Middle School

ALL students are required to take a Physical Education class which meets every other day all year.  

Students will develop competency in motor skills, movement pattern, and health-enhancing behaviors.

6th Grade-  PE 6

7th Grade-  PE 7

8th Grade- PE 8

For a description of our middle school courses, please visit the USD 497 Middle School Course Descriptions

High School

High School Health

Required Course Health 9 will engage students to process, reflect, and make decisions that support a healthy lifestyle. Students will focus on health enhancing behaviors, services, and products while also studying disease prevention, the influence of culture and societal factors, health advocacy, goal-setting, and decision making. Guest speakers will support the following curriculum: healthy relationships, texting and driving, sexual health, human trafficking, vaping/taobaco, suidcide prevention, First Aid/CPR, and mental health. CREDIT: 0.5 

There are several classes that count for a PE credit:

Fitness 1 is designed for the student who wants to get in shape in all aspects of fitness and learn a variety of techniques to improve fitness. Cardiovascular Fitness, Muscular Strength, Endurance, Flexibility, and Body Composition are the 5 healthenhancing elements of fitness. Activities include but are not limited to: jogging/walking, dumbbell & medicine ball weights, body weight exercises, cardio games, Pilates, yoga, and swimming. Students will be led through a workout program, learning the aspects of a health-enhancing workout program. Semester class. CREDIT: 0.5 

Fitness II is designed for the student to develop a personal lifetime fitness program using the 5 health-enhancing elements of fitness. The student will research and develop personal health and fitness goals with the guidance of the teacher and implement an individualized program. CREDIT: 0.5

Physical Fitness and Weight Training: Fundamentals of weight training, form and proper technique will be stressed. Conditioning and weight lifting will be used to improve strength and endurance. The course curriculum will include fitness testing, jogging, weight training, sprinting and stretching. CREDIT: 0.5

Advanced Physical Fitness and Weights: This course is extremely high in intensity and is designed to meet the needs of highly motivated students. Areas of physical fitness that will be stressed include: Muscular Strength, Core Strength, Flexibility, Endurance, Cardiovascular Endurance, and Body Composition. Instruction will focus on strength, flexibility and aerobic conditioning. This course will include stretching, lifting, sprinting, jogging, plyometric, anaerobic conditioning and aerobic conditioning. CREDIT: 0.5

Swimming 1: Designed for students who have had little or no previous swimming experience. The class will cover strokes and skills taught in elementary Red Cross courses. Also included are basic lifesaving skills and work that is fundamental to diving. Please note: Students enrolled in swimming classes or classes that involve swimming must provide their own swim suits. All swim suits must be acceptable for class. CREDIT: 0.5 

Swimming 2: Students who have completed and passed Red Cross elementary class are eligible for this course. This course will begin at an intermediate level and progress through an advanced level. Life saving skills will be introduced and basic springboard diving life saving skills will be introduced, together with instruction in springboard diving. Please Note: Students enrolled in swimming classes or classes that involve swimming must provide their own swim suits. All swim suits must be acceptable for class. CREDIT: 0.5

Ball Sports: One quarter of this course will cover basketball; the other quarter will include speed football and softball. Basic skills, rules and strategies will be taught with each sport. CREDIT: 0.5

Lifetime Fitness: This course is intended to develop the student's skill, knowledge and self-confidence in various activities that will have a carryover value in later life. Lifetime Sports activities may include: bowling, golf, tennis, volleyball, slo-pitch softball, badminton, billiards, table tennis, archery, jogging, basketball and pickle-ball. The sports covered in this class each semester will vary with seasonal adaptations, the number of students enrolled in each section, and the availability of equipment and facilities. CREDIT 0.5

For a description of our high school mathematics courses, please visit the USD 497 High School Course Descriptions

District Equity Policy

Culturally Sustainable Resource Criteria tool (Used with district resources in all content areas)

Purpose: This resource criteria document is designed for use when selecting, reviewing, or adopting instructional resources that allows for both individual reflection on criteria below as well as the seeking of multiple perspectives. 

 Process: The CSRC document can be utilized individually or as a team. Seeking multiple perspectives is a key component  whether reviewing a resource as an individual or as a team. There are 5 key pre-selection criteria identified as questions to ask ourselves as we consider curricular resources. If reviewing or adopting a resource as a team, the CSRC document should first be completed on an individual level. Supplements and instructional considerations should be made to help meet the suggested criteria if it does not fulfill the recommendations on the item reviewed. You may use the pre-selection criteria to first reflect upon your resource and dive deeper into items of consideration where needed.

Perspective: The power is in the process of the conversations, multiple perspectives, and the supplemental resources brought in through this process. Team members evaluating a resource should include a diverse range of perspectives, including those who teach the content in which the resource will be used, and those who represent other content areas and varied teaching experiences. Equity facilitators and or/equity team members should be a part of a team review process.

Priority Standards

The term Priority Standard refers to a subset of learning standards that educators have determined to be the highest priority or most important for students to learn. Priority Standards were selected from the Kansas College and Career Ready Standards for English Language Arts at the district level by curriculum leaders and teacher leadership committees. Other standards become Supporting Standards and "these become the instructional scaffolds to help students understand and attain the more rigorous and comprehensive Priority Standards".

Choosing Priority Standards using the R.E.A.L. criteria

Larry Ainsworth on Priority Standards

KSDE Vaping Powerpoint

KSDE Tobacco Free School Policy

National Sexuality Standards were adopted in 2013 

9th Grade Sexuality Information Guide for Families

8th Grade Sexuality Information Guide for Families

6th Grade Sexuality Information Guide for Families

Opt Out for Sexuality Lessons

District Equity Policy

Culturally Sustainable Resource Criteria tool (Used with district resources in all content areas)

Purpose: This resource criteria document is designed for use when selecting, reviewing, or adopting instructional resources that allows for both individual reflection on criteria below as well as the seeking of multiple perspectives. 

 Process: The CSRC document can be utilized individually or as a team. Seeking multiple perspectives is a key component  whether reviewing a resource as an individual or as a team. There are 5 key pre-selection criteria identified as questions to ask ourselves as we consider curricular resources. If reviewing or adopting a resource as a team, the CSRC document should first be completed on an individual level. Supplements and instructional considerations should be made to help meet the suggested criteria if it does not fulfill the recommendations on the item reviewed. You may use the pre-selection criteria to first reflect upon your resource and dive deeper into items of consideration where needed.

Perspective: The power is in the process of the conversations, multiple perspectives, and the supplemental resources brought in through this process. Team members evaluating a resource should include a diverse range of perspectives, including those who teach the content in which the resource will be used, and those who represent other content areas and varied teaching experiences. Equity facilitators and or/equity team members should be a part of a team review process.

Priority Standards

The term Priority Standard refers to a subset of learning standards that educators have determined to be the highest priority or most important for students to learn. Priority Standards were selected from the Kansas College and Career Ready Standards for English Language Arts at the district level by curriculum leaders and teacher leadership committees. Other standards become Supporting Standards and "these become the instructional scaffolds to help students understand and attain the more rigorous and comprehensive Priority Standards".

Choosing Priority Standards using the R.E.A.L. criteria

Larry Ainsworth on Priority Standards

KSDE Vaping Powerpoint

KSDE Tobacco Free School Policy

National Sexuality Standards were adopted in 2013 

9th Grade Sexuality Information Guide for Families

8th Grade Sexuality Information Guide for Families

6th Grade Sexuality Information Guide for Families

Opt Out for Sexuality Lessons

Denise Johnson

Asst. Director, Curriculum

Fine Arts, Health, PE, Science & Wellness

785.832.5000 x2371

USD 497 staff resources are available through a shared Google Drive (linked below).  If you are a staff member who needs access to these documents, please contact Denise Johnson, assistant director of curriculum.

2021-2022 PE Handbook

 Kansas State PE Standards

K-12 PE Scope and Sequence

Middle School Health and Physical Education Staff Resources 

High School Health and Physical Education Staff Resources (link)

Kansas State Health Standards

KSDE Vaping Powerpoint

KSDE Tobacco Free School Policy

National Sexuality Standards were adopted in 2013 

9th Grade Sexuality Information Guide for Families

8th Grade Sexuality Information Guide for Families

6th Grade Sexuality Information Guide for Families

Opt Out for Sexuality Lessons