Skipping Workshop
Connor Downs Primary School are doing some focused work on increasing physical activity levels for the whole school. One aspect was to look at introducing and increasing enthusiasm for inexpensive, fun activities. Jean Pollard, Healthy Schools Co-ordinator at Connor Downs, decided to promote skipping and arranged workshops for the whole school which Aimee from the Cornwall Healthy Schools Team ran within the school with support from staff. Here is Jean's report of the day.
Connor Downs Skips
One aspect of our Healthy School Plus programme is to involve all the school (adults as well!) in an inexpensive and ‘fun’ physical activity …….. skipping!! On Tuesday 6th October, we did just that. The whole school took it in turns to work with Aimee and myself ….. the results were outstanding …… from the Reception children learning to jump over a rope on the ground to parents revisiting a lost youth!! Don’t be put off by thinking the Year 6 boys won’t want to take part … they enjoyed the challenges of long rope skipping just as much as the girls! Obviously, the most rewarding part of the day was to see children managing to skip for the first time, lots of happy, sweaty children left the hall (it rained!) feeling very pleased with themselves.
“I didn’t think I could do it but when I tried I was really good.”
James Class 3
“My hair got sweaty and sticking up!”
Ollie Class 1
Before the event, all the classes did a survey for me ….. I will repeat the survey after 2/3 weeks and then again in another few weeks ……. comparing the results to see if our whole school input has had a lasting effect on the children. To encourage the children to skip each day, we are sectioning off part of our playground to allow the ‘skippers’ a bit of space at lunch times. I have also offered the parents an opportunity to buy a skipping rope from the British Heart Foundation and the school will pay £1 toward each rope from our Healthy School budget.
Happy skipping!
Jean Pollard (Connor Downs Primary School)
