Physical Education - Overview and Expectations
The Orinda Union School District’s PE program is dedicated to building healthy habits and strong character in every student. Our curriculum is a vibrant, standards-based foundation for a lifetime of fitness and confidence.
Our Standards-Based Approach: Five Core Areas of Growth
Our program is fundamentally rooted in the California Physical Education Model Content Standards. We use these established benchmarks to ensure that every student, at every grade level, develops the essential skills necessary to be physically literate across five core areas.
This area focuses on mastering the fundamental movements that make all sports and activities possible, ensuring students can control their bodies and use equipment effectively.
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Locomotor Control: Students learn spatial awareness, how to safely move in general and personal space, and practice complex movements like skipping, leaping, jumping for height, and jumping for distance with proper form.
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Stability and Balance: Developing the ability to balance in various symmetrical and asymmetrical shapes, using different body parts for support.
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Manipulative Skills: Students systematically practice the mechanics of throwing (underhand and overhand) and catching (gently thrown balls and fly balls). They learn kicking techniques (slowly rolling, to a partner, and punting), hand-dribbling with control around obstacles, and foot-dribbling while changing direction.
2. Learning Movement Concepts & Strategy
Beyond just performing skills, students learn how and why they move. This emphasis on the cognitive side of PE helps students analyze and improve their performance.
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Body Awareness: Students accurately identify the right and left sides of the body and understand the differences between similar movements (like a jog vs. a run, or a hop vs. a jump). They explain why they might prefer one hand or foot for specific skills.
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Critical Thinking: Students learn to adjust their body position to catch balls thrown off-center and compare the similarities between skills (like an underhand throw and an underhand volleyball serve).
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Strategy: Students analyze strategic differences, such as dribbling with and without a defender.
3. Building Lifelong Fitness and Stamina
This area focuses on developing and maintaining the physical fitness components necessary for overall health and well-being.
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Sustained Activity: Students engage in and sustain continuous movement for increasing periods of time while participating in moderate to vigorous physical activity..
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Goal Setting: They work toward meeting age-appropriate fitness standards for all components of health-related fitness: aerobic capacity, muscular strength, flexibility, and body composition.
4. Health Knowledge and Personal Planning
Students are empowered to manage their own fitness by focusing on health knowledge, personal goal setting, and motivation.
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Motivation: They identify enjoyable activities that they can sustain over time and discuss how prolonged activity increases endurance.
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Fitness Understanding: Students define the components of physical fitness and describe the difference between muscular strength and muscular endurance.
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Routine and Safety: They explain the critical purpose of warming up and cooling down and learn to use the concept of perceived exertion to determine the intensity of their personal activity. They also identify ways to increase physical activity outside of school.
5. Developing Citizenship and Teamwork
This area teaches students the vital psychological and sociological skills—focusing on self-responsibility, teamwork, and respect—that are necessary for positive group dynamics.
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Inclusion & Respect: Students participate willingly in new activities, respect individual differences in skill and motivation, and invite others to use equipment. They appreciate games and activities that reflect diverse heritages.
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Responsibility: They accept responsibility for their own behavior and performance without blaming others, and they respond to both winning and losing with dignity and respect.
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Cooperation: Students demonstrate the characteristics of sharing and cooperation, work in groups to achieve shared goals, and practice positive communication, including acknowledging opponents and partners before, during, and after activities.
Beyond the Skills
By focusing on these five core areas, our program provides a holistic foundation. We aim to instill confidence, cooperation, and resilience so that every student gains the physical, cognitive, and social competence to confidently participate in any activity, now and in the future.
