Curriculum Overview

Physical Education is a core part of our student’s education. It is taught with the whole child in mind; their physical, emotional and mental wellbeing is explored at every opportunity. Through innovation and holistic teaching methods, students are encouraged to take risk in trying new things in a safe environment and encouraged to use peer coaching to deliver feedback, strengthening their social skills. Sport enables each and every child to gain confidence, explore their curiosity and develops problem solving skills. Every lesson is a celebration of achievement regardless of ability; inspiring our learners to push themselves to reach their full potential.

With Physical Education, every opportunity shapes a life by:   

Develop values - Here at Western House Academy, we pride ourselves on our inclusive P.E. curriculum; ensuring each lesson has considered the pupil’s age, physical development, attainment, gender, ethnicity and special educational needs to ensure the learning environment and experiences enable each pupil to fulfil their potential. 

Develop knowledge - At Western House Academy we build a high quality P.E. curriculum that inspires all pupils to develop their knowledge, skills and understanding, so that they can perform with increasing confidence and competence in a range of physical education.

Equality- Physical Education aims to shape each students life at Western House by enabling them to build their developmental character by undertaking experiences through active pursuits, competitions and lessons as part of the PE curriculum. Throughout P.E. we work on equality and making sure all children have equal opportunities to succeed.  We develop our students character and every opportunity prepares our students for their futures- socially, academically, emotionally and though building meta-cognition, championing the ‘Western House Way.’

Develop and provide experiences in learning - We aim to ensure all pupils enjoy and are engaged in a positive and active healthy lifestyle. As part of our provision, Western House Academy strives to both provide learning experiences within our curriculum and widen the breadth of learning. We do this through our extensive extra-curricular clubs and learning outside the classroom opportunities including both residential and day trips.  

In Western House Academy the Physical Education Curriculum is organised to develop knowledge and skills in the following way:

Here at Western House Academy, the purpose and direction of Physical Education experience is that we develop fundamental movement skills, physical confidence and competence. We allow the pupils to develop their evaluation skills by self and peer assessments throughout lessons.  The pupils are given the opportunity to develop tactics and compositional ideas within invasion games.  Their is a specific focus of continuity, allowing the pupils the chance of repetition and consolidation of essential elements within physical activities. This allows the pupils to:

• Develop basic skills and body control required in different areas of activity e.g. sending and receiving in games activities, body tension and extension in gymnastics, rhythmical movements and expression in dance.

• Linking movements together e.g. series of actions into a sequence, dance phrase, travel and pass the ball.

• Rules and procedures for safe activity e.g. handling apparatus, water safety

• Preparation and recovery from exercise

• Using evaluation information to improve performance

Progression is a key part within each Physical Education lesson which is based on providing the pupils with a progressively challenging but realistic learning experience, which reflect their physical, social, cognitive and emotional stage of development.

The teaching and learning strategies used within P.E. reflects our school values, teacher/pupil expectations, activity specific differences and safety issues. Pupils are involved in performing, selecting and applying, evaluating and using information to improve performance and developing their understanding of fitness and health. We use open tasks which provide pupils with the opportunity to explore, create and solve problems alongside practice type tasks which enables the pupils to develop and refine specific skills. The observation and evaluation tasks allow the pupils to develop their knowledge and understanding of what makes an effective performance and use the information to improve. Through these teaching and learning strategies, the Physical Education department have embedded retrieval practice from both short and long term periods (last lesson/last topic). Teachers model and explain new skills and learning throughout every lesson as well as scaffolding learning tasks. Pupils are then given the opportunity both individually as well as in groups to practice and consolidate new learning.

 In line with Western House Academy’s ethos and whole school values, the Physical Education department has embedded opportunities for SMSC development. As a department, pupils are encouraged to understand and model the difference between right and wrong, establish trust and enable themselves and others to follow rules and expectations that are not only used in sport but in society building responsible citizens. Through high expectations, pupils learn in an environment where collaboration, communication, commitment and responsibility is truly celebrated.