9th Grade Health and Physical Education Syllabus
Instructor: Mrs. Melody McGee
Course Overview/Description:
Physical education (PE) and health are combined so that students
will receive and learn information that will allow them to make
healthy choices throughout their life. The North Carolina
Department of Public Instruction has established essential
curriculum standards for both health and PE. I have included these
on the last page of the syllabus, and they can also be viewed on the
DPI website.
In health we will cover a variety of topics to include:
nutrition, the human body, interpersonal communication
and relationships, personal and consumer health, physical
activity and health-related fitness, substance abuse, and
mental and emotional health. We will discuss accident and disease
prevention, as well as proper responses to unintentional injury. We
will discuss human sexuality to include abstinence, and other
safe/effective methods of protection/prevention of pregnancy and
STDs. (Parental approval required for this unit.)
In PE, students will participate in a variety of ageappropriate activities that will allow them to:

improve their health-related fitness (cardiorespiratory endurance, flexibility, muscular
strength, muscular endurance).
 develop the desire to learn new activities.
 use basic and advanced motor skills.
 learn the information and skills necessary for
life-long fitness activities
 learn tactics and strategies necessary for life-long physical
activities.
 develop the enjoyment and social benefits of life-long physical
activities.
Additionally, students will measure and evaluate their own fitness
status and develop plans to improve their health-related
components as desired, and by utilizing their target heart rate.
Students will perform fitness tests at the beginning of the semester,
in the middle and at the end of the semester. Students will be
seeking to improve their own performance and not measured
against other members of the class.
If your student has a permanent/chronic condition that
could affect his/her ability to participate in PE, please
insure that you notify the office and me. If a student has
asthma, please insure that it is documented. If your
student requires an inhaler, please insure that it is brought
to the office, with instructions/prescription, and is kept current.
Additionally, parents need to send in a note or email me ahead of
time, if a student has a temporary medical or physical reason that
will prevent him/her from fully participating in PE. Please be
specific about the condition as there will be some things the student
can do as opposed to just “sitting out.”
Assignments will include journal entries, current events,
personal assessments, health and fitness projects, and written
assessments.
Grading Policy
All assignments will receive a point grade based on the amount of
work/time involved to complete them. For example, most journal
entries will be worth 15 – 30 points. Current event articles will
normally be worth 15 points. Written assessments
(tests) will be worth 100 to 200 points depending on the topic.
All projects will be graded using a rubric. Projects will be worth
100-200 points.
Absences/Late/Missing Work
In order to receive full credit for an assignment, it must be turned in
on time. If a student is absent, he/she is responsible for asking me
for any missed assignments. If the student was present when the
assignment was made, the assignment will be due upon return. All
assignments will be due within three days of return from absence.
The highest grade any late assignment will receive is a B.
Tests
If a student takes a test and feels that he/she could do better on
another test covering the same material, he/she will have two days
from the day the test is returned to ask me for a retake. I will give
the student credit for the best grade of the two. This does not
preclude my assigning an individual student or the entire class a
retake. My goal is to insure that
the students master the information, not just to record a grade.
The final exam will be cumulative covering health and PE
information. It will be worth 25% of their grade.
Extra Credit
I will not give extra credit work.
Teacher Contact Information:
The best way to contact me is via email mcgeem@gcs.k12.nc.us. If
you do not choose to use email, you may call the main office and
leave a message for me to call you back (919 – 690 -2317). During
the school week I will return all calls and emails within 24 hours.
Please allow for 48 hours over the weekend.
Office Hours
I will be available from 7:30am until 8:15 am for any student and/or
parent meeting or student academic issue. I will also be available
after school until 4pm everyday and longer as needed. Please
schedule with me at least a day in advance to prevent any
scheduling conflicts.
Class Expectations
Students are expected to:
 be respectful to other students and faculty and staff members.
 not just participate, but try their hardest in all activities.
 come to class prepared to perform written assignments -- will
need to bring a composition book, three ring notebook with
paper, and pen or pencil to class every day.
 wear pants or appropriate length shorts that will allow
movement for physical activity.
 wear athletic shoes (properly tied) every day.
 bring a water bottle with water to class.
 be ready to learn and have fun in the process.
 never say can’t.
Teacher Credentials
BA – Sociology, North Carolina State University
MA – National Security Studies, California State University
PE/ Health Teacher Licensure (K-12) – Maryville College