At Ridgewood School, our Key Stage 3 Physical Education curriculum is designed to develop physically literate, confident and resilient young people who understand the value of movement and are prepared for lifelong participation in physical activity.

Rather than viewing Physical Education as a series of isolated sports, our curriculum is built around a carefully sequenced journey of fundamental movement themes. Students first develop the building blocks of movement before applying these skills across an increasingly broad range of sporting contexts and finally taking ownership of their learning through choice, tactical awareness and independent decision making.

Year 7 – Building the Foundations

Year 7 introduces students to the fundamental movement themes that underpin all physical activity. Through carefully sequenced units, students develop:

 

• Connect
• Body Control, Grappling, Balancing and Falling
• Kicking, Shooting and Aiming
• Throwing, Catching, Hitting and Aiming
• Movement and Locomotion, Jumping and Landing
• Rolling, Tumbling and Turning
• Spatial Awareness
• Creating and Responding
• Music in Motion (embedded throughout the curriculum)
• Maximal Effort

These themes are taught through a variety of engaging activities, enabling students to understand why movement matters and how skills transfer across different sports and everyday life. Alongside physical competence, students develop communication, leadership, resilience, responsibility and respect.

 

Year 8 – Applying Movement in Sport Contexts

During Year 8, students apply the movement foundations developed in Year 7 through a wide range of sports and physical activities including invasion games, net/wall games, striking and fielding, athletics, gymnastics, outdoor adventurous activities, motion to music, racket sports and fitness.

Students refine techniques, develop tactical understanding and recognise how movement skills transfer between different sporting contexts. The curriculum encourages students to become more reflective performers, applying movement intelligently whilst developing confidence, creativity and teamwork.

 

Year 9 – Choice, Application and Independence

Year 9 provides greater ownership of learning by allowing students to select activities from broad activity categories rather than individual sports. Students continue to develop the same movement themes whilst applying them independently through:

• Invasion Games
• Net/Wall Activities
• Striking and Fielding
• Athletics
• Gymnastics
• Motion to Music
• Outdoor Adventurous Activities
• Indoor Games

Students make informed decisions, adapt tactics, evaluate performance and identify personal strengths. This prepares them for Key Stage 4, where they begin to specialise and refine their performance in chosen activities.

 

Curriculum Principles

Our curriculum is underpinned by four key principles:

• Build movement before sport, ensuring every student develops strong physical foundations.
• Develop transferable skills, allowing students to succeed across a range of physical activities.
• Promote personal growth, developing leadership, communication, resilience, respect and responsibility alongside physical competence.
• Prepare students for lifelong participation, equipping them with the confidence, knowledge and motivation to remain physically active beyond school.

Through this progressive curriculum journey, students leave Key Stage 3 with the movement competence, tactical understanding and personal qualities needed to succeed in Key Stage 4, participate confidently in physical activity and lead healthy, active lives.

 

KS3 Assessment:

At Key Stage 3, assessment is designed to reflect the aims of the Ridgewood Physical Education curriculum. Students are assessed holistically through three key areas: Head, Heart and Hands. Together, these measure students' knowledge, personal development and practical application of movement across a wide range of physical activities.

Assessment is continuous throughout the year and reflects students' progress across the curriculum journey rather than performance in one specific sport.

Students are assessed on their understanding of the movement concepts taught throughout the curriculum and their ability to apply this knowledge across different activities.

This includes understanding:

• Why movement skills are important across different sports and physical activities.
• How the ten curriculum themes support successful performance.
• Rules, tactics and strategies appropriate to different activities.
• How movement, fitness and health contribute to lifelong participation in physical activity.
• How to evaluate and improve performance using feedback.
• Safe participation, including warm-ups, cool downs and reducing the risk of injury.
• How movement skills transfer between different sports and physical activities.

As students progress through Key Stage 3, they are encouraged to explain why they perform movements in particular ways rather than simply demonstrating them.

 

Students are assessed on the behaviours and personal qualities that enable themselves and others to be successful.

Throughout the curriculum we look for students who:

• Work collaboratively with others.
• Communicate clearly and respectfully.
• Demonstrate leadership when appropriate.
• Encourage and support others.
• Show resilience when faced with challenge.
• Respect others, equipment and the learning environment.
• Take responsibility for their own learning and behaviour.
• Solve problems effectively as individuals and as part of a team.
• Respond positively to feedback.
• Demonstrate determination and consistently give their best effort.

These behaviours are embedded throughout every curriculum theme and are essential for lifelong participation in physical activity.

Students are assessed on how effectively they apply the movement skills developed through the curriculum.

Assessment considers students' ability to:

• Demonstrate control and coordination.
• Apply fundamental movement skills confidently.
• Perform skills with increasing accuracy, precision and consistency.
• Adapt movement to different sporting contexts.
• Apply tactics and decision making during performance.
• Develop physical qualities such as balance, agility, coordination, speed and power.
• Combine movement skills effectively to solve physical challenges.
• Show progression over time through practice and application.

Rather than assessing success in a single sport, students are assessed on how well they apply transferable movement skills across a variety of activities.

Assessment Across Key Stage 3

Students develop progressively through the curriculum journey:

• Year 7 – Developing fundamental movement skills and understanding why movement matters.
• Year 8 – Applying movement skills across a range of sporting contexts.
• Year 9 – Making informed choices, applying tactics and becoming increasingly independent performers.

This progressive approach ensures students develop the confidence, competence and motivation to enjoy lifelong participation in physical activity.

Useful Links

• Fitness: https://www.fitnessblender.com/videos
• Sport England: https://www.sportengland.org
• BBC Bitesize PE: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/subjects/znyb4wx
• Doncaster Rowing Club: https://www.doncaster-rowing-club.org
• Wheatley Hills Rugby Union Club: https://www.pitchero.com/clubs/wheatleyhills
• Doncaster Rugby League: https://www.drfc.co.uk

 

At Key Stage 4, the focus of the Ridgewood Physical Education curriculum shifts from developing movement competence to encouraging students to become independent, motivated and lifelong participants in physical activity.

Having developed the fundamental movement skills, transferable physical competencies and personal qualities throughout Key Stage 3, students are now provided with greater choice and ownership of their learning. Through a broad range of physical activities, they are encouraged to identify activities they enjoy and are most likely to continue beyond school.

As a result, assessment at Key Stage 4 focuses primarily on students' attitude to learning, recognising the behaviours that underpin lifelong participation rather than simply measuring sporting performance.

KS4 Assessment

Students are assessed on how consistently they demonstrate the qualities expected of an active, responsible and independent learner.

Assessment considers how well students:

• Attend lessons prepared and ready to participate.
• Demonstrate resilience when faced with challenge.
• Show motivation and a willingness to improve.
• Engage positively in all activities, regardless of prior experience.
• Take responsibility for their own learning and personal development.
• Support and encourage others.
• Demonstrate leadership and positive communication.
• Respect others, equipment and the learning environment.
• Make informed decisions that contribute to their own health and wellbeing.
• Embrace opportunities to develop lifelong participation in physical activity.

Throughout Key Stage 4, students are encouraged to take increasing ownership of their learning by setting personal goals, reflecting on their progress and identifying physical activities that they can continue beyond school.

OCR L1/2 Cambridge National Certificate in Sports Science 

At KS4, students can opt to study the OCR Level 2 Cambridge National Certificate in Sports Science, which involves six hours of theory and practical teaching over two weeks. 

Over the two years students are taught the content required to complete their coursework assignments and pass an external exam which is sat at the end of year 11.

The Cambridge Nationals in Sport Science offer students the opportunity to study key areas of sport science including anatomy and physiology linked to fitness, health, injury and performance; the science of training and application of training principles, and sports nutrition. See below some information about the units we have selected to teach. 

Units Assessment Method	Units Assessment Method	%
R180: Reducing the risk of sports injuries	Written paper 1.15 hours – 70 marks.	40
R181: Applying principles of training	Centre assessed task, OCR moderated.	40
R183: Sports nutrition	Centre assessed task, OCR moderated.	20

Unit R180: Reducing the risk of sports injuries and dealing with common medical (Exam)  

In this unit you will learn how to prepare participants to take part in sport and physical activity in a way which minimises the risk of injuries occurring; prepare them to be able to respond to common injuries that can occur during sport and physical activity and to recognise the symptoms of some common medical conditions 

Topic Area 1: Different factors which influence the risk and severity of injury

Topic Area 2: Warm up and cool down routines

Topic Area 3: Different types and causes of sports injuries

Topic Area 4: Reducing risk, treatment and rehabilitation of sports injuries and   medical conditions

Topic Area 5: Causes, symptoms and treatment of medical conditions

R181: Applying the principles of training: fitness and how it affects skill performance 

In this unit you will learn how to conduct a range of fitness tests, what they test and their advantages and disadvantages. You will also learn how to design, plan and evaluate a fitness training programme. This will give you the background knowledge you need to be able to plan and deliver appropriate fitness tests, some of which will be adapted to suit the skills of the sporting activity. You will then interpret the data collected from fitness tests and learn how best to feed this back so that participants can go on to make informed decisions about their fitness training. 

Coursework elements: Students must complete the exam board assigned scenarios. They will complete a first hand in by the deadline which is then marked and returned to allow for improvements before final submission.  

Topics Covered	Assignments to be completed
Topic Area 1: Components of fitness applied in sport	Task 1: Assesses students’ research skills and information gathering. Students will carry out research for their fitness tests.  They will undertake the selected fitness tests relevant for their activities and interpret their results data. The second part of this task, where students complete the fitness tests and interpret their data, will be unique for each student.
	Task 2: Assesses students’ research of components of fitness relevant to their skills in two selected sporting activities (activities). They will design tests for two main skills relevant to their selected activities, using this information. Students will do the skill tests and collate the results data
Topic Area 2: Principles of training in sport	Task 3: Assess students’ use of the principles of training (SPOR and FITT) and SMART goals as well as how they apply these to training programmes. Students will describe the benefits and drawbacks of each training method and include the differences between aerobic and anaerobic exercise.
Topic Area 3: Organising and planning a fitness training programme	Task 4: Assesses students’ planning and understanding of sporting activity (activity) requirements and takes into account the appropriate principles of training. Students must develop a six-week fitness training programme plan that must include aims of the programme, appropriate equipment and include risk assessments that takes into account relevant safety considerations.
Topic Area 4: Evaluate own performance in planning and delivery of a fitness training programme.	Task 5: Assesses the student’s evaluation of post test results. This must be completed once the six week fitness programme has been completed, when students can compare pre and post test results for the fitness programme. This should include strengths and areas that need improving, adaption to their programme, and discussion on how it could be improved on in the future.

 

Unit R183: Nutrition and sports performance  

In this unit you will learn to consider the composition of healthy, balanced nutrition. You will consider the necessity of certain nutrients and their role in enabling effective performance in different sporting activities. The knowledge gained will be used to produce an appropriate, effective nutrition plan for a performer. 

Coursework elements: Students must complete the exam board assigned scenarios. They will complete a first hand in by the deadline which is then marked and returned to allow for improvements before final submission. 

Topics Covered	Assignments to be completed
Topic Area 1: Nutrients needed for a healthy, balanced nutrition plan	Task 1: Students are expected to describe the characteristics of a balanced nutrition plan, relevant to a client's sporting activity.
Topic Area 2: Applying differing dietary requirements to varying types of sporting activity	Task 2: Students are expected, for each different client activity type provided, to show their understanding of the differing dietary requirements of each of the activities
Topic Area 3: Developing a balanced nutrition plan for a selected sporting activity	Task 3: Students should review the client's nutrition plan provided. They should create a 2 week nutrition plan and then make amendments to this plan to make it suitable for their client's sporting activity. The students will then need to provide an evaluation.
Topic Area 4: How nutritional behaviours can be managed to improve sports performance	Task 4: Students are expected to discuss the negative effects of an unbalanced nutrition plan as well as the benefits of a manipulated nutrition plan

All results are awarded on the following scale:  

• Distinction* at Level 2 (*2) 

• Distinction at Level 2 (D2) 

• Merit at Level 2 (M2) 

• Pass at Level 2 (P2) 

• Distinction at Level 1 (D1) 

• Merit at Level 1 (M1) 

• Pass at Level 1 (P1). 

 

Useful links:

OCR - Sports Science Specification