Primary School Athletics Key Stage 2

by Val Sabin

This comprehensive and user-friendly manual is aimed at developing children’s all-round physical and athletic fluency through a wide range of enjoyable and stimulating activities and challenges based on the core actions of walking, running, jumping and throwing.

These activities and challenges are suitable, for all children either as they are written, or slightly adapted for different needs. They are intended to stimulate interest and boost self-esteem. They shift the emphasis from always making judgements about winning or losing, to setting and achieving goals for the improvement of personal or team performances. This stimulates interest in athletics, makes lessons more physically active, and retains the competitive element in a positive way. Children instantly recognise when improvements have been made, and indeed, they are clearly visible and can be recorded.

Children are encouraged to explore and develop:

Running :-

1. Starting positions; running over different distances and obstacles; team running; methods of passing the baton; understand how technique, rhythm and stride pattern can affect performance.

Jumping :-

1. The five basic take-off and landing combinations; understand how each type of jump is appropriate for different athletic events; recognise how jumping high, jumping long or with a combination of jumps can be improved through the development of technique and use of run-up.

Throwing :-

1. A range of throwing actions fling, pull, push and heave; use a variety of softer, lighter, smaller or adapted equipment; understand how each type of throw is then developed into a specific athletic event; recognise how accuracy and distance can be increased through the development of throwing technique.

This teaching manual follows the same comprehensive and detailed format of the Primary School Gymnastics, Games and Dance manuals. It follows the same structure of the teaching guide, detailed teaching material in units of work, and skill development and challenges in the Appendix. In common with all the other Val Sabin manuals, it follows National Curriculum requirements, links with Q.C.A guidance and outcomes and develops the four strands - acquiring and developing skills, selecting and applying skills, tactics and compositional ideas, evaluating and improving performance, and knowledge and understanding of fitness and health.

The teaching guide :-

Section 1

1. gives advice on how best to use the manual and its wider resources.
2. addresses the safety issues involved in teaching Athletics.
3. identifies a range of organisational strategies for safe practice and maximum participation.
4. presents questions and answers to help children understand why they need to warm-up and cool-down and the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.

Section 2

1. clarifies the expected minimum standards of performance.
2. provides several self and peer assessment sheets
3. identifies teacher assessment and recording sheets for years 1 & 2, years 3 & 4, and years 5 & 6.

TEACHING MATERIAL

The teaching material is very user-friendly and is presented in detailed units of work and lesson plans for teachers to use according to their level of experience and confidence and contains:-

1. the long term planning of the complete scheme over Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2
2. the medium term planning for each unit identifying learning objectives, unit framework and expected learning outcomes.
3. the short term planning which comprises the detailed lesson plans.
4. athletic event planning at the end of each year group complete with recording sheets i.e. competition ‘A’ for teams and competition ‘B’ for individuals

Every unit contains a balanced coverage of running, throwing and jumping activities.

The Appendix

The Appendix is a comprehensive section of additional material.

Section 1 Warming up activities

1. Joint mobilisation exercises.
2. Pulse-raisers and problem-solving activities for interesting additional warm-ups in Key Stage 2.
3. "Alphabetashapes" and "Alphabetapairs" which can be used in interesting ways to stretch and mobilise or cool-down.

Section 2 Core principles, skill development and challenges

1. A collection of over 180 cards for core principles, skill development and challenges which are used and absorbed into the progressive and developmental scheme and organised into athletic areas for easy access.

In this section they are available in categories in the Appendix for extension work or to encourage independent learning.

All the activities in the manual are tried, tested and proven to work, both for developing and maintaining interest, enthusiasm and self-esteem, and for improving athletic performance in a positive way.