Have a go!

To familiarize the children with this year’s National Schools Sports Week (29 June-3 July) and to encourage them to get involved with something new.

by Rebecca Parkinson

Suitable for Whole School (Pri)

Aims

To familiarize the children with this year’s National Schools Sports Week (29 June–3 July) and to encourage them to get involved with something new.

Preparation and materials

• You will need a selection of photographs of children taking part in a variety of PE activities throughout the school. If possible use the interactive whiteboard to display the pictures as the children come into assembly.

• A variety of sports equipment, e.g. tennis racket, football, skipping rope, hula hoop, trainers.
• Ask a few children who play a sport outside school hours to bring in clothes or equipment to do with that activity, to show to the assembly and perhaps demonstrate, e.g. some may do ballet or other form of dance, or go to karate classes, or play golf – the more diverse the better!

Assembly

1. Ask the children to identify the different sports being shown on the screen. Ask how many of them like sport and how many of them do sport outside school. Point out that sport takes all kinds of different forms. Running is a sport, as is walking, skipping, swimming, etc.
2. Introduce the children you have asked to talk about the sport they do outside school. Give the children time to talk about their sport and demonstrate, and allow the other children to ask questions.
3. Explain to the children that sport isn’t only about going to clubs or playing team games. You can exercise on your own at home or in the playground. Show the selection of equipment. Maybe set the children a challenge to see who can think up a new game using this kind of equipment that could be introduced to the other children at the end of the week.
4. Tell the children that this week is National Schools Sports Week. Explain that schools all over the country will be focusing on the importance of sport during that week. The aim of the week is to encourage schools to celebrate the sport they already do and to encourage children to try one new physical activity during that week … (in the hope they may continue with it!).
   
   The National Schools Sports Week organizers suggest that during this special week the children make a pledge to do one thing that is different from their normal sporting activity. Their ideas for possible pledges are:
   
   • To carry out an extra hour of practice in the weeks before, during and after the National Schools Sports Week.
   • To learn how to play an Olympic or Paralympic sport, e.g. volleyball.
   • To learn about a country that takes part in the Olympic or Paralympic games and present it to the class.
   • To dance, or perform in some way, in a concert at the end of National Schools Sports Week (e.g. hula hooping, skipping, karate).
   • To run a competition for another class where the awards would be for fair play.
5. Remind the children that God has made us all different, with different skills and abilities. However, there is some kind of sport that every person can find enjoyment in! Sport isn’t something that can only be enjoyed by those who are very good at it.

Time for reflection

Let us say together the prayer that Jesus taught us: The Lord’s Prayer.

In this prayer we are reminded about forgiveness: ‘Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.’

This means that when we do something wrong we should ask for forgiveness and we should learn to forgive others when they do things that upset us.

Song/music

‘Lord of the dance’ (Come and Praise, 22)