As a PE teacher, I know young people can need extra motivation to get involved in outdoor games, especially in poor weather. When it’s cold you need to keep them moving, which in itself is good for their cardiovascular fitness. I’ve devised a simple set of workcards based on imaginary games.
Teams are selected in the changing rooms and each team is given a scene-setting workcard. For example: “Your team is playing in a two-leg European football tie. You have won the first leg 2-0 and are now playing in the second leg away from home. Decide on the formation your team will employ and the kind of tactics you will try to adopt.”
In the changing room, the team can plan their own warm-up and negotiate team positions and tactics. It is also possible for them to elect coaches, which brings other skills into play, such as leadership. The young people respond well to this additional imaginative dimension to their sports.
Alan Lloyd, head of boys’ PE, Darland School, Wrexham