MY PICTURE

PDHPE RATIONALE
THE IMPORTANCE OF PDHPE IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS
PDHPE RELATED STATISTICS
▪ According to the Australian Government’s Institute of Health and
Welfare (2018):
1. 26% of children aged between 5-14 are overweight or obese
2. 2.5% of children aged 5-14 eat enough fruit and vegetables
3. 10% of children aged between 4-12 are classified as having
abnormal social and emotional wellbeing in 2013-14
4. 39% of young people aged 15-24 drink high levels of alcohol
putting them at risk of harm
5. 14% of young adults aged 15-24 were daily smokers
 BENEFITS OF HEALTH
EDUCATION
▪ When children are taught from a young
age how to make healthy choices in their
lives (NESA, 2.12), they are more likely to
make informed decisions. This
information can include:
1. The affects of bullying on an individual.
2. The affects of smoking, on the
individual and people who are around
them.
3. The affects of alcohol on the individuals
body.
4. The affects of poor eating habits.
5. The affects of a lack of physical activity
on their lives.
BENEFITS OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
DURING SPORT
According to the Victorian Government (2015) some benefits
of physical activity during sport include:
▪ Lowering the risk of obesity
▪ Increases cardiovascular activity
▪ Bones, muscles, ligaments and tendons will grow healthier
▪ Improves the child's coordination and balance
▪ Improving their sleep
▪ There are mental health benefits, including confidence
▪ Gain higher social skills
▪ Improves the students personal skills, which include
cooperation and leadership
 GAME SENSE
What is Game Sense?
According to Pill (2014) ‘Game Sense’ (GS) was a term first used by Thorpe and West (1969) to emphasise a game-teaching
performance. GS is commonly known to emerge from sport coaching as it is designed to teach skills and techniques that
are needed for a sporting activity through games. Pill (2014) explains that GS includes a combination of performances
such as movement ability, athletic competency and tactical ability. ‘Teaching Games for Understand’ (TGfU) is a model that
is described by Bunker and Thorpe (1982), to be the emphasis on learning direct techniques before being contextualized,
to help students to understand the game.
Pedagogical GS approaches include (Pill, 2013):
▪ Designer and small-sided games
▪ Modifying games to represent ‘full ruled games’
▪ Modifying games including play practices and designer games to emphasise a particular skill or movement
▪ Convergent and divergent questioning initiated by the teacher for guided discovery and inquiry learning
▪ Lesson planning with ‘game first’ rather than ‘practice first’
▪ Grouping games in categories based on their principles of play and tactical problems for example, invasion,
striking/fielding, net/court and target games. This will enable teaching game concepts in relation to game category.
 FUNDAMENTAL MOVEMENT SKILLS
There has been an introduction of Fundamental Movement Skills (FMS), in physical activity
education, in schools. FMS could be implemented within the game sense pedagogical
approach, by incorporating the FMS into a lesson plan. FMS is describe by Jaakkola et al.
(2015), to be locomotor, manipulative and balance skills. Locomotor skills include
movement of the body through space for example; running, galloping, skipping, sliding,
leaping and hopping (Gallahue & Cleland-Donelly, 2007). Manipulative skills are consistent
of manipulating and projecting certain objects for example; bouncing, striking, throwing,
rolling, catching and kicking (Gallahue & Cleland-Donelly, 2007). Balance, subsequently,
refers to the body remaining in a place, while moving around its horizontal or vertical axis
and constitutes a process of maintaining stability in ones posture (Westcott et al., 1997).
 GAME SENSE AND TEACHING GAMES FOR UNDERSTANDING
Game Sense assists student in learning the skills for a particular game (GSS2.8, NESA, 2007).
This could help student’s who are not familiar with the game, engage in the physical activity,
rather than struggle. Game sense is a good way to modify games and rules to teach a
particular sporting activity allowing both emergent and advanced students to participate.
The modification of games assists in building the confidence, skills and techniques of
students who need to learn rules in a step by step procedure. Game sense and teaching
games for understanding allows students to have less instruction time and more physical
activity time. Consequently, students are playing smaller games, which build upon skills
needed to know for a sport. As a teacher, my goal is to have an inclusive classroom and
environment, giving everybody the opportunity to build upon their skills. Furthermore, GS
will assist in allowing students to engage in Indigenous games, to help them understand the
culture and traditions of the people of this land (FA. 1.1.4 APSfT, 2011).
HOW GAME SENSE WORKS
▪ Step 1: Students are given
short and precise instructions.
Step 1
▪ Step 2: Students are able to Short
precise
have more physical activity instructions
time by playing different small
games. Step 2
Students
▪ Step 3: These small games play games
assist the students in building Step 3
techniques and skills, that Students learn the
could be used for a sport. skills and
techniques
AN EXAMPLE OF GAME SENSE:
▪ Basketball modified games:
▪ Starter Games: Like captains coming but modified, Dribble the ball movement, shoot in the
hoop movement, run to the centre and run to the sideline. Teacher to call out, students to
do the action.
▪ Piggy in the middle type of games, 3 people teaching attack and defense
▪ Introduce dribbling with the piggy in the middle game.
▪ Four squares, 8 people, 4 attack and 4 defense, 2 in each square of the 4 squares
▪ Half the class on each half of the court, playing two separate games. Two teams, having to
scores goals in a goal, throwing to at least 4 people before they score and each person
must dribble the ball.
This would allow the students to build skills needed for an actual Basketball game.
REFERENCES:
• Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership. 2011. Australian Professional
Standards for Teachers. Funded by the Australian Government.
• Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. 2018. Children & Youth. Australian
Government.
• BetterHealth Channel. 2018. Sport and Children. State of Victoria.
• Bunker, D., & Thorpe, R. 1982. The Curriculum Model. Loughborough University of
Technology.
• Jaakkola, T., & Yli-Piipari, S., Huotari, P., Watt, A., & Liukkonen, J. 2015. Fundamental
movement skills and physical fitness as predictors of physical activity: A 6-year follow-
up study. Wiley Online Library.
• NSW Education Standards Authority. 2007. PDHPE K-10 Syllabus. Board of Studies
NSW.
• Pill, S. 2014. An appreciative inquiry exploring game sense teaching in physical
education. Sport, Education and Society, Volume 2, Issue 2.
• Thorpe, J., & West, C. 1969. Game Sense and Intelligence. Sage Journals.