P.E. in schools has become an important issue in the fight against obesity, physical inactivity and maintenance of general health. Research has shown physical inactivity has become a major health concern today.
Physical inactivity is strongly associated with increased obesity, adolescent metabolic syndrome, and risk of cardiovascular diseases. Children who engage in regular physical activity have a better mental and physical wellbeing, including reduced risk of cardiovascular diseases, preventing childhood obesity, improved bone density, social development, decreased feelings of depression, and improved cognitive performance.
Despite the positive effects associated with physical activity observed in the last 20 years of research, physical activity has declined significantly among children.
Current data from the World Health Organization indicates that many children do not meet the current recommendations of 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity daily, therefore suggesting that a substantial proportion of children worldwide can be considered as physically inactive.
In addition to this, the recent UK Chief Medical Officers Physical Activity Guidelines in September 2019 suggest that increasing physical strength throughout childhood, through a variety of physical activity, has huge health benefits later in life.
The most commonly anticipated effect of being exposed to P.E. at a young age is socialization into physical activity, with a consequent increase in physical activity as an adult.
However recent research has found that children had varying understandings of the connections between their participation in physical education and physical activity. This highlights the importance of supporting all children to make explicit connections between their learning in physical education and their wider physical activity participation.
The National Curriculum in England for P.E. states how in KS2 pupils should play competitive games. Physical Foundations see the benefit of introducing sport-specific skills in early childhood development. Our specialist curriculum aims to maximise physical literacy, long-term athletic development, follow health-based P.E. models, develop strong social and psychological skills and build a wide range sporting repertoire.
Our curriculum is based on existing research in childhood development and accommodates physical, social and psychological development. We use underpinning concepts as the foundation for learning and link these pillars with key elements of sport and physical activity.
We have designed a holistic curriculum supporting the cognitive and physical development for children across primary school. Our philosophy is simply to engage children in physical activity to then live physically literate and sustainable physically active lives.
