PE Challenge 9 – Simple tweaks for Core PE
Over the next 8 weeks, every weekend, I (@ImSporticus) will offer you a challenge for the following week. These challenges will come from other teachers, researchers, academics and coaches and take on different formats. You can try one, try the ones you like, or try them all. The hope is that it will stimulate thought about your practice, your pupils understanding and their learning and potentially change them for the better.
PE Challenge No. 9: Simple tweaks for Core PE.
The challenges this week are simple but effective. The reason this post has broken the mould of ‘PE Challenge’ etiquette is because they link nicely together as a package rather than a single isolated challenge.
Tweak 1 – A test of changing room etiquette.
The point of this one is to see how many of your students meet and greet you as they walk into the changing room without you having to prompt a greeting from them first. A simple test to conduct to positively reinforce these good behaviours is to count how many say “hello Mr/Mrs/Sir/Miss” without you saying anything at all. This secret test result is then shared with the students once sat down, registers taken etc. by simply saying something along the lines of “the number today is 10 – figure out what I am talking about?”. 10 being to you the number of students who did or did not share a simple greeting and to them it is an unknown that you will share with them again before every lesson to see if they can crack the code! Once cracked the results are outstanding with an improvement in manners and an even more positive atmosphere than before. Social skills in life outside of the classroom?
SHARE – Do you have any changing room tips that are simple and effective? Leave a comment below or Tweet to @PE4Learning or @ImSporticus.
Tweak 2 – Power to the student.
The point of this one is (if possible and safe) to give more responsibility to the student in the changing room by encouraging them to offer more than just getting changed, wait for their name on the register and head out etc. We all know structure and routines help but why not encourage the students to be pro active and helpful if they are ready quicker than others by encouraging the following behaviours:
- Can the student take the register whilst others are getting ready?
- Encourage the student to gather any equipment ready if the store cupboard is close by or allocating roles such as ‘Cone Man’, ‘Bib Girl’.
- Encourage students to bib their team mates up when sitting waiting for the register to speed up game time if you run a ‘whole-part-whole’ lesson
- Embed a three part warm up format into your units through Sport Education roles. Remind the fitness coach to take the pulse raiser, the conditioning coach to take the dynamic stretches and the skills coach to run a small skill practice with their group once outside.
SHARE – Do you have any changing room Sport Education routines that are simple and effective? Leave a comment below or Tweet to @PE4Learning or @ImSporticus.
Tweak 3 – Recognise achievement and reward positive behaviours.
This is a simple one that works extremely well for us. Our students have a merits page in their school homework diary that we can stamp or sign when they have displayed positive behaviours in physical education. The picture below gives you an idea of its format and can be downloaded, printed and stuck into the student diary if you have not yet implemented such a system. The best part is what comes when they complete a section e.g. Bronze, Silver or Gold.
Once a student has completed a section they are sent a Positive Postcard home which is stamped and sent kindly by the office staff (picture below). We also recognise achievement in PE through displays and posters showcasing those who have achieved their Bronze, Silver or Gold Merits. Simply cut and past the students photo from SIMS or whole school registrations system and pop it into a pre-made Ultimate Trump template (image below). We then stick this up in the display cabinet in the changing rooms and also pop the image on our SLT approved PE Department Twitter account. We have kept this whole process as streamline as possible so it is manageable and sustainable with weekly CPD time set aside to complete this process.
Merit Ultimate Trump Cards
Displayed in the changing rooms as a card and on PE Department Twitter account as the image below with student name and year input before posting.
Shop – Get your own Ultimate Trump Achievement Cards here.
SHARE – Do you have any recognising achievement strategies that are simple and effective? Leave a comment below or Tweet to @PE4Learning or @ImSporticus.