Unit Plan 32 (Grade 8 PE): Walking/Running Club & HS Activity Planning

Focus: Build sustained moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, improve pacing across different distances, and create a realistic plan for staying active in high school and beyond using school, local, and community opportunities.

Grade Level: 8

Subject Area: Physical Education

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 45–55 minutes per session

I. Introduction

In this unit, students use walking, jogging, running intervals, and steady efforts to build endurance and practice managing their own intensity. They learn how to use pacing strategies for shorter and longer efforts, how to read how their body feels during activity, and how to make adjustments that help them stay active without burning out too early. Beyond the workout itself, students explore how a walking/running club mindset can carry into high school through simple, realistic habits such as campus walking routes, after-school activity, neighborhood routines, and personal weekly fitness plans. By the end of the unit, students will understand how sustained activity supports physical, mental, and social health and will create a practical plan for remaining active beyond middle school.

Essential Questions

• How do I pace myself differently for intervals, steady runs, and lap challenges?
• How can I use RPE, breathing, or heart rate to tell whether my effort level matches my goal?
• What makes a physical activity plan realistic and sustainable as I move into high school?
• How can regular walking or running support health, mood, focus, and long-term activity habits?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Participate in sustained MVPA through walking, jogging, running, and interval-based activities.
2. Use pacing strategies appropriate for different activity formats such as short intervals, steady efforts, and lap challenges.
3. Monitor intensity using tools such as RPE, breathing patterns, pace awareness, or heart rate.
4. Evaluate personal effort, progress, and barriers when completing endurance-based activities.
5. Explain how regular walking/running supports physical, mental, and social well-being.
6. Create a realistic weekly activity plan that helps bridge physical activity participation into high school.

Standards Alignment — Grade 8 PE (SHAPE America-based custom)

• PE:S3.8a – Sustained Engagement in Moderate-to-Vigorous Activity Participate actively in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity for most of class time and demonstrate the ability to sustain effort across longer intervals or game play.
  • Example: During continuous small-sided games or fitness circuits, a student stays engaged, limits standing around, and completes all rounds with evident effort.
• PE:S3.8b – Self-Monitoring Activity Intensity & Adjusting Training Independently use tools such as heart rate, perceived exertion, or step counts to monitor activity intensity and adjust pace, duration, or workload to match specific fitness goals.
  • Example: A student uses an RPE scale to ensure that interval runs stay in a desired intensity zone and adjusts rest or speed accordingly.
• PE:S3.8d – Designing, Implementing & Evaluating a Personal Fitness Plan Create, implement, and evaluate a multi-week personal fitness plan that includes goals, chosen activities, FITT details, and reflection on barriers and successes.
  • Example: Over several weeks, a student tracks workouts, compares performance data like run times or distance to goals, and revises the plan to stay realistic and effective.
• PE:S3.8e – Making Informed Healthy Lifestyle Decisions Use knowledge about physical activity, nutrition, sleep, hydration, substance use, and screen time to make or plan informed daily health choices and explain their impact.
  • Example: A student decides to prioritize consistent sleep and regular activity before big tests or events and explains the expected benefits for mood and performance.
• PE:S5.8b – Explaining Physical, Mental & Social Benefits of Activity Clearly explain how regular physical activity contributes to physical fitness, mental health, academic focus, and positive social connections.
  • Example: Students can articulate that consistent movement helps reduce stress, supports better sleep and concentration, and provides chances to build friendships and teamwork skills.
• PE:S5.8d – Planning for Ongoing Participation in Physical Activity Develop realistic plans for being regularly active beyond the PE class—across a week, season, or year—and identify local or community opportunities to support those plans.
  • Example: A student creates a weekly schedule that includes PE, active transport, walking or running, home workouts, or community recreation and identifies where and when each can happen.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can stay active for most of class during walking, jogging, intervals, and steady efforts.
• I can use pacing to keep from starting too fast or fading too early.
• I can monitor my effort using RPE, breathing, or heart rate and adjust when needed.
• I can explain how regular activity helps my body, mind, and relationships.
• I can make a realistic plan for staying active in high school and beyond.