By Lee Molland, Junior School PE and Sport Lead
At Sidcot Junior School, we encourage every pupil to focus on their personal best. In PE, this means that, while we promote healthy competition, we ask students to primarily focus on being the best they can be by continuously competing with their previous performances and striving to improve. Whilst we hope children leave us in J6 with a will and desire to win, we also know that the scoreline of an individual match does not define how successful they have been. We measure the success and progress of our students on the sports pitch by how happy and resilient our children are. We aim to instil a lifelong love of being physically active and hope that the value of being the best you can be stays with our pupils throughout their Senior School adventure and beyond.
Our Philosophy
Physical education is more than just sports; it's essential for holistic development and confidence, and can be the moments that children remember throughout their lives. Social connection and being part of a team can make lifelong friendships; do it well, and children grow in confidence and self-esteem. Our PE curriculum is strategically designed for continuous growth, introducing new skills and sports at key developmental stages. We focus on physical skills as well as softer, holistic skills, such as social, physical, creative and cognitive ideas.
Understanding Fundamental Movement Skills
Fundamental Movement Skills are the basic building blocks of movement that children need to enjoy and succeed in physical activity. These include skills such as running, jumping, catching, throwing, balancing, and kicking. Just as learning letters and sounds helps children become confident readers, developing these movement skills helps them feel capable and enthusiastic about being active.
Together, these skills form what is known as physical literacy—the confidence, competence, and motivation to move. When children build strong physical literacy at a young age, they are more likely to participate in sport, stay active, and develop healthy habits that last a lifetime (our ultimate goal). In School, we support this through fun, inclusive activities designed to help every child grow, explore movement, and enjoy being active.
Foundation: The Early Years (Reception - Year 2)
At this age, our focus is Fundamental Movement Skills (FMS). Learning to share and take turns. Early involvement with balls and varying equipment.
This stage is about building an early love of running, jumping, throwing, catching, balancing, and agility. It is an introduction to movement through fun, accessible games and simple, low-pressure activities that build body awareness and spatial reasoning, as well as strength and coordination through gymnastics. We are developing physical literacy and coordination in readiness for KS2.
Building Skills: Team & Individual Sports (Years 3 - 4)
As our pupils move into Year 3, we aim to apply fundamental movements and physical literacy to sport specific situations such as football, hockey, rugby, netball, cricket and athletics. As they progress, PE introduces core team and individual sports. This is where basic rules and specialised techniques are taught, promoting a broad range of sports and opportunities to help children identify what they like and what they are good at.
Specialisation & Application: Preparing for Senior School (Years 5 – 6)
At this age, our focus is strategy, thinking, tactical play, and complex team dynamics. PE shifts to preparing students for competitive play whilst ensuring values of personal best remain at the heart of what they do. Emphasis on roles, teamwork, leadership, and adapting to new rules. We prepare the children to move into the Senior School, competent and confident to access Year 7 PE with a happiness to go with it. We aim to foster strategic thinkers, effective communicators, and physically resilient individuals.
Our Ultimate Goal: A Lifelong Love of Movement
Ultimately, our philosophy at Sidcot Junior School is simple: Physical Education is a journey of personal growth, not just a race for victory. The takeaway is not victory in a match, but the intrinsic motivation to stay active and the powerful character trait of always striving for one's own optimal performance. The success of our PE programme is therefore measured in happy, resilient children who are equipped with a lifelong confidence and desire to move, which we are pleased to see occur year after year.