Grade 9 Health and PE Curriculum

Family-facing version of the grade 9 Health and PE curriculum

Quarterly Overview of Grade 9 Health and PE

The objectives and outcomes for each unit are common across FCPS and based on the Virginia Standards of Learning. Teacher teams may adjust the order of units to best meet the needs of students as well as possible space and schedule considerations.

The specific semester a student takes Health or PE is determined at the school. Families are encouraged to communicate with schools and teachers to receive accurate planning and pacing guides.
 
Grade 9 health education includes Family Life Education (FLE) units on Emotional Social Health (EMH) and
Human Growth and Development (HGD). Objectives and descriptive statements for HGD and ESH can be found on the ninth grade Family Life Education page.

Units and Details

Individual and Dual Sports

Students will:

  • Demonstrate Locomotor, non-locomotor, and manipulative Skills.
  • Design and implement a practice plan for self-selected skills.
  • Demonstrate improvement of personal skills.
  • Apply principles of physics.
  • Apply physiological principles of warm up, cool down, overload, specificity, and progression.
  • Apply biomechanical principles of balance, energy, and types of muscle contraction to a variety of activities.
  • Demonstrate competency in health related fitness activities.
  • Explain how energy is created through anaerobic respiration including the ATP-PC cycle and Lactic acid cycle.
  • Analyze movement performance and utilize feedback to learn or improve.
  • Apply best practices for safe participation.

Dance

Students will:

  • Perform basic movement skills.
  • Demonstrate locomotor, non-locomotor and manipulative skills.
  • Design and implement a practice plan for self-selected skills.
  • Apply principles of physics.
  • Apply physiological principles.
  • Explain anatomical basis of movement.

Fitness

Students will:

  • Perform basic movement skills.
  • Demonstrate locomotor, non-locomotor and manipulative skills.
  • Design and implement a practice plan for self-selected skills.
  • Apply principles of physics.
  • Apply physiological principles. 
  • Explain anatomical basis of movement.

Team Activities

Students will:

  • Perform basic movement skills.
  • Demonstrate locomotor, non-locomotor and manipulative skills.
  • Design and implement a practice plan for self-selected skills.
  • Apply principles of physics.
  • Apply physiological principles.
  • Explain anatomical basis of movement.

Outdoor Activities

Students will:

  • Demonstrate Locomotor, Non-Locomotor, and Manipulative Skills.
  • Design and implement a practice plan for self-selected skills.
  • Demonstrate improvement of personal skills.
  • Apply principles of physics.
  • Apply physiological principles of warm up, cool down, overload, specificity, and progression.
  • Apply biomechanical principles of balance, energy, and types of muscle contraction to a variety of activities.
  • Explain the structure and functions of the body and how they relate to and are affected by human movement.
  • Demonstrate etiquette, respect and teamwork.
  • Explain the impact of sport in developing respect for others.
  • Apply communication skills and strategies.
  • Apply problem solving and critical thinking skills.
  • Apply best practices for safe participation.

Portfolio Planning and Fitness Testing

Students will:

  • Perform basic movement skills.
  • Demonstrate locomotor, non-locomotor and manipulative skills.
  • Design and implement a practice plan for self-selected skills.
  • Apply principles of physics. 
  • Apply physiological principles.
  • Explain anatomical basis of movement.

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)

Students will:

  • Demonstrate skills to advocate for personal and community health.
  • Demonstrate Adult and Child CPR, use of AED, and First Aid Skills.
  • Explain why learning CPR and AED protocols are important.
  • Define the term Universal Precautions.
  • Identify life-threatening emergencies.
  • Describe and demonstrate how to do CPR and use an AED.
  • Describe and demonstrate first aid skills.

Emotional Social Health and Human Growth and Development

Objectives and descriptive statements can be found on the ninth grade Family Life Education page.

Health 9

Students will:

  • Describe the positive and negative effects of social media.
  • Explain limitations to effective communication online.
  • Create strategies to manage personal information and communicate online.
  • Apply health knowledge and skills to achieve and maintain long-term health and wellness.
  • Describe the importance of health habits that promote vision, hearing, and dental health.
  • Explain physical, mental, social, and academic benefits of wellness.
  • Design a wellness plan for physical activity, sleep, rest and nutrition to meet current health goals.
  • Identify and describe the major structures of the endocrine system.
  • Identify risks that affect the endocrine system.
  • Develop a personal plan to prevent substance use.
  • Promote global environmental health and/or disease prevention projects.
  • Explain how alcohol and other drugs increase the risk of injury.
  • Analyze the consequences of binge drinking.
  • Evaluate the effects of alcohol and other drug use on the body.
  • Develop a set of personal standards to resist the use of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs (ATOD).
  • Identify ways to manage stress.
  • Identify signs and symptoms of mental illnesses or challenges (e.g., anxiety, depression, suicide, eating disorders, self-harm behaviors).
  • Identify school and community mental health resources to help and assist with mental illnesses or challenges.
  • Create strategies to manage deadlines for a school-related activity.
  • Promote access to mental health resources to help oneself and others.
  • Analyze issues related to relationships, exploitation, and depression.
  • Identify types of gangs, gang-related behaviors, and consequences.
  • Analyze level of risk associated with a variety of behaviors, including weapon use and gang involvement.
  • Demonstrate healthy decision-making strategies related to risky behaviors.
  • Create a message about the importance of avoiding gang involvement.
  • Evaluate long-term consequences of injury and describe risk factors.
  • Explore community resources for purchasing locally grown and sourced food.
  • Evaluate strategies for improving health-related social issues.
  • Examine the impact of global environmental health issues on local communities.
  • Describe actions, behaviors, signs that may indicate potential threats. 
  • Develop action steps to promote a safe and inclusive school environment.
  • Identify health-related social issues, such as homelessness, underage drinking, and substance abuse.
  • Define herd immunity and explain how immunizations prevent diseases.
  • Identify global environmental health issues.
  • Identify behaviors that contribute to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, obesity, and other chronic diseases and conditions.
  • Analyze data on spread of diseases and develop prevention strategies.

Assessments

Student assessments are part of the teaching and learning process.

  • Teachers give assessments to students on an ongoing basis to
    • Check for understanding.
    • Gather information about students' knowledge or skills.
  • Assessments provide information about a child's development of knowledge and skills that can help families and teachers better plan for the next steps in instruction.

For testing questions or additional information about how schools and teachers use test results to support student success, families can contact their children's schools.

In Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), ninth grade tests focus on measuring content knowledge and skill development.

Other High School Information