Health & Physical Education (HPE)

Exciting times in the HPE department as two wonderful subjects come together! In the past these two subjects, Health and Physical Education, have been standalone. In the past, both subjects came with assumptions attached. “ In PE all you do is run, kick balls and play dodgeball” and “Health? Learn about sprouting hair and forced to look at STI pictures from 1974”.  Sound familiar? This could not be further from reality.

The Geraldine High School HPE programme is constantly developing to cater for and challenge all students. Over the next few newsletters, the HPE staff and students will give a brief overview on what is happening at each year level in this vibrant subject area. So we begin with the Year 7 & 8 cohort.

Already, the Year 7 & 8 students have participated in an Aquatics programme, Cross Country,  fitness related activities and some classes have completed a mini Duathlons. During the colder mornings, classes have had to work together allowing the students to work with and form new class relationships. The students have learnt about PersonalIdentity and what is required to lead a healthy and active lifestyle. They have covered a range of research and investigations to allow themselves to make connections and promote positive change and choices.

Over Term 2, all students will be participating in a range of Invasion Games(HPE is supposed to be fun as well!) to help develop a skill profile. Year 7's will create a digital character/emoji which will reflect their performance mentally and physically. They will learn and develop ways to improve their skill profile through training and practice. The Year 8's will learn about tactics and strategy and how to be an effective team member.

All these activities have been selected to challenge each individual and each session encourages them to practice resilience(keep going!), stay focussed when challenged, and respect others by treating them how they would like to be treated themselves. These interpersonal skills are important in so many other facets of their lives.

Teacher side note:  When your child asks for a note or comes up with some excuse why they do not want to participate in HPE, before you write that note, please ask yourself “ What will they be missing out on? Are they taking the easy option? What am I teaching them?” While they may not be able to be active, they can still help others through being a positive team member.

Remember, we are HPE teachers, not drill sergeants. We are caring and understanding of student issues. We encourage positive participation and personal challenge while developing lifelong skills.

This following image is a ripper (while the lollipop in the pool is not ideal!). During our Swimming Sports, these 2 senior students jumped into the pool when they saw a junior requiring some assistance. While they did not physically intervene, they encouraged, supported and provided a safe environment for this student to complete the personal challenge and demonstrate resilience. It warms my heart knowing what wonderful students we have!