Grade 4 Health Massachusetts standards Standards

Self-Advocacy and Health Promotion. Promote personal, family, and community health and well-being.

Information and Resource Seeking. Access, evaluate, and use valid and reliable health information, products, services, and related resources.

Self-awareness and Analyzing Influences. Examine how emotions, thoughts, needs, values, beliefs, and other factors (both internal and external) influence behaviors and articulate how these influences impact health behavior and outcomes.

Movement Skills. Demonstrate competence in, and knowledge of, a variety of movement forms, motor skills, physical fitness components, and principles in order to engage in purposeful and health-promoting physical activity, including sports and games.

Social Awareness, Relationship, and Communication Skills. Enhance relationships, personal health, and the health of others through social awareness and effective communication.

Self-management and Goal Setting. Set goals, engage in health-promoting behaviors, and avoid risky behaviors.

Decision-making and Problem-Solving. Make health-promoting, informed, responsible decisions and solve problems in a variety of health-related situations.

Nutrition and Balanced Eating

Identify principles of balanced eating to meet nutritional needs (e.g., moderation, eating a variety of fruits and vegetables, consuming nutrient-rich foods, limiting processed foods and foods high in added sugar, drinking water, limiting sugary beverages) when making nutritionrelated decisions. [HPE]

Identify and describe hunger and satiety cues and how these can inform nutrition-related decision-making. [HE]

Discuss the benefits of balanced eating on physical health (e.g., supporting growth and development, ability to engage in physical activity), social health, and emotional and mental health (e.g., ability to manage stress, positive emotions) when making nutrition-related decisions. [HPE]

Demonstrate how to use food labels as part of nutrition-related decision-making. [HE]

Describe how cultivation, trade routes, and regions affect food supply, and how food production affects nutrition-related decisions. [HE]

Identify circumstances (e.g., budget, food access and availability, time management) that help or hinder decisions about nutrition and determine when assistance is needed in order to make a health-promoting decision. [HPE]

Explain a variety of factors that can influence decisions about nutrition (e.g., food during celebrations, food preferences, media advertising, celebrity endorsements and product placement, access and availability, financial resources, physical activity levels). [HPE]

Recognize that individuals have different food related needs, preferences, and traditions. [HE]

List options, predict potential outcomes of decision options, make a health-promoting choice, and analyze the outcome of decisions in common nutrition situations. [HE]

Physical Activity and Fitness

Analyze movement situations and apply the appropriate spatial, movement, and strategic concepts (e.g., force, direction, speed, pathways, extensions) in small-sided practice tasks, game environments, dance, and gymnastics. [PE]

Apply basic offensive and defensive strategies and tactics in a variety of activities and smallsided games. [PE]

Apply movement concepts, principles and strategies to avoid objects within dynamic environments [PE].

Analyze and modify a movement based on the demands of the task and/or environmental constraints in dynamic and changing situations. [PE]

Adjust performance of locomotor, manipulative, and stability skills based on environmental and task constraints and ensure safe physical activity participation of the individual and peers. [PE]

Demonstrate effective decision-making skills while engaged in emerging and maturing skill performance settings (including dance and gymnastics), games, and activities. [PE]

Engage in independent and cooperative problem-solving activities while participating in physical activities. [PE; SE]

Compare benefits of various physical activities in order to support personal decision-making related to physical activity. [PE]

Mental and Emotional Health

Identify different feelings and emotions (e.g., anger, fear, grief, sadness, anxiety, stress, hopelessness, gratitude, love, excitement, contentedness, hope, pride, happiness) that people may experience and how people might express those emotions (including individual and cultural differences in expression). [HPE; SE]

Demonstrate strategies and behaviors (which may include getting help) to help meet personal responsibilities and identify strategies to overcome barriers to meeting personal responsibilities. [HPE; SE]

Identify strategies for planning, prioritizing, and managing time. [HE; SE]

Demonstrate strategies that support a growth mindset in and out of school. [HPE; SE]

Discuss how feelings and emotions can impact behavior. [HPE; SE]

Recognize that all feelings and emotions are information that individuals can use to support mental and emotional health. [HPE; SE]

Identify how a person’s brain and body influence mental and emotional well-being. [HPE; SE]

Describe and demonstrate strategies for expressing and regulating emotions in healthpromoting ways. [HPE; SE]

Identify characteristics of and practices to support mental and emotional well-being within various cultures and diverse perspectives. [HE; SE]

Set a goal to use one or more health-promoting practices or behaviors (e.g., being aware of your own feelings and the feelings of others, safe online behaviors, engaging in physical activity, limiting screen time) and track progress towards its achievement in order to maintain or improve mental and emotional well-being. [HPE; SE]

Apply self-monitoring strategies, alone or with support, to regulate emotions (e.g., breathing techniques, appropriate sleep, proper nutrition) in varied settings. [HPE; SE]

Identify personal stressors and demonstrate effective stress management techniques, alone or with support. [HPE; SE]

Physical Activity and Fitness

Demonstrate respect for self and responsible, safe interpersonal behavior (i.e., peer to peer, student to teacher) that contributes to positive social interaction in a variety of physical activity contexts. [PE; SE]

Defines and provides examples of movement activities for developing the health-related fitness components and for developing skill-related fitness components. [PE]

Defines and explains how to implement principles of exercise. [PE]

Describe health benefits of regularly participating in physical activity on multiple dimensions of wellness (e.g., cardiovascular health, fitness levels, muscle strengthening, stress management, supporting positive mental health). [HPE]

Design a simple fitness goal and plan that includes warm-up and cool-down activities, uses physical activity to enhance personal fitness, and includes resources to assist in achieving the goal. [PE]

Recognizes and articulates how physical activity influences physiological changes in their body. [PE]

Identify different physical activities, in physical education class and outside of school, for personal enjoyment and challenge, independently and with others. [PE]

Physical Health and Hygiene

Describe the physical, social, and emotional changes that occur during puberty and adolescence, how the timing of puberty and adolescent development varies considerably, and the role of puberty in overall development. [HE]

Recognize and respect that all bodies are different. [HPE]

Explain a variety of health-promoting practices to manage the social, physical, and emotional changes associated with puberty and into adolescence. [HPE]

Describe health-promoting behaviors during menstruation, including ways to maintain personal hygiene, cope with emotional changes, manage pain and identify when help or support is needed. [HE]

Describe personal behaviors and strategies that promote health and/or avoid health risks (e.g., pedestrian safety, sun safety, protecting oneself from infectious diseases, adequate sleep, good nutrition, ergonomics, protective equipment, appropriate amounts of screen time, hearing protection, being physically active). [HPE]

Discuss influences on and barriers to maintaining or enhancing physical health and hygiene. [HPE]

Set a goal related to personal health (e.g., tooth brushing, sleep, hydration, ergonomics, sun safety, limiting screen time, hearing protection, physical activity, wearing protective equipment), identify resources to assist in achieving it, and track progress toward its achievement. [HPE; SE]

Personal Safety

Describe ways to promote personal safety and reduce the risk of unintentional injuries in a variety of situations (e.g., at home, at school, during physical activity, around motor vehicles, around firearms, around water, fire prevention, during a fire, as a pedestrian). [HPE]

Recognize aspects of the environment (e.g., whether or not crosswalks are clearly marked, presence of sidewalks, access to healthy foods, access to green space, levels of violence in a community) that can positively or negatively impact safety. [HPE]

Explain safety precautions for playing outdoors in different kinds of weather. [HPE]

Identify and demonstrate how to contact appropriate resources when someone is poisoned or injured and needs help (i.e., calling poison control and 9-1-1). [HPE]

Apply strategies to be and stay safe when using the Internet, and other digital technology, and social media, including addressing and preventing media overuse. [HE]

Define and provide examples of behaviors that would be considered child abuse and neglect (including physical, emotional, and sexual abuse), and describe actions and behaviors to take if feeling threatened by either someone known or not known. [HE]

Demonstrate the ability to set and maintain developmentally-appropriate boundaries (including physical, verbal, sexual, and emotional boundaries) and how to respond if those boundaries are violated. [HPE]

Distinguish among safe, unsafe, and inappropriate touch and demonstrate strategies for getting help including how to tell a trusted adult if this happens. [HE]

Demonstrate the use of assertive behavior, refusal skills, and actions intended for personal safety. [HPE; SE]

Healthy Relationships

Identify characteristics of healthy and unhealthy relationships with a variety of individuals (i.e., family, peers, trusted adults, teachers). [HE; SE]

Describe a range of ways people may express their gender and that some people’s gender identity (how they think about themselves) matches others’ expectations about what their bodies look like on the outside and others do not. [HPE; SE]

Describe ways that stereotypes, perceived stereotypes, prejudice, discrimination, inequality and injustice can impact relationships, and demonstrate strategies to address these factors. [HPE; SE]

Define and demonstrate ways to determine and respect the boundaries of self and others. [HPE; SE]

Demonstrate strategies for addressing one’s own feelings and the feelings and perspectives of others in order to support positive relationships. [HPE; SE]

Differentiate between conflict and bullying and articulate the importance of the difference to avoid escalating conflicts into bullying or violence. [HE; SE]

Identify and respond to bullying situations in a variety of settings. [HPE; SE]

Identify and practice non-violent communication skills. [HPE, SE]

Identify and practice conflict prevention, management and resolution strategies. [HPE; SE]

Describe how personal experiences, peers, family, media, society, community, and culture influence ways people interact in relationships and social situations. [HPE; SE]

Describe the differences between assigned sex at birth and gender identity and explain how one’s outward appearance and behavior does not define one’s gender identity or sexual orientation. [HE; SE]

Mental and Emotional Health

Develop an awareness that emotions may be expressed in different ways (e.g., through body language, intensity of expression) by various groups and in different cultures. [HPE; SE]

Explain the importance of talking with friends, parents, guardians or other trusted adults about feelings and emotions. [HPE; SE]

Demonstrate how to ask for assistance with mental health questions, issues or concerns (e.g., challenges with friends, feeling anxious). [HE; SE]

Demonstrate how to discuss mental health and mental health conditions in culturally responsive ways and in ways that reduce stigma. [HE; SE]

Identify signs and symptoms of mental distress in self and others, and how to get help for self or others. [HE; SE]

Physical Activity and Fitness

Recognizes the role of respectful interactions with others when participating in physical activity. [PE; SE]

Describe the benefits of movement and being physically active, especially with others, on physical, social, and emotional health. [HPE]

Describes why following game rules are important in a physical activity setting. [PE]

Accept, recognize, and actively involve others with both higher and lower skill abilities into physical activities, in and outside of physical education, and group projects. [PE; SE]

Respectfully accepts and implements feedback from the teacher when prompted. [PE; SE]

Uses communication skills to negotiate roles and responsibilities and to provide peer feedback in a physical activity setting. [PE; SE]

Identify and describe social benefits gained from participating in physical activity and sports (e.g., making friends, being on a team, building trust). [HPE]

Effectively manage emotions (e.g., anger, frustration, excitement) in a manner respectful to self and others during physical education and in other physical activity settings. [PE; SE]

Demonstrate strategies for collaborating, working and playing safely and effectively with others, including perspective taking, in physical education and other physical activity settings. [PE; SE]

Identify opportunities and safe places for physical activity outside of school. [HPE]

Substance Use and Misuse

Distinguish between the use and misuse of legal (e.g., prescription medications prescribed to you, over-the-counter drugs, and (at a certain age) nicotine, electronic vapor products, alcohol, and marijuana) and illegal drugs (e.g., prescription medicines not prescribed to you, cocaine, alcohol and nicotine use before legal age), and identify potential effects of each on the body. [HE]

Identify possible reasons (e.g., media, peer pressure, stress, culture) why individuals might use legal and illegal drugs and discuss health-promoting strategies to avoid illegal drug use and prevent unsafe or potentially harmful use of legal drugs. [HE]

Analyze data related to use of nicotine, alcohol or other legal drugs that are prohibited for minors. [HE]

Effectively communicate personal feelings or perspectives about substance use and misuse. [HE]

Demonstrate effective refusal of alcohol, nicotine, electronic vapor products, marijuana, inhalants, and other substances that can negatively impact health. [HE]

Physical Activity and Fitness

Demonstrate developmentally-appropriate patterns of varied locomotor skills, jumping and landing, and step-like actions in a dynamic environment. [PE]

Demonstrate ability to perform various locomotor skills combined with movement concepts (e.g., moving at different levels, pathways, directions) during dynamic small-sided games and other athletic and physical activities. [PE]

Demonstrate developmentally-appropriate balancing on different body parts, rolling actions, and weight transfer actions in a dynamic environment. [PE]

Demonstrate the ability to combine locomotor (including jumping and landing patterns) and manipulative skills (e.g., striking, dribbling) in a variety of small-sided practice tasks/games (e.g., for execution to a target, to demonstrate control). [PE]

Demonstrate the ability to combine locomotor skills, stability/non-locomotor skills (e.g., bending, twisting, rising, falling) movement concepts (e.g., levels, shapes, extensions, pathways, force, time, flow) and/or balance and weight transfer techniques to create and perform a gymnastic sequence, a jump rope routine, a dance with a group or other cultural and creative activities independently, with a partner or in a group. [PE]

Demonstrate different forms of dance. [PE]

Demonstrate developmentally-appropriate manipulative skills with hands in a variety of situations and tasks (i.e., catching/fielding, sending and receiving an object, obtaining possession of game object, striking a ball with short- and long-handled implement, kicking, rolling a ball, volleying, and serving, dribbling, throwing and catching) in a variety of environments. [PE]

Mental and Emotional Health

Describe personal and cultural identities and assets, their importance and value, and explain how they support mental and emotional health. [HE; SE]

Describe personal interests and the skills needed to pursue those interests in ways that support personal growth. [HPE; SE]

Identify personal strengths and opportunities for growth and improvement in a variety of contexts (including physical activity). [HPE; SE]

Describe supports needed to achieve success for a difficult activity or task in varied contexts. [HPE; SE]

Describe how peers, media, family, society, community, and culture can influence ideas about body image, and the impact on self-esteem and behaviors. [HE; SE]

Demonstrate how media, including social media, and technology can influence mental and emotional well-being (e.g., stress levels, happiness, mood). [HE; SE]

Sexual Health

Identify characteristics of valid health information, products, and services related to human sexual and reproductive anatomy, puberty, and personal hygiene. [HE]

Locate resources from home, school, and community that provide medically accurate sources of information about human sexual and reproductive anatomy, puberty, and personal hygiene. [HE]

Use valid, reliable, and medically accurate resources (e.g., school nurse, doctor, digital resources, health teacher, community organizations) to find information about the human reproductive systems, human sexual development, and the effects of hormones (e.g., romantic and sexual feelings, mood swings). [HE]

Explain how gender identity and sexual orientation can vary in each individual. [HE]

Explain the relationship between sexual intercourse and human reproduction, the range of ways pregnancy can occur, and valid and reliable resources for information or support related to these topics. [HE]

Identify parents, guardians, or other trusted adults (e.g., counselors and other health care professionals) whom students can ask questions about puberty and adolescent health issues (including abuse and neglect). [HE]

Locate trusted adults (including parents/guardians) from whom to get help if boundaries are being violated or one is being physically, emotionally, or sexually harassed or assaulted. [HE]

Public, Community, and Environmental Health

Analyze the relationship between personal health and the health of the community. [HPE]

Discuss that people may experience health disparities and health inequities (unfair and avoidable differences in health) due to factors such as socioeconomic status, disability, race, ethnicity, and access to resources. [HPE]

Analyze issues of health inequities and injustices locally, nationally, and internationally. [HE]

Describe ways that the community can impact the health of people within that community. [HE]

Describe the ways that rules and laws can affect community health and health disparities. [HE]

Use accurate information when discussing environmental health issues (e.g., littering, deforestation, recycling, climate change, clean water) that impact people’s health. [HE]

Demonstrate ways to treat people – including other students, their family members, and members of the school community – with dignity, respect, and empathy without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, or personal characteristics such as body shape or weight. [HPE; SE]

Propose and support classroom policies and behaviors that promote dignity and respect. [HPE; SE]