Pre-Prep Sports Activity Day

The beautiful Walled Garden hosted the annual Pre-Prep Sports Activity Day this week, with plenty of energy being shown and fun being had by all. It was a brilliant opportunity for the Pre-Prep children to enjoy a range of fun physical activities and take part in some gentle competition, all with their parents and teachers cheering them on and with the May sunshine finally showing itself! It also served as a great reminder of the many benefits that physical activity and physical literacy provide for the children.

Stepping Stones and Reception began the day by performing a song to their parents, before breaking off into groups to take part in a fun carousel of activities which included everything from obstacle courses to beanbag carrying.

After a short break, Year 1 and 2 paraded in their houses out into the Walled Garden before they also performed a song to parents and teachers. It was then time for their carousel of activities, which were made a little more challenging for the older children. These included hockey and lacrosse dribbles, football kicks and running races with the house relay race capping things off before parents and children enjoyed picnic lunches together.

Throughout the whole morning, and across both year groups, the children’s willingness to try their hardest, to be enthusiastic and to support each other was obvious. A group of Year 6 pupils from the Prep – some of whom would have participated in past Sports Activity Days when they were at the Prep – were there throughout to help and support their younger peers. The morning also showed the progression of the children’s physical skills over the course of their time at Pre-Prep, and highlighted the benefits of physical activity, physical literacy, and the Motor Movers programme.

Physical activity at school is important because it helps to improve children’s overall health and fitness and aids their mental health and cognitive development, meaning children are more likely to concentrate and maintain focus in lessons.

Physical activity sits alongside physical literacy as an important part of life at Berkhamsted Pre-Prep.

In addition to events like the Sports Activity Day, children in Year 1 and 2 benefit from a varied PE curriculum, engaging in activities ranging from gymnastics and ball skills to invasion games and dance. All children in Year 1 and 2 also swim weekly throughout the school year, and have weekly tennis lessons promoting hand-eye coordination – key to core development in other curricular areas.

Meanwhile, Stepping Stones and Reception have been benefiting from the Motor Movers programme run by Mrs Cave, which was introduced in September 2021. Underpinned by the findings of Loughborough University’s Movement for Learning Project, the Motor Movers programme means that the children in EYFS (Stepping Stones and Reception) enjoy a fun 20 minute movement session with Mrs Cave each day.

The children follow a coherent schedule of movement-based songs, rhymes and stories designed to help provide a broad base of movement fundamentals and build up strength in the core muscles, hand-eye coordination, and balance, all while building confidence and having fun.

The first cohort to have started this programme are now coming to the end of their six terms. It has been very successful, with all children making great progress and laying firm foundations for their on-going PE journey at school.

These programmes, as well as events like the Sports Activity Day, really highlight the benefits of physical activity and physical activity for children. They also show how children at Berkhamsted Pre-Prep are being equipped with the foundations and skills that will hopefully result in a lifetime of engagement in physical activity.