P.E and Outdoor Activities

PE at St Mary’s provides pupils with opportunities to gain fundamental motor skills, compete in sporting activities and enables them to become physically confident. This starts in the Early Years through activities that are integral to the Early Years Curriculum developing their fine motor and gross motor skills. At this stage we aim to teach children to master basic movements -running, jumping, throwing and catching and begin to apply these to a range of activities. This is built on in KS1 and KS2.

We strive to deliver high-quality physical education which enables children to develop physical fitness and contributes to their mental wellbeing through a balanced and embedded PE curriculum. All learners follow a programme which develops core areas of the PE curriculum. This scheme is called PE Passport and allows a planned progression of skill development, activities and experiences.  Games, gymnastics and dance form part of the P.E. experiences for the children. In Key Stage 2, the children receive swimming instruction. Our pupils revisit a core of skills not only each year but also from sport to sport.  These include the ability to throw, catch, outwit, evade, fitness (knowledge and use of fitness).

In the Early Years children receive Balance- ability sessions each week from an external provider. This has seen great success, with most children being able to independently pedal a bike at the end of these sessions.

From reception class through to Y6 school delivers high quality gymnastic coaching sessions. An experienced gymnastics coach works alongside staff developing their skills and designing a progressive gymnastics curriculum. This has led to great skill development of both staff and children and a great enthusiasm among the children, some of whom have joined the local gymnastics club.

We provide children with a range of physical activities so that they can utilise transferable skills using traditional sports as a basis. We offer a range of extra-curricular sporting activities to enrich our curriculum and equip children with the necessary skills to enter compete in local school Games and Catholic Partnership events. We believe competing in sport builds character and helps to embed values and learner attributes such as determination, passion, honesty, self-belief, teamwork and respect.

St Mary’s has a tradition of competitive sports and will continue to do so, as we believe that all children should experience a competitive environment when they are ready. We encourage inter class sports so that children can experience competition at their own level.

St Mary’s the Mount is committed to fulfilling the National Curriculum's expectations that all children leave primary education being able to swim at least 25m safely and confidently, using a range of strokes and techniques.

All KS2 will be given the opportunity to undertake swimming lessons this year.

During the summer term, St Mary’s is undertaking a Pop Up Pool initiative, where a pool will be constructed on our playground. This will enable a greater number of pupils (Y3,Y4,Y5 and Y6) to access swimming lessons: previously, year groups would have to walk all of the way into Walsall to use the Gala baths, one class per term. This limited the number of classes and students that could undertake these lessons. This new approach will require an initial monetary outlay; however, long term it will be more cost effective.

Although the school is committed to ensuring that children receive the highest possible chance of success, we encourage all parents to utilise their local swimming centres to help with their child's progress in swimming safely and confidently.