The purpose of Newton Public Schools Physical Education, Health, and Wellness Department is to nurture and implement an overall wellness approach. The department's mission is to provide the school community with a comprehensive, inclusive, and equitable education encompassing physical and health literacy, social-emotional intelligence, and self-efficacy skills to lead health-promoting lives. The goal is for students to find joy in movement and get inspired to be physically active. The P.E.H.W. curriculum seeks to equip students with the knowledge and abilities necessary for making informed decisions about their well-being and their impact on community and global wellness.
Project Adventure/ Cooperative Learning
Description: Project Adventure is experiential adventure learning that focuses on cooperation, community building, team building, self-control, advocacy, inclusion, and problem-solving skills.
Learning Targets
By the end of 8th grade students will be able to:
Demonstrate an understanding of movement concepts, personal social behaviors, effective interpersonal skills, goal setting, taking risks, and solving problems
Effectively apply team building and problem-solving strategies, in varied contexts and settings and apply strategies for overcoming individual or group challenges
Understanding of self and others emotions and feelings and how to respond in a positive way
Invasion Games - Soccer
Description:Invasion Games are games in which the aim is to invade an opponent's territory and score a goal or point.
Learning Targets
By the end of 8th grade students will be able to:
Develop a basic understanding of soccer history, rules, and terminology
Participate in drills and competitions to demonstrate basic soccer skills of running, passing, trapping, dribbling, shooting, offense, and defensive
Demonstrate sportspersonship by positively interacting with teammates and opponents
Invasion Games - Basketball
Description:Invasion Games are games in which the aim is to invade an opponent's territory and score a goal or point.
Learning Targets
By the end of 8th grade students will be able to:
Develop a basic understanding of basketball history, rules, and terminology
Participate in drills and competitions to demonstrate basic basketball skills of running, jumping, passing, catching, dribbling, shooting, offense and defense
Demonstrate sportspersonship by positively interacting with teammates and opponents
Fitness/Wellness
Description: Fitness encompasses the five components of fitness, which include cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, and body composition, as well as skill-related fitness (balance, speed, power, agility, coordination, and reaction time). Wellness concepts related to social, emotional, and physical health are explored.
Learning Targets
By the end of 8th grade students will be able to:
Demonstrate an understanding of the components of skill-related fitness and the F.I.T.T Formula to design exercise routines
Explain the benefits of exercise and how it positively contributes to overall wellness
Understand and accept others’ differences during a variety of fitness activities
Net/Wall Games - Volleyball
Description: In Net and wall games, teams or individual players score by hitting a ball into a court space with sufficient accuracy and power that their opponents cannot hit it back before it bounces once (badminton & volleyball) or twice (tennis, pickleball, racquetball, squash).
Learning Targets
By the end of 8th grade students will be able to:
Develop and apply skills, concepts, and rules of the sport during tasks and modified gameplay
Identify how being physically active contributes to overall wellness
Uses guidelines for resolving conflicts and rules to respond to ethical and unethical behavior during gameplay
Recreation and
Leisure Activities
Description: Recreational and leisure activities are activities individuals can do in their free time for enjoyment and lifelong wellness. Examples at different schools: Backyard Games, Snowshoeing (Day), Inline skating (Day)
Learning Targets
By the end of 8th grade students will be able to:
Identify the social, physical, and emotional benefits of recreational and leisure activities
Demonstrate correct technique for basic skills in outdoor physical activities
Understand the rules and concepts of recreational and leisure activities
Ultimate Games
Description: Ultimate Games are team games involving dynamic fast-paced movements and tactics. Examples at different schools: Speedball, Tchoukball, Hoopla, Handball, Angle Ball, Flag football, Ultimate Frisbee, Tri-ball
Learning Targets
By the end of 8th grade students will be able to:
Demonstrate knowledge of cardiovascular endurance and physical/emotional effort
Explain the values of teamwork and cooperation
Apply tactics and strategies and compare differences in a variety of physical activity settings
Striking and Fielding
Description: Striking and fielding games Striking and Fielding games are those in which one team can score points when a player strikes an object and runs to designated playing areas while the other team attempts to retrieve the ball and return it to prevent their opponents from scoring.
Learning Targets
By the end of 8th grade students will be able to:
Understand that everyone has different ability levels and interests
Show an understanding of basic striking and fielding rules and concepts
Identify situations for risk-taking and encourage others to step outside of their comfort zone
Net/Wall Games
Description: In Net and wall games, teams or individual players score by hitting a ball into a court space with sufficient accuracy and power that their opponents cannot hit it back before it bounces once (badminton & volleyball) or twice (tennis, pickleball, racquetball, squash).
Examples at different schools: Pickleball, Badminton, Tennis, Ping Pong, Eclipse Ball, Nitro Ball and Spike Ball
Learning Targets
By the end of 8th grade students will be able to:
Develop a basic understanding of the game's history, rules, and terminology
Participate in drills and competitions to demonstrate basic skills of the game
Demonstrate sportspersonship by positively interacting with teammates and opponents
Invasion Games
Description:Invasion Games are games in which the aim is to invade an opponent's territory and score a goal or point. Examples at different schools: Rugby, football, hockey, etc.
Learning Targets
By the end of 8th grade students will be able to:
Develop a basic understanding of the game's history, rules, and terminology
Participate in drills and competitions to demonstrate basic skills of the game
Demonstrate sportspersonship by positively interacting with teammates and opponents