The Effort & Participation grade is based off of National Physical Education Standard 4 ("chooses to engage in physical activity") & Illinois State Goals 19A ("participates in moderate to vigorous physical activity for an extended period of time") and 20A ("participates in health-related & skill-related activities").

Assessment Descriptors

A student's effort & participation grade will fall into one of three categories:  

Demonstrates Consistency
Student actively participates in all aspects of the physical education program.  Performance consistently meets or exceeds expectations based on grade level indicators.

Demonstrates Progress
Student engages in most aspects of the physical education program.  Actively participates often but will choose to sit out occassionally.  Peformance is developing or functional based on grade level indicators.

Area for Improvement
Student exhibits limited engagement in the physical education program.  Active participation is low and/or student chooses to sit out often.  Performance is still emerging or rudimentary based on grade level indicators.

How do you grade Effort & Participation?

Physical Education most often takes place in an active, dynamic environment.  In order for students to get the most out of each lesson, participation is expected when they come to the gym.  I mean, no one learns to drive a car unless they get behind the wheel, right?  You have to practice to get better. 

That being said, the effort & participation grade is based on how often a student chooses to sit out of activities in combination with their activity level recorded on days they wear their pedometer.  Whenever a student chooses to sit out, I record it in my gradebook.  Here's how I grade throughout the course of the trimester:

• Demonstrates Consistency = 0-2 times sitting out
• Demonstrates Progress = 3-5 times sitting out
• Area for Improvement - 6+ times sitting out

On pedometer days, students put on their pedometer at the beginning of class and we upload the data recorded at the end.  I find the MVPA (Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity) time most accurate in determining active participation. The pedometers also measure overall activity time (moving at any intensity) and the total number of steps (which can be converted into distance) students travel in a given class period. They can view the charts below at the end of class to see how active they were for the day.

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Pedometer Days (grades 1-5)