PE and Sports

At Parkgate House School, we go to considerable lengths to ensure that all our children are able to find a sporting activity they enjoy. We believe that a love of sport, games and physical activity is not only important for health and fitness, but also encourages team play, maturity and friendship.

For that reason, PE and sport play an important role in our school curriculum, with activities and opportunities increasing as children grow in ability and progress through the school years.

Establishing the importance of team play, our Preparatory years’ sporting programme builds on the sporting skills developed during Pre-Prep and includes competitive fixtures with other schools. We hold an annual swimming gala during spring term and an annual sports day at the Millennium Arena, Battersea Park.

Nursery activities
For Parkgate Nursery children, PE lessons are centred upon teaching the foundations of the multi-skills that allow young children to learn and have a good understanding of their own physical abilities. Non-sports specific actions, such as throwing, catching, striking, rolling, jumping and balance are also explored.

During a typical PE lesson, children are encouraged to explore different movements and shapes with their bodies whilst also discovering why different balls bounce in different ways. Swimming and tennis clubs are also run for Nursery children to further develop their abilities.

Pre-Prep and Prep sports
In the Pre-Prep to Prep years, Parkgate boys begin tag rugby and karate. Football is played by the boys during the autumn and spring terms, whilst Parkgate girls develop skills in netball, hockey and ballet.

During the summer term, rounders is introduced to the girls, and the boys concentrate on cricket. During the summer, girls and boys also take part in athletics in the build up to our annual Sports Day.

Co-educational activities
Swimming and horse riding are also offered during curriculum time, as well as a wide range of co-educational before and after-school clubs.

Swimming
During weekly swimming lessons, Reception to Pre-Prep children are taught the basic water skills that will act as the foundation for their swimming ability. In the Prep years, the emphasis is on developing the front crawl, butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and life-saving skills.