Physical Education, School and Daily Physical Activity are uniquely placed to assist ALL children in their development towards adulthood, providing them with a great number of skills essential to being a valuable and contributing member of society.   Through a rich, high quality curriculum, children learn as many personal, emotional skills as they do physical ones.  As such the curriculum that we deliver places these personal qualities at the centre of our provision, which together with our partner secondary schools, will enable every child to become a successful adult in which ever field they choose to pursue.

AIMS
The national curriculum for physical education aims to ensure that all pupils:

• develop competence in a broad range of physical activities
• have a positive attitude to being physically active for sustained periods of time
• engage in a variety of competitive sports and activities
• lead healthy, active lives

Of all these overarching aims, competence stands as the primary goal, as without competence the other three aims become very hard to achieve. Competence in physical activity entails high quality fundamental motor skills, understanding of rules and strategies and healthy participation which are developed through application of personal, social, cognitive, physical, creative skills and health and fitness. 

Through being competent in all the above areas pupils will be more positive towards sustained activity, have a desire and maturity to be able to engage/compete and ultimately continue to make lifelong active and healthy lifestyle choices.  Along the way pupils will use and develop many key personal developmental qualities that are vital in all areas of life.

In order to achieve the aims of our broad and balanced curriculum, personal social skills are placed at the heart of the offer interlinking physical learning and personal development ensuring that all children have a high level of competency in both. Physical Activity and sport is uniquely placed to promote and develop personal qualities that are essential for all learning both in the classroom and beyond.  Equally, these qualities are essential in ensuring pupils have full participants in many physical activities.   The ability to continue running to the end of the race is hard without determination and resilience. 

Declarative and Procedural knowledge form the basis of all learning in PE.  These forms of knowledge are seen as ‘two sides of a coin’.  Declarative knowledge in PE is the factual knowledge (knowing what) concerning movement, rules, tactics, strategies, health and participation, explicitly linked to the content being taught whilst Procedural knowledge can be viewed as the application of knowledge learnt (knowing how).  This might include applying the tactics to a practice situation or modified game.   All procedural knowledge begins as declarative knowledge and therefore pupils are explicitly taught what the links are between their declarative and procedural knowledge.

Pupils begin their Physical Education lessons learning the Fundamental Movement Skills that form the basis for all physical activities.  Fundamental movement skills (FMS) are crucial in establishing and maintaining physically active lives both across a broad range of activities and in the long term. 

They include;   

• locomotor skills, for example running and jumping
• manipulation skills, such as throwing and catching
• stability skills, for example twisting and balancing

As a result of the Primary PE curriculum children leave DMAT primary schools, and ultimately all schools, competent and exposed to a number of different physical activities, with greater fundamental control over their movements, an enthusiasm and motivation for all forms of physical activity as well as a desire to be healthy and will continue to participate in some form of physical activity throughout their time at secondary school and into adulthood. 

However, more importantly, ALL children will possess the personal qualities necessary to succeed in any field.   Tracking and recording of children’s progress through both their primary and secondary education illustrates the effectiveness of this curriculum, as well as the level of engagement of children in physical activities both formal and informal activities, in school and within their communities.

School assess pupils, formatively and summatively,  in a variety of ways in order to identify areas of need in order to plan next steps.  Some methods of assess could include;

• observation at different times (not solely in formal lessons),  
• discussions with pupils to gain their ‘voice’
• registers tracking attendance at school events
• registers of  after-school clubs
• registers community clubs and activities
• activity diaries
• termly fundamental movement tests
• spreadsheets of skills (swimming specific)

As a result of our PE curriculum children will leave primary education competent in a range of different physical activities, with greater fundamental control over their movements, an enthusiasm and motivation for all forms of physical activity as well as a desire to be healthy and a will continue to participate in some form of physical activity throughout their time at secondary school and into adulthood. 

More importantly, ALL children will obtain the personal qualities, of perseverance, resilience, courage, determination, creativity, co-operation and communication skills necessary to succeed in any field.   Tracking and recording of children’s progress through both their primary and secondary education will illustrate the effectiveness of this curriculum.