AEPA Physical Education (NT506) cheat sheet

Motor development follows a predictable sequence: reflexive (birth to about 1 year), rudimentary (1–2 years), fundamental (2–7 years), and specialized (7 years onward); the rate varies among individuals.

Fundamental movement skills fall into three categories: locomotor (run, jump, hop, skip, gallop, slide, leap), stability/nonlocomotor (bend, twist, turn, balance, push, pull), and manipulative (throw, catch, kick, strike, dribble, volley).

The fundamental movement phase has three stages-initial, elementary, and mature; most children reach the mature stage of basic skills by about age 6–7 when given appropriate practice.

Fitts and Posner's motor-learning stages: cognitive (verbal-motor, inconsistent, many errors), associative (refining, fewer errors), and autonomous (automatic, low attention demand).

Skill classification: open skills occur in unpredictable, changing environments, while closed skills occur in stable, predictable environments. Discrete skills have clear start and end points, continuous skills have arbitrary endpoints, and serial skills chain discrete parts.

Newell's constraints model: movement patterns emerge from the interaction of individual constraints (structural such as height and weight; functional such as motivation and knowledge), task constraints, and environmental constraints.

Developmental directionality: cephalocaudal (head-to-toe) and proximodistal (center-outward) control; gross motor control generally precedes fine motor control.

Perceptual-motor components include body awareness, spatial awareness, directional awareness, temporal awareness, laterality, and static and dynamic balance; these underlie efficient movement.

Adolescent growth spurt: peak height velocity typically occurs around age 11–12 in girls and 13–14 in boys; temporary decreases in coordination and flexibility can accompany rapid growth.

FITT-VP: Frequency, Intensity, Time, Type, Volume, and Progression; these variables define a fitness prescription and are manipulated using the overload and specificity principles.

Health-related fitness components: cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, and body composition. Skill-related components: agility, balance, coordination, power, reaction time, and speed.

Estimated maximum heart rate = 220 − age. Karvonen target heart rate = ((HRmax − HRrest) × intensity) + HRrest; moderate intensity is about 50–70% of heart rate reserve and vigorous intensity about 70–85%.

Youth physical activity guideline: 60 minutes or more of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity daily, with vigorous activity and muscle- and bone-strengthening activities at least 3 days per week.

Child and adolescent BMI is interpreted by percentile: underweight below the 5th, healthy weight 5th to below 85th, overweight 85th to below 95th, and obese 95th and above.

Progressive overload: to improve fitness, the training stimulus must gradually exceed habitual demands; progression should be gradual (for example, about a 10% increase in volume) to reduce injury risk.

Specificity: adaptations are specific to the muscles, movement patterns, and energy systems trained, so training must target the desired outcome. Reversibility: fitness gains are lost when training stops.

Muscle actions: isotonic (concentric shortening, eccentric lengthening), isometric (no change in muscle length), and isokinetic (constant speed). Eccentric actions produce high force and often cause delayed soreness.

Heat illness continuum: heat cramps, then heat exhaustion (heavy sweating, weakness, dizziness), then heat stroke (hot skin, confusion, collapse); heat stroke is a medical emergency requiring immediate cooling and 911.

SHAPE America's five national standards: (1) motor skills and movement patterns, (2) concepts and strategies, (3) health-related fitness and physical activity, (4) personal and social responsibility, and (5) value of physical activity.

Curriculum models include sport education (seasons, teams, roles, culminating event), Teaching Games for Understanding (modified games and tactical problems first), fitness education, skill themes, cooperative learning, and personalized systems.

Mosston's spectrum of teaching styles runs from teacher-centered to student-centered: command, practice, reciprocal, self-check, inclusion, guided discovery, problem solving, and divergent production.

Lesson design: anticipatory set, measurable objective, demonstration and cues, guided practice, independent practice, and closure; at least 50% of class time should be moderate-to-vigorous physical activity with minimal management time.

Assessment types: formative (during instruction, used to adjust teaching) versus summative (end of unit); norm-referenced (comparison to peers) versus criterion-referenced (comparison to a standard); performance-based tasks and rubrics suit psychomotor goals.

Validity means an assessment measures what it claims; reliability means consistency across occasions and raters; objectivity means agreement among scorers. FitnessGram uses criterion-referenced healthy fitness zones.

Inclusion decision rules: modify equipment (lighter, larger), space (shorter distances), rules (extra bounces), time (more practice), and grouping; use task analysis and the least restrictive environment for students with IEPs or 504 plans.

Skill teaching sequences: whole–part–whole for complex serial skills, part–whole for highly complex skills, and shaping or chaining for progressive refinement; cues should be short and consistent.

Domains of learning: psychomotor (movement), cognitive (knowledge and tactics), and affective (attitudes and social skills); objectives should state observable behavior, conditions, and criterion.

Negligence requires four elements: duty of care, breach of duty, causation, and injury or damages. Teachers' duties include adequate supervision, a safe environment, proper instruction, and warning of foreseeable risks.

Supervision decision rule: match supervision to risk, with closer and actively positioned supervision for high-risk activities (swimming, climbing, contact sports) and students with special needs; never leave a class unsupervised.

Emergency action plan components: clear chain of command, 911 access, first aid and AED location, evacuation routes, incident documentation, and regular rehearsal.

Legal and ethical mandates: FERPA (education-record privacy), mandatory reporting of suspected abuse or neglect, Title IX (sex discrimination), IDEA and Section 504 (disability rights), and ADA accessibility.

Blood-borne pathogen safety: universal precautions-treat all blood and body fluids as infectious, wear gloves, use barriers, disinfect surfaces, and dispose of waste properly.

Facility and equipment safety: inspect equipment before use, remove hazards, check surfaces and spacing, enforce proper attire and footwear, and document inspections and repairs.

Behavior management: proactive routines and rules, positive reinforcement, proximity control, and consistent consequences; PBIS-style approaches teach and acknowledge expected behavior.

Professional responsibilities include continuing professional development, modeling ethical behavior, maintaining appropriate student boundaries, and communicating with families within confidentiality rules.