Celebrating Success in P.E.

CELEBRATING SUCCESS IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION.

Within P.E. lessons we are keen to celebrate success of all kinds, whether that may be a child mastering a complex skill, working well as a member of a team, having the confidence to demonstrate in front of the class, coping with the disappointment of losing in a competitive situation or simply participating in a lesson.

Pupils receive House Points every lesson for remembering their kit and for trying hard. “Bonus” points are often awarded for being independent, excellent performances, giving great answers, demonstrating leadership qualities, kindness and respect towards peers etc.

Each week one child from each Key Stage will have a P.E. Postcard sent to them, briefly detailing how they have excelled, in order that their success can be shared and celebrated at home.

P.E. SUCCESS STORIES.

Culverhill P.E. Department values success of all kinds – not just winning performances on a sports pitch. Something that may seem quite insignificant to most people may in fact be a huge achievement and as such should be celebrated.

Case Study A.

Pupil A joined the school, from a local mainstream academy, in Year Nine. She hadn’t participated in P.E. since primary school, where she had experienced bullying. As a result she was extremely uncomfortable in the P.E. environment and her anxiety was preventing her from participating in lessons.

In order to make her feel more comfortable and to give her the opportunity to experience a positive P.E. environment we arranged for her to be support our youngest pupils in their P.E. lessons, rather than attending her timetabled lesson with her year group. Throughout the year she gradually gained confidence and, as she did so, she was encouraged to start wearing her P.E. kit when supporting in P.E.

At the start of the following school year Pupil A came to P.E. with the rest of her class and participated fully in the lesson with her peers. Since then Pupil A has not missed a single lesson.

Case Study B.

Pupil B started at Culverhill in September 2023. His previous school had mentioned that he was reluctant to participate in PE. We allowed him to sit in the “library area” just outside the hall from where he could watch the PE lesson, in the hope that in time he would feel motivated to engage.

After several weeks, he made his way inside the hall and would spectate from the benches at the back. This was a huge step for him. Pupil B gradually began to join in with particular activities and games of his choice, 5 or 10 minutes at a time. This continued for the rest of the first term and into the second.

Through patience from staff and the flexibility of giving him ownership over what he felt comfortable participating in, Pupil B gradually became fully involved. Watching his confidence and self-esteem grow has been a joy to witness. He is now thoroughly enjoying PE to the extent where he has joined the after school weekly sports club and has plans to join Kingswood AIR (All Inclusive Rugby club) once old enough in the spring.

J. Mitchell (Class Teacher)

Case Study C.

Rugby was a 6 week course delivered by a sports coach from Bristol Bears. Child C was very nervous to begin with and visibly anxious to take part in a rugby lesson. By week three Child C was actively joining and was more comfortable with the rules, tackles, passing.

By week six child C was diving to retrieve loose balls and understood the game and rules fully. It was also very clear how much he was enjoying playing Rugby.

I think this was a massive confidence boost for him and just what he needed in order to become more expressive and assertive.

E. Critchley (Class T.A.)

Case Study D.

Pupil D has never been so excited as she is now, participating fully in an Archery lesson off site at a secondary venue to school.

To ensure full inclusivity, last summer Mrs Bell contacted the charity REMAP who designed and made a bespoke steel bow stand apparatus that enables Pupil D to access the equipment both in and out of her wheelchair comfortably and confidently.

She is able to independently aim accurately at the given target with the use of her stronger arm and can position the arrow on the bow with ease.

Her confidence has increased so much in the last few weeks that her family have arranged for her to attend the centre for Archery lessons outside of school hours, for her to continue the new found sports interest, which she attends weekly!

L.Cordy (Class T.A.)

Case Study E.

Pupil E joined the school mid-year and initially refused to come into the hall with his class when they had P.E. We encouraged him to sit in the “library area” just outside the hall during lessons, from where he could watch what we were doing, in order to help him to feel comfortable enough to come and join in.

After a couple of lessons, when playing a game which involved music, we noticed that Pupil E became really animated and was clearly interested in what we were doing. For the next week we planned warm-up activities that used music and kept the door open to enable Pupil E to easily see and hear what we were doing. The following week he joined in with one of the warm-up activities and then sat on a bench, remaining in the room for the rest of the lesson.

We used the same musical warm-up activities for the remainder of the term and the amount that Pupil E participated gradually increased until he was fully engaged in all activities. Since that point Pupil E hasn’t looked back and participates in every lesson with enthusiasm and confidence.

H. Bell (P.E. Teacher)

Case Study F.

Pupil F often shows a lack of confidence which can be seen in him being unable to ask for clarification before an activity and a subsequent level of detachment and a lack of involvement. Pupil F’s P.E. group has recently been working at the local leisure centre for their Health & Fitness unit. After initial encouragement he was thoroughly engaged in the gym induction; keen to be at the front of the group and even putting his hand up to ask questions and make sure he knew how to use the machines. This independence and confidence was unprecedented and enabled him to go on to use the gym equipment with real purpose and enjoyment, staff stepping back their support as he grew more confident at using the exercise machines, such as the treadmill, hand bike, static bike and cross trainer. For a student who can find it difficult to join in a team sport as fully as he would like to, being introduced to the gym has not only given him confidence in asking questions but has also introduced him to a type of exercise that he can potentially continue to use outside of school and into adult life as a real asset to his physical, mental and emotional wellbeing.

H. Stanley (Class T.A.)