PE at key stages 3 and 4    (Year 6/7)

• Engage pupils in learning mainly through physical activity in every lesson.
• In most lessons, warm-up activities should help pupils to remember what they did in the last lesson, and prepare them for what they will learn next. Lessons should end with a calming activity.
• Give pupils different stimuli, including music, photographs, poetry, text, and videos of newsreels, shows and musicals from a chosen era. Include any dance crazes and music that pupils may already have experienced, eg bhangra, line dancing.
• Give pupils enough time to practise and develop their movements and ideas. They should have opportunities to talk about, explore and play with dance and movement ideas. Pupils should be given the opportunity to note down ideas and sequences, perhaps in a working log.
• Give pupils opportunities to choose whom they want to work with and to adapt partner work, depending on whether they are working with a boy or a girl.
• Make sure pupils have the opportunity to watch and talk about examples of professional dance.
• Give pupils specific guidance on what to do and how to do it, as well as general feedback and praise. Make sure you give them information that they can use to improve the quality of their performance.
• The pupils could use databases with visual images as stimuli for dances. They could research dance crazes on CD-ROMs and on the internet, using contents, index, glossary, key words, hotlinks, etc.
• It would be possible to produce an end-of-unit video or presentation of all the dances studied. Give pupils opportunities to contribute to narration and costume design.

Safety

• Are pupils wearing footwear that is appropriate for high-impact work?
• Are pupils comfortable in their clothing and is it suitable for the activity?
• Is the space safe and clear enough to work in?
• Have pupils all warmed up and cooled down?