Physical Education
INTENT
In Physical Education, we aim to use a variety of teaching and learning styles. Our principal aim is to develop the children’s knowledge, skills and understanding in physical activity. Teachers draw attention to good examples of individual performance as models for the other children. Children are also encouraged to evaluate their own and other’s work. At Holy Spirit, we encourage children to work and play with others in a range of group situations. We aim to develop the way children perform skills and apply rules and conventions for different activities. This with the aim of increasing the children’s ability to use what they have learnt to improve the quality and control of their performance. We aim to teach children to recognise and describe how their bodies feel during exercise to ensure they understand and are able to state why warming up and cooling down are essential components to exercise. Linking to this, we aim to improve the children’s understanding of the effects of exercise and the impact it has on their body. Developing the children’s enjoyment of physical activity through creativity and imagination, developing an understanding in children of how to succeed in a range of physical activities and how to evaluate their own success is also key. Our commitment to this is evident in the provision of, on average, two hours Physical Education each week for all pupils. We strive to ensure all pupils are challenged, extending their skills and developing a love of exercise.
IMPLEMENTATION
In Physical Education, we aim to use a variety of teaching and learning styles. Our principal aim is to develop the children’s knowledge, skills and understanding in physical activity. We do this through a whole-class input, moving onto an individual or group activity. Teachers draw attention to good examples of individual performance as models for the other children. Children are also encouraged to evaluate their own and other’s work. Within lessons, we give the children the opportunity both to collaborate and to compete with each other, as well as using a wide range of resources throughout the year. General lesson structure of Physical Education lessons:
- Learning objectives and success criteria are shared at the start of the lesson.
- Warm up and stretching activities are completed.
- Main teaching input- either revision of a previous skill or learning of a new skill.
- Game, activity or group work where the learnt skill is applied.
- Continuous use of questioning throughout the lesson to assess children’s knowledge and understanding. Mini-plenaries can also be used for the children to demonstrate/perform their newly learnt skill.
- A cool-down exercise with dynamic or static stretching.
After-school clubs and competitive sporting events involving other schools are a valuable part of our school life. We believe that these activities allow children the opportunity to gain a deeper enjoyment and understanding of Physical Education. We offer a wide range of after-school activities that cater for both boys and girls equally. Making use of outside agencies (i.e. dance, cheerleading) is something we consider vital as it ensures a deep, broad PE curriculum.
IMPACT
Our curriculum aims to improve the wellbeing and fitness of all children at Holy Spirit, not only through the sporting skills taught, but through the underpinning values and disciplines physical education promotes. Within our lessons, children are taught about self-discipline, teamwork, sportsmanship and that, in order to be successful, we need to take ownership and responsibility of own health and fitness. Our impact is therefore to motivate children to utilise these underpinning skills in an independent and effective way in order to live happy and healthy lives. Our children understand that both sport and life is competitive and that you are not always able to win but with commitment and a desire to better; you can improve to reach your own personal best. Formative and summative assessment tools undertaken throughout the year allow us to monitor the impact of the subject. Overall, our pupils experience a wide range of different sports and activities throughout their time in Holy Spirit. Pupils gain an appreciation of sport, an insight into the importance of physical activity and develop key skills needed to succeed, not only in sport, but in later life.
Roadmap for PE from EYFS to Year 6
PE Curriculum map from EYFS to Year 6
Progression of skills in PE from EYFS to Year 6
PE National Curriculum
Watch Us Get Fit UK- Football Session
On Thursday 22nd October, Years 1 to 6 took part in a football coaching session, delivered by qualified coaches from Watch Us Get Fit UK, a company endorsed by former Liverpool defender, Jamie Carragher. Throughout each class' session, the two coaches developed the children’s individual skills, in an enjoyable and safe way. Key skills such as passing, dribbling and turning with the football were focused on through carefully planned activities. The children really enjoyed their coaching session and improved some of their basic football skills. A big thank you to Watch Us Get Fit UK for an excellent day!
Sky Try Rugby League Sessions
During Autumn term, our Year 2, Year 3 and Year 4 classes have taken part in four rugby league sessions ran by two coaches from Saints. In these sessions, the children have developed their basic rugby skills such as passing, catching, sidestepping and agility. The sessions have been focused on developing the children's individual skills and building up their confidence after lockdown. All of the children have really enjoyed the activities and have demonstrated lots of the key skills expected of them. A big thank you to Saints and their excellent coaches for the fantastic sessions!
KS2 Boccia Competition
On Wednesday 27th November, four children from across KS2 were selected to take part in a Boccia competition at Lansbury Bridge school. Boccia is a precision ball sport very similar to bowls; the children had to throw balls at a small white ball in a court, the ball that was the closest to the white ball at the end of all the throws was the winner. We played as a team against other schools from across St Helens. All of the children really enjoyed the opportunity to represent Holy Spirit and were an absolute credit to our school. We just missed out on a place in the semi-final, but the children were amazing and really enjoyed themselves. Well done to everybody involved!
Y5/6 Girls Football Tournament
On Thursday 3rd October, nine of our year 5 and 6 pupils represented our school in a football competition at Ruskin Drive Football Centre in St Helens. There were numerous other schools from the area involved and all of the children really enjoyed the opportunity to play against other teams. The girls were a credit to Holy Spirit as they played extremely well, as a team and with a smile on their faces. After gaining confidence with each game, we won for the first time as a team and we hope for many more victories in the future. Well done to everybody involved!
Holy Spirit Sports Day 2021
On Wednesday 26th June, we held our annual school Sports Day. It was a fantastic day for everyone involved and it was lovely to see so many of you there supporting your children and our school. On the day, the children competed in races such as:
-Sprint
-Relay
-Obstacle
-Javelin
-Tug of War
-Drop and Dash
All the children gave their very best and thoroughly enjoyed the wide variety of events.
Y3/Y4 Multi-Skills Event
On Friday 21st June, eight children from years three and four were selected to take part in a Multi-Skills event at Ruskin Drive. There were a number of different stations set up for the children to participate in. During the event, the children took part in numerous events such as throwing, 40m sprints, jumping, crawling, catching and skipping. Each child had more than one go on each station with the emphasis on beating their own personal best, which all the children did on numerous occasions. All of the group enjoyed the opportunity to represent Holy Spirit and they were an absolute credit to our school. There were lots of other schools involved in the event and we showed everyone just how talented the pupils of Holy Spirit are!
Y5/Y6 Wargrave Rugby League Tournament
On Wednesday 19th June, six Year 6 children and four Year 5 children represented our school in a rugby league tournament at Wargrave Primary School in Newton. There were numerous other schools involved and all of the children really enjoyed the opportunity to compete against other teams. All of the children were a credit to Holy Spirit and it was so pleasing to see them all working together to tackle the opposition. They really worked as a team throughout the tournament, played with a smile on their faces and showed a real enjoyment of the competition. Altogether, we scored some excellent tries in our games against St Mary's, Billinge St Aidens and Wargrave. We scored six tries altogether as we missed out on a place in the semi-finals. It was a fantastic tournament and the children can be very proud of themselves!
Saints Community Rugby Event
On Wednesday 1st May, ten children from years three and four were given an opportunity to participate in a rugby league event hosted by Saints at Blackbrook Rugby Club. There were appearances from Saints players, coaches and the club mascot, Boots, even made an appearance. The children were given different coaching sessions based on the fundamentals of rugby- passing, movement, playing the ball and 'touch tackling'. Towards the end of the event, the children played in a game against the other school that attended, with Holy Spirit running out eventual winners. Everyone who participated was excellent and we all really enjoyed the event!
Lily Parr Girls Football Tournament
On Friday 26th April, ten Year 5 girls represented our school in a football competition at Ruskin Drive Football Centre in St Helens. There were numerous other schools from the area involved and all of the children really enjoyed the opportunity to play against other teams. The girls were a credit to Holy Spirit as they played very well, gaining more confidence with each game that they played. This was recognised by the event organisers who selected our team as winners of the Fair Play award. Most importantly, all of the children played as a team and enjoyed participating in a football tournament for the very first time. Well done to everybody involved!
KS2 Boccia Competition
On Wednesday 21st November, six children from across KS2 were selected to take part in a Boccia competition at Lansbury Bridge school. Boccia is a precision ball sport very similar to bowls; the children had to throw balls at a small white ball in a court, the ball that was the closest to the white ball at the end of all the throws was the winner. We played as a team against other schools from across St Helens. All of the children really enjoyed the opportunity to represent Holy Spirit and were an absolute credit to our school. We just missed out on a place in the semi-final on points difference- very unfortunate, but the children were amazing. Well done to everybody involved!
Y5/6 Girls Football Tournament
On Thursday 27th September, nine of our year 5 and 6 pupils represented our school in a football competition at Ruskin Drive Football Centre in St Helens. There were numerous other schools from the area involved and all of the children really enjoyed the opportunity to play against other teams. The girls were a credit to Holy Spirit as they played extremely well, as a team and with a smile on their faces. We scored our first goal as a team and we hope for many more! Well done to everybody involved!