Physical Education

With the knowledge of Jesus, and His love in our hearts, we try to be the very best we can.

Intent

At Christ the King RC Primary School, pupils are taught Physical Education as part of a broad and balanced curriculum. Our Physical Education curriculum has been specifically tailored to meet the unique context of our school. It is designed to be progressive, ensuring every pupil makes progress from their starting points in their skills, knowledge and understanding. We strive to encourage pupils to participate willingly and respond positively to the sporting, creative and cultural opportunities provided.

At Christ the King, we believe that Physical Education helps to develop the knowledge, skills and capabilities necessary for mental, emotional, social and physical wellbeing in our children, now and for their future. Physical fitness is an important aspect of leading a healthier lifestyle. It teaches self-discipline and that success is only achieved through hard work, determination and resilience. It is our intent at Christ the King to teach children life skills that will positively impact on their future. We aim to teach children how to cooperate as part of a team, understanding fairness and sportsmanship, or ‘team spirit’. We aim to deliver high-quality teaching and learning opportunities that inspire all children to succeed in physical activities whilst providing opportunities to encounter the world-class sporting facilities in their immediate locality.

The key strands of the subject that pupils will learn through the school’s age-related expectations are:

• To develop, revise and refine the fundamental movement skills they have already acquired: rolling, crawling, walking, jumping, running, hopping, skipping and climbing.
• To develop overall body- strength, balance coordination and agility.
• To develop competence to excel in a broad range of physical activities.
• To be physically active for sustained periods of time.
• To engage in competitive sports, activities and festivals.
• To lead healthy, active lives.

Within our Physical Education provision, we offer a range of first-hand experiences, visits and visitors, with the intention of developing enrichment, team building, resilience, confidence and wellbeing.

In our Physical Education learning, we aim to deliver a curriculum that is fully accessible to all learners. We endeavour to maximise the outcomes for every child so that they know more, remember more and understand more.

Implementation

Curriculum Organisation

At Christ the King, we follow the National Curriculum (2014), and supplement our delivery of this through our use of the Manchester Scheme of Learning. We include extra learning opportunities such as extra-curricular sports clubs and lunchtime clubs to meet the specific needs of our pupils and community.

Our Physical Education curriculum has been designed to provide a coherent learning journey from Early Years Foundation Stage through to Year 6, identifying the key information, skills and concepts for pupils to learn and allowing pupils to build on and develop their knowledge over time.  Our provision in Physical Education is inclusive and enables all pupils to succeed.

In light of the Coronavirus Pandemic, we aim to ensure we rapidly recover lost learning by prioritising key areas of missed curriculum content that are critical for progression within each subject area, in order to ensure pupils are able to make sense of later work in the curriculum. This includes the key knowledge, skills, vocabulary and concepts and the links between concepts, as outlined in the National Curriculum. In Physical Education, we have identified critical curriculum content for progression in each year group, taking account of what pupils do and do not yet know.

Physical Education is taught through the framework of the 2014 National Curriculum. The principles and content of its requirements have been carefully placed at the heart of the school’s programme of study in P.E.

Pupils at Christ the King participate in at least two hours of high-quality PE and sport activities weekly. Weekly games lessons are delivered by sports coaches from ‘Little Sports’ and class teachers throughout the year. Weekly indoor dance and Gymnastic sessions are delivered by class teachers and ‘Motion Dance’. Throughout the year, all children will also work with ‘Commando Joe’. Children in Year 4 take part in the swimming programme each week at North City Pool. Our PE programme incorporates a variety of fundamental skills and sports to ensure all children develop the confidence, tolerance and the appreciation of their own and others’ strengths and weaknesses. Our PE plans also follow the four ‘MEs’: Thinking Me, Social Me, Healthy Me and Physical Me. The children are also taught the school games values throughout each PE lesson. In the Spring and Summer terms, our Year 5 children will work towards the PE Life Skills Award. We provide opportunities for all children to engage in extra-curricular activities before, during and after school, in addition to competitive sporting events and sports leagues. This is an inclusive approach which encourages not only physical development but also wellbeing.

The curriculum framework is broad and balanced and ensures all six stands of the P.E. National Curriculum are taught. These plans are closely linked to the school’s Age-Related Expectations (AREs) in Physical Education for each year which allows a consistent application of the curriculum throughout the Key Stages.

Children’s progress through P.E. is recorded on Target Tracker. This enables both class teachers and the subject leader to monitor coverage and identify progress made throughout the lifetime of a cohort in the school.

Resources

Our provision is greatly enriched by visiting and accessing local sporting facilities such as, The Etihad Campus, Carrington Campus, The National Squash Centre, The National Cycling Centre, Manchester Climbing Centre, Debdale Water Sports Centre and the Northern Lawn Tennis Centre. The school is well-resourced with a wide range of equipment in order to facilitate teaching and learning in each of the Physical Education strands.

Staffing/ Planning

Physical Education is taught by all class teachers, who are closely supported by the subject leader and the curriculum leader.  Subject leaders have regular CPD opportunities via the Manchester PE team. This is then disseminated to staff via staff meetings.

Learning and teaching in Physical Education is closely monitored by subject leaders in order to determine areas for development and to ensure best practice is identified and shared across school. The subject action plan is regularly revisited and updated to ensure it accurately reflects current priorities and next steps.

Extra Support

Additional support is provided by our team of Teaching Assistants who are deployed by the class teacher. Teaching assistants work alongside the class teacher to identify intended learning outcomes and how these may be differentiated to suit the needs of individual pupils, including those with SEND, EAL or other learning needs, and those who may need additional challenge. Essential key vocabulary is highlighted and common misconceptions, and ways to address these, are also identified.

Assessment

Teachers assess learning in PE through the careful use of both formative and summative assessment, which is undertaken against the age-related expectations for Physical Education. This includes any whole class assessment that staff might undertake. The outcomes of these assessments are used to evaluate the quality of coverage of the ARE in Physical Education and to inform aspects of learning that need to be strengthened to improve the quality of provision and to enhance pupil progress.

In their use of formative assessment, teachers identify what pupils do and do not know, or can and cannot do, to inform feedback to pupils and any adjustments to teaching, identifying next steps for development of learning. At Christ the King, we believe that focused assessments which target specific areas of learning are the most effective method of identifying precise areas of weakness and strength.

Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, we are aware that pupils may have gaps in their prior learning which may hamper their progress in grasping new concepts or deepening understanding. When planning lessons, we therefore ensure that our pupils’ understanding of key concepts or essential prior knowledge is secure before more demanding content is taught.

Cross-curricular

Links with prior learning are made explicit to pupils, and we show how new knowledge relates to previous learning, including from the previous year groups and key stages. Where appropriate, links are also made with other curriculum areas so that pupils see how subject disciplines relate to each other.

Pedagogical Approach

Our pedagogical approach to learning at Christ the King is underpinned by our focus on metacognition and self-regulated learning, and Rosenshine’s Principles of Instruction (Rosenshine, 2012) also informs our approach to learning and teaching.

‘In the moment’ verbal feedback is our preferred form of feedback, as we believe this has the greatest impact on learning. Effective, differentiated questioning and opportunities for pupil discussion and interaction allow for teachers to check understanding before moving learning on.

Trips and Visits

Our pupils also have the opportunity to study Physical Education outside of the classroom, (e.g. as regular enrichment trips.) This gives pupils the opportunity to gain experiences in resilience, team building and confidence.

Impact

Our PE curriculum aims to improve the wellbeing and fitness of all children at Christ the King, not only through the fundamental skills taught, but through the underpinning values and disciplines PE promotes. Within our lessons, children are taught the School Games Values and also about self-discipline and that to lead a healthy lifestyle and to be successful they need to take ownership and responsibility of their 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.

Pupils will leave Christ the King RC Primary School with the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the next stage of their education and will have strong foundations for future learning.

 Physical Education coverage across the school is illustrated in the PE Overview.

PE Curriculum Map 2022

The PE Curriculum Map shows what is being taught in PE within each year group.

 PE Overview 2022

Competitions 

We provide a range of opportunities for children to develop a love of physical activity and sport, equipping them with the confidence and resilience to excel in different areas of life. Children compete in many different activities including cross-country, triathlon, football, swimming galas, dance, and more. In Reception, children enjoy learning how to ride a bike during Balance-ability sessions. Here are some photographs of our successful, hard-working sports teams.

The Year 6 Boys' Football Team won a tournament at The Cliff.

The Year 6 Cross Country Team took part in a run at Our Lady's. 

Year 5/6 Triathlon team with the Brownlee Brothers. The children had to swim, run and cycle to the finish line.