn basic skills, gain the fundamental knowledge, and experience teaching for the first time. None of this is possible without quality physical education teacher education (PETE) faculty--those…

Physical educators often struggle to teach individual striking skills to upper level (3-5 grade) elementary students. Finding a developmentally appropriate striking activity with a high participation rate can be a challenge. And sports such as tennis, pickleball, and badminton are often not an option for a variety of reasons (e.g., space or…

Attending a gym, fitness center or health club is a popular pastime of many people who wish to exercise and get in shape. Classes are offered in activities such as cardio endurance, toning, Pilates, spinning, step aerobics, core training, and kick boxing. Participants also use rooms with cardio equipment to get their own cardio workout. As many…

Through physical activity, physical educators have long sought to improve the self-efficacy and self-esteem in girls and young woman. Current research indicates that self-defense education may have a positive psychological impact on female participants, specifically regarding the development of self-efficacy and self-esteem. Through participation…

The value of effective lesson planning for optimized learning is a well researched and established concept in education. Although different formats exist for lesson planning, most contain common components, including a structured ending. One common term for a planned ending to a lesson is closure. Unfortunately, not all lessons are well planned…