Physical Education · Grade 9

PE Course 1 SEL activities

36 ready to use activities that teach PE Course 1 content and build one Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) skill, about 20 minutes each.

Moving With Purpose

• Who Am I as a Mover? Self-awareness · Week 1Students rotate through a movement sampler of jogging, dancing, throwing, and balancing stations, then journal about which movements feel most like them and why.
• Building a Safe Gym Together Relationship skills · Week 2After a boundary tag game, the class agrees on norms for a physically and emotionally safe gym and each student journals one norm they will personally protect.
• Five Components, My Way Self-awareness · Week 3Students move through stations for cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, and flexibility and privately note which ones energize them and which feel hard, without comparing to anyone.
• Personal Bests, Private Data Self-management · Week 4Students complete a baseline fitness check, record results only in their own journal, and set one goal measured against their own starting point.
• Pressure on the Court Responsible decision-making · Week 5During a partner challenge, students rehearse short scripts for responding when peers push them to skip a safety step or mock a classmate.
• Strengths in Every Partner Social awareness · Week 6Teams plan a relay by assigning legs based on each teammate's strengths, then journal about a strength they noticed in someone else.

Heart, Breath, and Stress

• Reading My Heart Rate Self-awareness · Week 7Students take their pulse at rest, after a jog, and after slow breathing, then journal how heart rate and feelings rise and fall together.
• Breathing to Reset Self-management · Week 8After short sprint intervals, students practice box breathing to bring their heart rate down and journal one moment outside PE when the reset could help.
• Nerves and Performance Self-awareness · Week 9Students attempt a target throw once calmly and once under a loud countdown, then analyze how nerves changed their focus and technique.
• Yoga Flow and Focus Self-management · Week 10Students learn a short yoga flow paired with slow breathing and journal how their attention and body felt before and after.
• Heat Smart in the Valley Social awareness · Week 11During a shaded, low intensity circuit, students learn the warning signs of heat illness in the Coachella Valley and practice checking in on a partner and following the class heat plan.
• Exercise as Medicine Responsible decision-making · Week 12After a brisk 6 minute walk, students privately rate their mood before and after and connect regular activity to preventing disease over a lifetime.

Rhythms and Dance

• Finding the Beat Together Social awareness · Week 13In a mirror dance, partners take turns leading and following an eight count pattern and journal what it took to stay in sync.
• Dance as Self Expression Self-awareness · Week 14Small groups build an eight count sequence that expresses a feeling of their choice and journal how movement can say what words cannot.
• Dances From Our Cultures Social awareness · Week 15Students learn basic steps from cumbia and other cultural dances and journal about a family or community tradition that involves movement.
• Feedback in Rhythm Relationship skills · Week 16Partners watch each other's dance sequence and trade one specific strength and one kind suggestion, then try the sequence again.
• Brave Enough to Perform Self-management · Week 17Small groups perform their sequence for a supportive audience and journal how they managed nerves before, during, and after.
• Looking Back on Semester One Self-awareness · Week 18Students repeat a favorite activity from the first weeks and journal how their skills, confidence, and goals have changed since then.

Individual Activities and Personal Goals

• Goals Without Comparison Self-management · Week 19Students redo their private baseline check, compare only to their own week four results, and adjust their goal for the next half of the year.
• Learning a Skill on My Own Self-management · Week 20Using step by step task cards, students teach themselves a new jump rope trick and journal the strategies they used when they got stuck.
• Practice Plans That Work Responsible decision-making · Week 21After a quick skill check in an individual activity, students write a short practice plan based on their own results and test it for one round.
• Fitness Myths and Smart Choices Responsible decision-making · Week 22Between circuit stations, students examine sample fitness product ads, judge whether the claims are honest, and name the feelings the ads try to stir up.
• My One Month Plan Responsible decision-making · Week 23Students sample three home friendly workouts and draft a private one month activity plan that fits their schedule, space, and interests.
• Moving for a Purpose Responsible decision-making · Week 24Students try a mini circuit modeled on the physical tasks of local jobs like firefighting and farm work and reflect on how fitness supports the work people do.

Dual Activities and Partnership

• Choosing Partners Fairly Social awareness · Week 25Students try several fair partner selection methods in badminton and journal about how it feels to be chosen first, last, or at random.
• Calling Lines Honestly Relationship skills · Week 26In self-officiated pickleball, students make their own line calls and journal about a call that tested their honesty.
• When the Rally Gets Heated Relationship skills · Week 27Partners practice a pause, name it, and fix it routine during a competitive rally game and journal how to repair after a frustrating moment.
• Strategy With a Partner Relationship skills · Week 28Doubles pairs huddle to plan offensive and defensive positions, play a short game, and adjust their plan through clear communication.
• Winning and Losing Well Self-management · Week 29After a round robin tournament, students assess which strategies worked and practice gracious responses to both winning and losing.
• Adapting the Game for All Social awareness · Week 30Groups redesign a dual activity so that players of every ability can take part and then test their version together.

Safety and Lifelong Activity

• Spotting and Consent Relationship skills · Week 31Before any partner assisted stretch, students practice asking permission, explaining what they will do, and stopping when a partner says stop.
• Water and Weather Safety Responsible decision-making · Week 32In a dry land scenario circuit, students decide how to respond to risks in open water, extreme heat, and storms and journal one personal safety rule.
• Activity Across Generations Social awareness · Week 33Students play a game that works for all ages and plan one way to be active with a family member or someone in their community.
• Fitness Resources Near Me Responsible decision-making · Week 34After a walking warm up, students map nearby parks, trails, and early morning or indoor options in the valley and choose one to try.
• How I Have Grown as a Mover Self-awareness · Week 35Students revisit their week one movement sampler and journal how their identity as a mover has changed this year.
• Thank You, Teammates Relationship skills · Week 36In a final cooperative challenge, students thank partners who supported them and write a gratitude note to a classmate or coach.

RoseThread Connect activities are drafted with the help of AI and shaped by educators. Students never have to share anything personal. Our five SEL skills are informed by CASEL's SEL Framework; RoseThread Learning is not affiliated with or endorsed by CASEL.