PHYSICAL EDUCATION PHILOSOPHY
Print Copy of Department Philosophy

The ultimate goal of Lake Park High School’s comprehensive physical education program is to aid students in achieving their fullest potential through the acquisition of knowledge and skills necessary to attain healthy levels of well-being and to maintain active lifestyles throughout the lifespan. It is our mission to have learners:

• Establish a solid foundation for maintaining healthy, active and productive lives
• Develop movement skills leading toward competency in self-selected activity, healthy levels of fitness
  and cooperative interaction skills needed for successful participation in an active lifestyle
• Develop teamwork and cooperative skills used to work effectively with others, set individual and group
  goals, solve problems and enhance the quality of interpersonal relationships
• Communicate & work in ways that promote & maintain dignity & respect for themselves & others
• Master knowledge, skills and behaviors essential to healthy living
• Accept responsibility and consequences for personal decisions and behaviors
• Increase their capacity to work effectively
• Make positive behavioral choices

A physically educated person demonstrates sufficient skill in movement, uses effective game and performance strategies, follows rules for activities, and is able to develop a means for enhancing personal movement efficiency, culminating in the ability to perform proficiently in at least one selected activity. Students must learn basic skills, rules and strategies for a variety of team sports, individual sports, lifetime activities and creative movements in order to select personally fulfilling activities for a lifetime. Students must also understand mechanical analyses of skill execution to understand how skills are developed so they can learn new skills later in life or can modify skills to meet changes resulting from aging or injury.

A physically educated person develops and maintains a healthy zone of fitness. The fitness level is periodically assessed, and is maintained at sufficient levels to allow the learner to participate completely in chosen activities, and reflects a low risk for diseases associated with unhealthy and inactive lifestyle choices. Students must understand how to assess fitness in each health-related component, must be able to select activities that contribute to improvement or maintenance in each fitness component, and must have the ability to plan a fit and healthy lifestyle across the age span.

A physically educated person can apply principles of teamwork within physical activity to group activities within the family, community or workplace. Students must display acceptable levels of individual responsibility, cooperation, and respect for self and others in everyday life experiences. Students must learn to problem solve, make decisions, accept responsibilities for consequences, work with decisions made by others, develop and follow procedures, and determine when to compete or cooperate.

Rev. 2005