PULSE


Active Health Conference at Cobham Hall, Gravesham


On Thursday 10 January, Take Pride CIC ran the first of their Active Health Conferences at Cobham Hall in Gravesham. The event was set up to target Year 5 and 6 pupils and teachers from local primary schools, in order to educate them in the importance of eating healthily and exercising every day. The five key themes on the day were: fitness, inclusivity, vitality, enrichment and whole school impact. Julia Youens, the School Games Organiser for Gravesham and Director at Take Pride CIC, explained that the Active Health Conference is “not about changing the school syllabus, but rather adapting it to involve health and physical activity”.


The day started in the sports hall with a true or false game regarding health statistics. Pupils were firstly asked to stand up, and if they thought a statement was true put their hands on their heads, or alternatively leave their hands by their sides if they thought it was false. If they got an answer incorrect, they would sit down and be out of the game, and the last pupil standing would win a small prize. This is a simple but effective activity which not only involves the children getting active and competing with one another, but it also teaches them some interesting facts about health and exercise.


Following this, the teachers were taken to a separate room by a few staff members of Take Pride CIC to receive information on the Active Health packs, and the Active Planner which can be used to track exercise throughout the school day and also as a tool for whole school improvement. One of the teachers in this session was quoted as saying “I probably wouldn’t have done this before, but now that it’s been explained it seems so easy!”. This was due to the lack of knowledge and training they had received prior


to the session, and this shows that the conference made the intended impact of increasing awareness.


During this time spent with the teachers, the remaining Take Pride CIC staff members got the pupils involved in an Active Maths task in the sports hall. This required them to stand up in small groups of six pupils with different laminated numbers or maths symbols. The pupils had to then work together to rearrange themselves in different orders and make as many correct equations as possible in five minutes. This exercise works well in schools because it allows them to carry on learning what they would in their maths lessons, whilst also using teamwork and promoting being physically active at the same time.


The next activity which took place involved all the pupils guessing the levels of sugar, saturated fat and salt in a range of unhealthy food products. This was designed to inform the children of the negative effects of some of the food items they might eat regularly, and should try to avoid if possible, by replacing them with healthier alternatives. The Food Smart App was also explained, which can be used to scan barcodes of food and drink products to check the levels of each of the food groups, and acts as a good indication of whether something is considered healthy or unhealthy.


4 The Kent & Medway School Sports Magazine


The day was finished with a game of rabbits and radishes between pairs. The pupils were mixed between schools in order to encourage social interaction and were told whether they were either a ‘rabbit’ or ‘radish’. When one of these words were shouted out, that person had to chase their partner. After a few rounds of this, the pairs did a breathing exercise which was designed to synchronise the breathing of the two pupils back to back to one another. This was important to give the pupils an appropriate cool-down and reduce their heart rate after physical activity, but it was also another opportunity to work together as a pair.


The event was considered a very positive experience by the people in attendance. All the pupils and teachers


seemed to be engaged and enjoying themselves, and they hopefully managed to gain something from the day, other than the small prizes that were given out during the day as rewards. When asked what they thought about the day, Mr Johnson from Bronte Independent School stated that “it’s a change in mindset in PE, it gives the pupils the power to take ownership.”. Similarly to this, Mrs Hopkins from Timberwood Academy pointed out that the day was useful because “the children take the responsibility, and now have a lot more ideas as a result of this event”.


Take Pride CIC have gone on to run similar Active Health Conferences across each of the districts in Kent and Medway. Some of the School Games Organisers have decided to run the events themselves in their areas, with the guidance from Take Pride CIC to maintain the consistency of the key messages they are trying to convey. This will also help with the impact and sustainability of the conference, by reducing the workload for the organisation and help to further spread the overall aim of children and young people becoming healthier and more physically active across the county.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16