Physical Development

Intent

By the end of Reception all children can; begin to move confidently with the seven fundamental movement skills; running, jumping, coordination, throwing, catching, kicking, striking.

Using a balance bike children can run along whilst seated, push off the ground to create forward movement and use a combination of their feet and hand operated brake to slow and stop safely.

Children can use tools effectively to create a desired effect.

Use a pencil to write letters which are correctly formed and can be recognised by others.

Understand how to stay safe and healthy; including learning about a good sleep routine, the importance of exercise and hydration, sensible amounts of screen time, oral hygiene, learning about a healthy diet and why it is important to be a safe pedestrian.

Implementation

Opportunities for physical development are woven throughout our learning environment, particularly in the outdoors. Adults working in Reception understand the importance of encouraging children to make large scale movements and building core strength, and know how they can help children to build these muscles with resources within our environment. In the Autumn term children complete the Balanceability program.

We follow the ‘dough disco’ and ‘fizzy’ program to help the children build muscle and strength. We follow the handwriting scheme ‘letter join’, and have discrete handwriting sessions to help children learn how to form the letters correctly. In our workshop area we gradually increase the level of challenge by adding new tools and media throughout the year.

Each half-term we look at ways to stay healthy and safe, these are often explored through our circle time sessions.

Impact

Our children make steady progress with their physical development. The outdoor environment allows children to develop their core muscles which is the basis of all other movements. Our drawing club books show development in fine motor skills, and the children are able to confidently talk about the different ways we can ‘be healthy’. 81% of our cohort reached a good level of development in physical development last year.

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