FITNESS: The physically literate individual demonstrates the knowledge and skills to achieve and maintain a health-enhancing level of physical activity and fitness. The intent of this standard is for the student to achieve (a) a health-enhancing level of physical fitness and (b) to establish patterns of regular participation in meaningful physical activity. Students should be encouraged to develop higher levels of basic fitness and physical competence as needed for personal health, work situations, and active leisure participation. Health-related fitness components include cardio-respiratory endurance, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, and body composition. Expectations for students' fitness levels should be established on a personal basis, taking into account variation in entry levels, rather than setting a single standard for all children at a given grade level. For elementary children, the emphasis is on an awareness of fitness components and having fun while participating in health-enhancing activities that promote physical fitness. Middle school students gradually acquire a greater understanding of the fitness components, how each is developed and maintained, the importance of each in overall fitness, and will begin creating a physical fitness plan. Secondary students are able to design, develop, and evaluate an appropriate personal fitness program that enables them to achieve desired levels of fitness. The student thus should have both the ability and willingness to accept responsibility for personal fitness leading to an active, healthy lifestyle.

The second part of this standard is about establishing patterns of regular participation in meaningful physical activity. This should connect what is done in the physical education class with the lives of students outside of physical education. While participation within the physical education class is important, what the student does outside the physical education class is critical to developing an active, healthy lifestyle. Students are more likely to participate if they have opportunities to develop interests that are personally meaningful to them. Young children should learn to enjoy physical activity. They should participate in developmentally appropriate activities that help them develop movement competence. They should also be encouraged to participate in vigorous and unstructured play. As students get older, the structure of activity tends to increase and the opportunities for participation in different types of activity increase outside of the physical education class. Attainment of this standard should develop an awareness of those opportunities and encourage a broad level of participation.