The PE curriculum is designed to offer the best experience for all ability levels, and this is built around delivering a broad and balanced curriculum in an inclusive manner.
The rationale behind this, is that we want all students at Sheffield Springs Academy to think of themselves as lifelong participants in physical activity. Alongside this, developing an appreciation for sport as a social and physical platform. Within the PE curriculum, we also aim to develop transferable and leadership skills they can use throughout life.
As a PE department our intent is to deliver a knowledge rich curriculum as we believe that knowledge underpins and enables the development and application of skills and techniques. We identified the powerful knowledge our students need and assist them in recalling it by having a carefully planned curriculum that allows progression for all. In year 7 we offer a range of team and individual activities where skills and techniques are built upon to ensure the basics are in place to be able to contribute to the competitive element of the sport/activity. In year 8, we develop more advanced skills and techniques and introduce tactics, so students are able to participate effectively within the team or individual activity. In year 9, the emphasis changes to gameplay with skills, techniques and tactics being built upon and delivered through Sports Education, where appropriate. This develops the whole person looking at interpersonal skills and leadership through sport and activities.
At KS4, the course is taught according to the exam board content, which comprises of two internally assessed units. R185, which builds upon KS3 content in which the student needs to analyse their own performance considering skills, techniques and tactics. R187 introduces learners to Outdoor Adventurous Activities, which mirrors the delivery at KS3 where students learn basic skills and techniques and build on them to demonstrate competency. R184 is an externally assessed exam that contributes to 40% of the final grade which builds on knowledge delivered at the KS3 curriculum. Further rational behind our curriculum design includes 3 key strands of delivery; Fit to Lead, Fit to Perform and Fit for Life. This ensures that students are able to understand the importance and positive effects of exercise; and to be confident to participate in physical activity either as an individual or as part of a team. Pupils have prior knowledge to build upon content over time and develop and extend this from previous lesson sequences. The sequence alongside planning for misconceptions enables the students to learn new curriculum content. The lesson structure is embedded within all topics incorporating ‘Do Now’ for retrieval practice, ‘I Do’, for explicit teacher instruction, ‘We Do’, to develop student confidence and build in working memory followed by ‘You Do’, independent practice for students to consolidate learning and storing the long term memory.
Throughout our curriculum the intent is to develop a rounded student that considers their spiritual, moral, social and cultural growth with skills that will support them in later life.