Mission Statement
The William Ransom School aims to provide all its pupils with the highest possible educational opportunities. We believe that the best education is the entitlement of every child and this is realised at this School within a structured, disciplined, caring and safe environment where expectations are high.
Philosophy
At The William Ransom School, we believe that PE should promote a healthy lifestyle by being physically active. We feel that it is important that our children are able to appreciate the long term benefits of regular exercise and can thus make informed decisions about adopting a healthy attitude and interest in a variety of sports. We encourage the children to engage in a range of activities which will develop cardiovascular health, flexibility, stamina, muscular strength and co-ordination through curriculum provision of 120 minutes per week for every class, a variety of extra curricular sport and opportunity for competitive sport. (See guidelines).
Emphasis is placed on social development and ‘lessons for life’, such as good sportsmanship, self discipline and playing within a set of rules. We are also committed to fostering a positive attitude towards competition as individuals, team members and spectators and therefore the school enters most of the inter-school sporting competitions on offer. In addition to this, intra-school competition is offered to all children in the form of end of unit, class competition, inter-House competitions for Key Stage 2 pupils and regular Key Stage 1 inter-class sports competitions.
Safety of pupils is of paramount importance (see guidelines) and as such relevant safety practices are taught and updated as appropriate.
Aims
Our aims in PE are:
• develop competence to excel in a broad range of physical activities
• are physically active for sustained periods of time
• engage in competitive sports and activities to learn good sporting behaviour
• lead healthy, active lives
• To foster an interest in and an enjoyment of a variety of sports as a participant within his/her physical capability and as a spectator.
• To develop social interaction, co-operation and self-discipline.
• To ensure safe practice.
Aims to be achieved by:
In order to achieve the aims listed above we provide a minimum of 2 hours of curriculum PE per week in which all children will engage in a variety of activities to include games, gymnastic activities, athletics, outdoor and adventurous, and dance in both key stages in addition to swimming at Key Stage 2. All PE in curriculum time is taught by the class teachers with external teachers employed externally at Hitchin swimming pool.
A good range of equipment is used and activities are conducted both indoors and outdoors where appropriate. Teachers organise a range of opportunities and teach the necessary skills, offering guidance, demonstration and the chance for children to learn, practise and extend skills, experiment and evaluate their own work as individuals and within a group context.
We have an ‘active playground’ with sports leaders (Year 5 pupils) trained to deliver organised sporting activities for the younger children and permanent play equipment installed on the grounds to encourage independent play and exploration.
An excellent range of extra curricular sport is offered to both key stages by staff and external coaches including:
• Football, netball, hockey, lacrosse, tag rugby, badminton, tennis, table tennis, speed stacking, Paralympic sports, cricket, rounders, multi-sports.
Intra-school competitions are organised. These take the form of ‘House’ competitions for Key Stage 2 pupils in football, netball and rounders to allow more children access to competitive sport. Intra-class competitions take place at the end of PE units. Key Stage 1 has an indoor athletics competition in the autumn and summer term and multisports in the spring term.
A competitive Sports day is held annually for both key stages.
Access
All children are given equal opportunity to develop their capability within PE. This means appropriate differentiation between individuals, whether according to gender, race or special physical needs. Additional adult support is also provided for children with special needs as necessary.
Pupils who are unable to actively participate in a PE lesson due to a short term problem are given non-participant duties, such as photography and peer assessment in order to access the lesson at some level.
Club links are actively sought in order to extend gifted and talented pupils.
Assessment
Assessment for Learning is an integral part of the process of teaching and learning and an on-going process. Teaching continuously involves teachers in assessing pupils needs and attainment through direct observation and using the PE Attainment Target Level Descriptors or against the lesson’s objectives.
This observation occurs in:
• Mixed ability groups
• Mixed sex groups Individual activities
Assessment strategies used include:
• Problem-solving
• Differentiated tasks and outcomes including clear target-setting and evaluation (verbal and written)
• Individual, pairs, whole group, small group
• Self-review
• Peer evaluation using ‘pupil-friendly’ statements
• Reciprocal teaching
Allocation of Funding
The School purchases PE equipment according to needs. Funds are allocated through the school budget and equipment is also purchased through the Sainsbury’s and Tesco voucher schemes. Sponsorship for equipment and kit has been sought from organisations such as The Football Foundation. Development of new sports as identified by the PE coordinators is dependent on availability and allocation of funding.
Sport Premium Funding
Due to the Olympic legacy the government has allocated funding for all primary schools until 2016. Funds must be spent to impact pupil participation and attainment in PE. As a result the school has committed funding to staff development, employment of a Sports Apprentice, membership to the North Herts School Sports Partnership, curriculum enrichment with new sports initiatives and equipment.
Staff Development
Staff are encouraged to develop their PE skills through consultation with the PE
co-ordinators and external coaches and attendance on relevant courses are encouraged if they are financially viable.
Curriculum Evaluation
The curriculum map is reviewed annually to ensure that all children are exposed to a variety of different sports across the key stages to enrich their PE experience.
Last Review: Spring 2014
Next review: Spring 2017