In St. John’s N.S. we understand the importance of providing pupils with plenty of opportunities to be active. Every teacher ensures that all classes are provided with at least 60 minutes of PE every week.
PE is regularly discussed at staff meetings to ensure we are providing the best possible opportunities for our pupils.
All classes are taught Athletics, Dance, Gymnastics, Games and Outdoor and Adventure every year. This year 1st class – 4th class covered the Aquatics strand during September and October. They had swimming lessons in Clondalkin Leisure Centre. Junior and senior infants completed the Land PAWS water safety programme as part of the Aquatics strand.
We ensure that all our PE lessons are accessible to all pupils and lessons are adapted and differentiated as necessary.
All teachers follow a 2-year whole school PE plan. We allocate a balanced amount of teaching time to each of the strands and all classes cover the same strands at the same time. We prioritise a fundamental movement skill (FMS) from the Move Well, Move Often programme for further development each month.
This year we collaborated to strengthen the delivery of the games strand. Each teacher taught their class a selection of playground games. This added to the variety of options for physical activity during breaktime.
All teachers use the PSSI lesson plans and Move Well Move Often resources to guide their delivery of the PE curriculum.
Mrs. Sharkey, Mrs. Stanley and Mr. Beckett engaged with PE-focused CPD in the summer and during the current school year. New ideas and resources were shared with staff members.
We consider PE to be an integral part of every child's education. We discuss PE with parents at PT meetings and information is included in progress reports and end of year reports.
Active homework is posted on Class Dojo at the beginning of each week. The assigned activity relates to the PE strand being covered in school at that time. This homework can be completed at any stage during the week.
We are very fortunate to have a huge variety of PE equipment and resources in our storeroom. This is regularly updated thanks to the generosity of the school PTA and Board of Management.
