Activity

Organising a successful sports day

Jul 17, 2023 | Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

A school sports day can be the pinnacle of the PE department’s year, a chance to show the rest of the school just what we do. Our sportiest and most able pupils thrive in the face of competition and the chance to be the best.

But for some pupils, sports day can be their worst nightmare. For others, it can be seen as a day off. In this article, we discuss strategies that could be utilised to engage more pupils in taking part in various aspects of the day.

5 fun games for wet weather lessons

Aug 3, 2022 | Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

Is there a more difficult decision to make than that of a PE department when the weather is awful? Do you go outside and risk low effort and attainment, or stay inside and deliver an activity which moves away from the scheme of learning? Here we have a variety of activities you could use when the rain stops play…

5 Ways to make sure students remember their PE Kit

Aug 3, 2022 | Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

Secondary teacher Katie O’Sullivan outlines five ways you can help your students remember their PE kit.

From a PE teacher’s perspective, there are clear signs that some students display when they forget their PE kit. So what strategies can help students to remember their PE essentials?

Sometimes they look sheepish and are afraid of the impending consequence, sometimes they adopt a severe limp as they approach the changing rooms, and some have that look of horror when they open their bag and realise they’re missing the crucial items. No matter the school setting, one of the barriers that PE teachers face is pupils who haven’t got the right kit to take part in a lesson. So what can be done?

Why performance analysis is important for development in sport

Aug 4, 2021 | Coaching & Skills | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

Performance analysis can increase performance and allow professionals to perform to the best of their abilities.

Children and physical education – why it’s so important

Jun 29, 2021 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

Children and their academic development can be improved through physical education after the pandemic hampered their progress.

Parents call for further physical activity pursuit in schools after health drawbacks from COVID

Apr 1, 2021 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

Parents have recently called for schools to pursue physical activity after fears for their children’s health being hampered due to the recent COVID lockdown.

PE funding: all you need to know

Jul 7, 2020 | Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

The Government has announced £320 million in PE funding for the 2020-21 academic year.

Along with the announcement, the Department for Education also confirmed that any funding not spent during the 2019-20 academic year can be used next year – giving leaders the opportunity to add to their existing provision.

But who is the funding available to and how should it be spent? This blog post explains.

PEOffice TV: Easy PE lessons during lockdown

Apr 22, 2020 | Coaching & Skills | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

PEOffice has today launched PEOffice TV to enable your children to continue to complete PE lessons during lockdown.

Exercise has been a major talking point of the lockdown, with concern raised that the measures would stop people getting their recommended amount of exercise.

Keep an eye on PEOffice’s Facebook page for future videos. For this week’s PE lesson click the link below.

5 fun fitness drills for isolation

Mar 30, 2020 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

Keeping fit has a range of benefits which means it should not be forgotten about during isolation. By taking part in fitness drills you can strengthen your immune system, boost your mental health and feel better about yourself during frightening times.

The UK Government has stressed the need to only leave the house for essentials, or to complete one form of exercise per day.

This blog post will provide you with a range of fun fitness drills, suitable for all ages, which you can complete in your home and garden.

5 fun warm ups to engage young children

Mar 10, 2020 | Coaching & Skills | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

The warm up is a crucial part of any PE lesson. It should prepare the body for exercises by gradually increasing heart rate and circulation.

The process of the warm up should loosen the joints and increase blood flow to the muscles, preparing the body for physical activity and preventing injuries.

Delivering physical education in the cooler months can be a challenge for teachers, yet with these five fun drills you can help to ensure pupils are engaged during the PE warm up.

International Women’s Day: One million more women are cycling

Mar 4, 2020 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

British Cycling has announced that one million more women are cycling now than in 2013.

The statement comes just days before International Women’s Day, which takes place this Sunday. It aims to celebrate the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women.

The target meets the organisation’s strategy to inspire one million more women to ride, race and be part of British Cycling by 2020; and it is a huge step to reducing the historic gender gap within the sport.

But what does the announcement mean for cycling and fitness for women? This blog post explains.

Encouraging everyday activities and lifelong fitness

Sep 7, 2018 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

There is no doubt that being active is vital to our overall health. The NHS is now advising that children aged 5-18 do at least an hour of physical activity every day, and adults should aim for at least 150 minutes a week.

It is important to teach your students that exercise and fitness are also vital for their mental health and wellbeing, and not just their physical health.

Can exercise help children learn?

Feb 27, 2018 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

You know that exercise is a non-negotiable in the fight against childhood obesity. You’ve probably heard the news that fit, active children go on to lead healthier, longer lives.

But are you aware of the ways in which exercise boosts brain power? Did you even dare imagine that frequently active kids are more engaged and put in a better academic performance when compared to their sedentary contemporaries?

Extra-curricular PE to improve staff health and wellbeing

Feb 5, 2018 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

The expectations for teachers to deliver in an ever-increasingly results-driven work setting have never been so demanding, meaning the extreme stress levels experienced and felt by many teachers has made for a hot topic of discussion in recent years.

5 simple playground activities for Primary schools

Jan 15, 2018 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

Who said that school games had to involve tech to engage little hands? Or that outdoor tasks needed to be complex to help develop things such as coordination, inquisitively or agility?

Here we’ve put together five classic ideas for playground activities that need minimal equipment for maximum fun and skill development.

Access for all – what you can do

Dec 8, 2017 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

In the final part of our series on getting kids moving more, we look at practical ways you can make sport more accessible.

Access to sport isn’t equal – whether it’s a lack of facilities, cost or a perceived lack of safety. Here we look at what you can do to help.

Is sport accessible to all?

Nov 10, 2017 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

It’s not just lack of ability or desire stopping kids getting access to activity, there are a number of other barriers, too.

This series has looked at how to get kids moving, a goal we can all agree is worthwhile. But is physical activity accessible to all students? We look at some potential barriers preventing children from getting active.

Matball: the key to increasing participation in Key Stage 4 PE?

Nov 3, 2017 | Teaching PE, Team Sports | 0 |

Reading time: 5 minutes

Want to offer something different in PE at KS4? Want to improve your attendance numbers at extra-curricular clubs, particularly in KS4? Keen to offer a positive experience to contribute to improved health and wellbeing of your students?

If you answered ‘yes’ to all three of these questions then you should look no further than introducing the game of Matball to your students.

Increasing activity safely

Sep 22, 2017 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

It’s easy to overdo things when you’re starting out with a new exercise regime, and youngsters are particularly liable to get over-enthusiastic. Follow our advice to keep students safe and healthy.

If you’ve been following our series on getting kids moving, your students should already have made that all important first step to improving their activity levels.

Using exercise to improve mental health

Sep 8, 2017 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

We all know the physical benefits of regular exercise, but keeping active is good for mental health, too.

One in 10 children aged between five and 16 in the UK have a mental health disorder, according to a 2004 study carried out on behalf of the Office for National Statistics.

Using technology to encourage exercise

Aug 24, 2017 | Fitness & Health, Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

Technology is often cited as a key contributor to our children’s obesity levels.

Parents compete with games consoles, handheld devices, computers and social media when trying to encourage their children to lead a more active lifestyle, and this lack of exercise has a negative impact on participation and performance levels in school.

5 ways to promote a more active lifestyle in children

Jul 31, 2017 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

You know that kids need to get moving more and you’ve got some idea of what they should be doing. But how are you going to encourage them to do so?

Here we give you some tips on what you can do.

A healthy lifestyle isn’t just about doing sport at prescribed times

Jul 19, 2017 | Fitness & Health, Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

In part one of this series we looked at how the majority of UK children don’t get the government-recommended minimum of 60 minutes’ moderate exercise per day, and ways to address this.

The activities suggested can be categorised as four main types: everyday activities; getting out in nature; organised sports; and active play.

Here we’ll consider each in a bit more detail.

Lifelong fitness begins at Primary school

Jun 7, 2017 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes A passion for sports and fitness can and should be instilled from the earliest of ages, yet primary schools undoubtedly have a tough challenge on their hands when they’re only granted a limited number of hours to commit to PE each week.

However no mistake should be made: the role of the primary school for lifelong fitness is today more important than ever.

5 Fun drills for rugby league

Nov 26, 2015 | Coaching & Skills, Team Sports | 0 |

Reading time: 5 minutes

Rugby league focuses on the key skills of handling, passing, running and tackling. Players are expected to have quick hands, good sprint speed with bursts of pace to try to break tackles, and the strength to tackle and halt their opponents’ runs.

Here are 5 drills that we hope you will find useful to help your rugby league players enhance these key skills.

Should encouraging extracurricular physical activity be part of a PE teacher’s role?

Oct 2, 2015 | Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

All teachers have a range of responsibilities including educating, safeguarding and mentoring students. But do PE teachers have an additional responsibility to encourage participation in physical activity outside of school hours?

Research studies show that students who are more physically active perform better in school due to their higher levels of energy and concentration.

A Basic Guide to Squash

May 15, 2015 | Coaching & Skills, Individual Sports | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

England Squash and Racketball is the National Governing Body (NGB) for squash in England and is the umbrella that makes the decisions that affect everyone who plays squash. The first ever squash court was built in 1864 in England with over 50,000 courts in more than 185 countries worldwide.

Cycling Proficiency

Apr 17, 2015 | Fitness & Health, Individual Sports | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

Cycling in Britain has never been as popular as it is today, with year upon year more and more people deciding to cycle to work, take up cycling as a hobby or as a sport. This could be attributed to the fact that the health benefits of the activity are more widely known now to the general population, but also the success of elite level cyclists since the 2008 Beijing Olympics such as Sir Chris Hoy and Victoria Pendleton.

Rowing – Training Skills

Mar 30, 2015 | Coaching & Skills | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

Training to become an Olympic rower and following in the footsteps of Sir Steve Redgrave and Katherine Grainger, who both have achieved Olympic success, has very humble beginnings when it comes to training.

Over 40,000 people take part in water rowing, with the aim of that improving to over 46,000 participants by 2017 which is the final year of the Whole Sports Plan outlined by British Rowing.

Ice Skating – How to get started

Mar 9, 2015 | Fitness & Health, Individual Sports | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

The basic skills outlined by Skate UK, who are part of the National Ice Skating Association of Great Britain & N.I, are ranked in levels from level one up to level eight. The difficulty degree rises as the levels get higher with beginners starting at level one. After undertaking each of the levels, which consists of 8 weeks’ worth of coaching, assessment is taken on the eighth week and if successful, a certificate is given to the individual. They will then be allowed to progress to the higher tier of the system.

Basic Skipping

Mar 5, 2015 | Coaching & Skills, Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

When skipping is mentioned, two things spring to mind. One is the game played by children in a playground all over the world, the other is a training exercise used by many sports including boxing and football. Both have the ability to have a positive impact on a range of sports and for those who participate in those sports.

Softball Lesson Plan – Base Running

Feb 24, 2015 | Lesson Plans | 0 |

Reading time: < 1 minute

This softball lesson plan covers base running, developing pupils’ understanding of the laws governing running between bases, stealing and tagging.

The importance of communication with team mates should be emphasised throughout this lesson

Skeleton Bob

Feb 17, 2015 | Individual Sports | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

Due to the nature of skeleton, it is not as simple as going down to a local sports shop and getting the appropriate equipment, as the sport requires a specialised sled, footwear, clothing and helmet. However, the popularity and media coverage of the sport has improved over recent years. This has combined to make skeleton the fastest growing Olympic winter sport.

Swimming on the Curriculum

Nov 18, 2014 | Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

As a swimming coach I know all the problems with teaching swimming, not least the cost, the extra time it takes, the fact at least one person forgets their swimming kit, or has a cold, or really doesn’t want to get in the water, and let’s not even discuss the ones that are so afraid of water they’re crying on the bus, so do we need swimming on the curriculum?

Physical Activity – Public Health England Report

Nov 14, 2014 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: < 1 minute

In October, Public Health England published Everybody active, every day: An evidence-based approach to physical activity. The report calls for creating a cultural change to be more active, with a 4 pronged approach.

Swimming in Primary Schools

Nov 7, 2014 | Fitness & Health, Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: < 1 minute

The BBC reported this week that primary schools need to offer more chances to take part in swimming sessions, as a report released by the Amateur Swimming Association indicated that around 1,300 primaries ‘do not offer swim lessons, even though it is a skill on the national curriculum’.

Demonstrating Improvement in Sports

Oct 23, 2014 | Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

In previous blog posts we have looked into a wide range of activities to help increase participation and develop your pupils’ confidence to get involved. Although your pupils may be making some good improvement in the sports and activities they are taking part in, sometimes they may not see their development. It is beneficial to you to point it out to them, because if you don’t they may lose all interest in the sport.

Tackling Demanding Activities

Sep 10, 2014 | Coaching & Skills, Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

There will be some sporting and physical activities that your students find challenging. It is your job to tackle their doubts and overcome any fears they may have before partaking in particularly difficult sports.

Creating Sporting Legacies

Aug 4, 2014 | Fitness & Health, Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 2 minutes

No one can deny the way sports can unite a nation. For brief glorious moments it seems that the entire nation is cheering for one person, or one team. The mood lifts and everyone is happy.

But what about the next generation of athletes, the school children who are watching these games: does cheering for their team translate into sporting success?

Swimming Lesson Plan

Jul 14, 2014 | Lesson Plans | 0 |

Reading time: < 1 minute

This swimming lesson plan enables your pupils to accurately replicate the basic front crawl.

Pupils can demonstrate their understanding of the benefits of using more strength and speed when replicating the kicks and pulls to assist propulsion.

Athletics Lesson Plan – Triple Jump

May 27, 2014 | Lesson Plans | 0 |

Reading time: < 1 minute

The focus of this Athletics lesson plan is to accurately replicate a basic though technically correct triple jump from a standing start.

Golf in Schools

May 23, 2014 | Fitness & Health, Individual Sports | 0 |

Reading time: < 1 minute

May is National Golf Month, an initiative encouraging people of all ages to get playing golf.

As the New PE National Curriculum encourages a diverse range of sports to be offered in schools, the benefits offered in golf are extensive, making it a great sport to include in your department.

Badminton Lesson Plan – Serving

Apr 28, 2014 | Lesson Plans | 0 |

Reading time: < 1 minute

This plan on serving should develop the ability to perform a forehand and backhand serve.

The range of service skills, tactics and approaches taught should be transferred to gain ascendency in practices and games.

Skipping in Schools

Apr 28, 2014 | Fitness & Health, Individual Sports | 0 |

Reading time: 4 minutes

It was a beautiful sunny day in St Anton, Austria and two snowboarders were cutting their way through the snow high in the mountains. They’d already done this route an hour previously and so were really enjoying the weather, laughing and having a great time.

American Football For Schools

Apr 28, 2014 | Team Sports | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

American football delivered in a UK school will have little in common with the NFL (which tends to be the most common source of understanding and knowledge about American football in the UK).

The first barrier to successfully introducing it into either a primary or secondary school is to correct the many erroneous assumptions and beliefs about the sport that will be held by school management, parents and indeed the students.

Increasing participation in extra-curricular activity

Apr 25, 2014 | Fitness & Health | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

This month we found an interesting quote from Ken Green in his 2010 text Key Themes in Youth Sport. Green stated that “the contribution of extra-curricular PE (as with PE itself) to young people’s leisure sport is highly likely to be limited for the most part to those youngsters already committed to sport”.

Tag Rugby Lesson Plan

Apr 25, 2014 | Lesson Plans | 0 |

Reading time: < 1 minute

This tag rugby lesson focusses on passing, specifically the ability to replicate, perform and catch the lateral pass. This lesson will also promote the understanding of laws on passing and catching the ball.

Netball Competitive Lesson Plan

Apr 25, 2014 | Lesson Plans | 0 |

Reading time: < 1 minute

This lesson focuses on pivoting, using correct footwork when passing the ball, the chest pass and bounce pass. These activities are ideal for working in pairs and in small teams.

This plan also includes ideas for adapting each activity for different ability levels.

Raising Participation Through Competition

Apr 25, 2014 | Fitness & Health, Teaching PE | 0 |

Reading time: 3 minutes

As part of a recent assessment of participation in sport at our school, we reviewed the number of students taking part in physical education lessons and also extra-curricular activities.

The results showed that something had to be done in order to raise the participation levels of particular groups of students: principally the girls and the Asian and Pakistani communities.

Activity

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