Key Stage 2 CurriculumSwimming in DarlingtonPublication for Schools

We would like to highlightSection 4 as a new supportservice available to schools

Introduction – Department of EducationThe Government is committed to ensuring swimming takes place in schools.Swimming is a compulsory part of the current National Curriculum for PEand will remain a compulsory part of the new curriculum when it is released.By the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6) pupils should be taught to swim unaided for a distance ofat least 25 metres, using recognised strokes on their front and back, and demonstrate anunderstanding of water safety). It is up to primary schools to decide when, and at what pointthey wish to teach this.

When pupils are in KS2 years (Years 3-6), swimming activities and water safety must bechosen as one of their areas of activity, unless pupils have completed the full KS2 teachingrequirements (in relation to swimming activities and water safety) during their Key Stage 1years (Reception and Years 1 & 2).

Information taken directly from the Department for Education official website.

A.S.A. Call to ActionChildren at risk as report finds more than half cannot swim – A.S.A. 23 May 2012According to a report released by swimming’s governing body, the ASA and Kellogg’sentitled ‘Learning the Lesson : The Future of School Swimming’, more than 1.1 million primaryschool children are reported to be unable to be safe in and around water.

3,501 primary schools were surveyed on how many of their children have attained Key Stage2 swimming requirements. It found 51% of children aged 7 to 11 cannot swim the length of atypical swimming pool (25 metres) unaided.

The average state school pupil spends just 8 hours and 15 minutes a year in swimminglessons at school, which is far less than the 22 hours study time the Department forEducation recommends in the current National Curriculum.

With drowning amongst the leading cause of accidental death of children and young people inEngland (according to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents), experts are worriedthese numbers could increase in future if the current issues with school swimming programmesare not addressed. In 2011, there were 407 deaths from drowning reported across all agegroups, of which 47 involved children and young people under the age of 19 years old.

Where schools are achieving high attainment rates amongst their pupils, it is attributed tobetter pupil-to-teacher ratios, longer lesson times and a higher number of lessons offered.

In September 2013, each primary school will receive a minimum of £9,000 additional ring-fenced funding as part of the Government’s £150 million injection into PE & School Sport.

The ASA is calling for curriculum swimming and water safety to be a priority with schools, toensure that every child has the opportunity to swim 25 metres by the time they leave primaryschool.

Information taken directly from the A.S.A official website.

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Section 1 Swimming in the National Curriculum For Key Stages 1 & 2Swimming and water safety remains a statutory element of the National Curriculum. Thestatutory requirement is for all pupils to achieve a minimum standard of swimming abilitybefore they finish Key Stage 2 (end of Year 6). The National Curriculum programme of studyfor swimming and water safety is detailed below:

Key Stage 1 (5-7 years of age)If schools choose to teach swimming at Key Stage 1, pupils should be taught to:

• move in the pool (for example, jump, walk, hop, and spin, using swimming aids and/orsupport)

• float and move with and without swimming aids and

• propel themselves in water using different swimming aids, arms and leg actions and basicstrokes.

Key Stage 2 (7-11 years old)During the course of Key Stage 2, pupils should be taught to:

• pace themselves in floating and swimming challenges related to speed, distance andpersonal survival

• swim unaided for a sustained period of time over a distance of at least 25m

• use recognised arm and leg actions, lying on their front and back and

• use a range of recognised strokes and personal survival skills (for example, front crawl,backstroke, sculling, floating and surface diving).

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Section 2What children should be taught at Key Stage 2The National Curriculum defines a programme of study for Physical Education. Each taskshould cover the four aspects of knowledge, skill and understanding required by the PENational Curriculum, as shown in the diagram below. It is essential that swimming in schoolsuse all four aspects. Core aquatic skills are the foundation to learning to swim, therefore therewill always be an emphasis towards acquiring and developing skills, but this should not be tothe detriment of the other aspects.

Attainment targetsAttainment targets set out the knowledge, skills and understanding that pupils of differentages and abilities are expected to have by the end of each key stage. They consist of eightlevel descriptors of increasing difficulty. Level descriptors outline the types and range ofperformance that pupils working at that level should typically demonstrate. The majority ofpupils at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 are expected to work within levels 1 to 5. Levels aremapped against Key Stage and age in the table below.

Lessons can be adapted to ensure that provision includes advanced swimmers at Key Stage 2who's attainment level is 4 so that they still benefit from development within their schoollessons.

e

1-3

K 2-5

A 2

A 4

Evaluating and improving performance

Knowledge and understanding of fi tness and

health

Acquiring and

developing skills

Selecting and applying skills

and tactics

e

Key Stage 1 1-3

Key Stage 2 2-5

At age 7 2

At age 11 4

Range of levels within which the great majority of

pupils are expected to work

Expected attainment for the majority of

pupils at the end of key stage

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Water safetyNot only is swimming good for a child’s health, it could also potentially save their life.Drowning is the third most common cause of accidental death in children in the UK andlearning to swim and the basics of water safety is therefore vital. Lifesavers, The Royal LifeSaving Society UK and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents have developed ajoint Water Safety Code, which is endorsed by the ASA based on the word SAFE.

It is recommended that children should be taught the Water Safety Code from the beginningof Year 1 and orally assessed on its content throughout Key Stages 1 and 2 to ensure anunderstanding of the principles and content. The water safety challenge card illustrated below hasbeen produced by the ASA and is used by the Dolphin Centre to help test children’s knowledge.

Aquatic skills Listed below are the main aquatic skills that pupils need todevelop as they take their journey through school swimming:

Swim skills - building techniqueThe development of effective and efficient strokes on the front and back are major objectivesof the swimming programme of study. Therefore this is a good time to work on developingsport specific skills and excellent techniques on all four strokes. A multi stroke approach willensure interest levels remain high with the result that swimming should continue to be fun.

Stroke development in relation to speed and distance Wherever possible, children should be given the opportunity to sustain beyond the minimumrequirement of 25 metres and to develop speed. These 2 components will provide children withthe possibility of becoming involved in competitive swimming and other aquatic activities andwill help to meet some of the health and fitness requirements of the National Curriculum.

Introduction to other aquatic activitiesThe ability to swim is often a pre-requisite for many other aquatic activities. The DolphinCentre provides a comprehensive range of aquatic activities to provide a more roundedswimming education.

DASC – Darlington Amateur Swimming ClubDASC are based at the Dolphin Centre and provide an excellent opportunity for competitiveswimming.

CPD Support for School TeachersThe A.S.A. offer a National Curriculum Training Programme for school teachers. Module 1costs £25 and Modules 1 and 2 combined cost £35.

Water Safety ChallengeWhat is the Challenge?Pupils have to use their knowledge of water safety and personal survival skills to help them complete a personal survival course.

Pupils enter the water safely, swim for a given length of time or distance, show they can conserve energy by floating, sculling, treading water for a set time i.e. 30 seconds. Surface dive and retrieve an object, collect a floating object and remain still in HUDDLE/HELP position. Exit the water safely.

The challenge must include the following skills:-Enter the water safely – tread water – surface dives – floating – HUDDLE/HELP positions – swimming – safe exit

Equipment requiredObjects that float – balls, floats, empty water bottles, etc.

Objects that sink

Shorts and t-shirts

ADAPTATIONS and VARIATIONS

EASIER

S – Do the challenge in shallow waterT – Use the steps for entry and exitE – Use equipment that floats just under the water P - Work with a partner or group

HARDER

S – Do the challenge in deep waterT – Extend the time they have to do skillsE – Do the challenge wearing t – shirt and shortsP – Work as a group to complete the challenge

To make the task easier or harder, consider changing one or more STEP: Space – Task – Equipment – People

DEE

P EN

D

SHA

LLOW

END

To help pupils evaluate and improve their skills, strokes and performance, ask them the following:-

CROSS-CURRICULAR LINKSScience – understanding floating and sinking, exploring forces, investigating propulsion with arms and legs

Mathematics – measuring and recording distances. Time, distance & challenges related to speed

English – using specialist language, evaluating, explaining and describing swimming activities

PSHE – learning to work safely with others, finding out why swimming is good for your health

1-3

K 2-5

A 2

A 4

• Entry and Exits• Buoyancy and Balance• Rotation and Orientation

• Streamlining• Aquatic Breathing• Travel and coordination

• Water Safety• Health and Fitness

5

‘E’ EMERGENCYlearn how to help in an emergency

‘S’ SPOTspot the dangers

‘A’ ADVICEtake advice

‘F’ FRIENDalways go with a friend

e

1-3

K 2-5

A 2

A 4

Section 3Ensuring everyone gets to the minimum standard

Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) groupsMany children from BME backgrounds may be non-swimmers when participating in schoolswimming lessons for the first time. For many faith groups, modesty is the key issue withregard to swimming and therefore mixed sex sessions would not be permitted.

With these factors in mind, the Dolphin Centre can make the following amendments toprovision following consultation between the school and the families:

• Consultation with relevant departments within Darlington Borough Council and/orinterfaith groups.

• Alternative arrangements such as single sex classes.

- Using same sex teachers for classes.

- Operate flexible clothing codes.

Pupils with Special Educational Needs (SEN)• Pupils with SEN should be identified to the swimming teacher well in advance of lessons,

so they can adapt their lessons accordingly and ensure effective communication.

• Most children who require additional help will be able to join in with the rest of their class,with activities simply adapted to their needs. Some children may not be able to take partin this way and in this instance lesson programming should be reviewed.

• In groups with a number of pupils with disabilities, the ASA recommends that the lessonshould be led by a swimming teacher who holds disability specific qualifications or CPDs.For further details visit www.theiosonline.com

• If a number of pupils with physical disabilities will be attending the swimming lessons, caremust be taken to ensure that the pool and surrounding areas are suitable. The DolphinCentre has hoists to the training pool and main pool.

• The ASA provide a range of resources including a swimmer identification toolkit and abooklet ‘Inclusion of Swimmers with a Disability’, which gives information and advice sothat teachers can become better informed and have access to the best possible teachingpractices. Email disability@swimming.org for more information.

• For further support there is a network of ASA accredited clubs that have specialistknowledge on swimming for disabled adults and children. For signposting to your nearestclub please email disability@swimming.org.

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Section 4 - New Service for SchoolsKS1 and Practical Water Safety - our 100% commitment to schools toget every child to the required standardWhat schools are telling us are the barriers to all children reaching the KS2 standard

• Transportation

• Pressures on other curriculum areas

• Releasing further time for children and teachers to be out of the classroom

• Funding

No child should enter secondary school being unable to swim 25 metres.

We are introducing the following additional support available to schools. This support isoptional but we feel provides the solution to ensure all children in Darlington meet the KeyStage 2 minimum requirements.

Lessons will be available at Key Stage 1 or lower Key Stage 2 for children the year before theyare due to participate in Key Stage 2 swimming with their school. 20 x 30 minute lessons willbe available. These will be available out of school time to eliminate issues with transportationand the pressure in other curriculum areas.

The school would fund these lessons direct with the Dolphin Centre making the lessons freeto parents, leaving the only responsibility for parents to take them to their lesson.

The Dolphin Centre will:• Provide lessons, allocating pool space to facilitate these.

• Include a water safety briefing on the child’s final lesson following ASA guidelines whichwill include highlighting the risks in swimming in open water following the recent fatalitiesacross the country.

• Report to the school the names and progress made by each child at Key Stage 1 and KeyStage 2.

• Provide a 100% commitment to get every child to the minimum standard required at KeyStage 2. Any child that has utilised this package and is unsuccessful at the end of Key Stage2 will be individually assessed and provided a further course of recommendations and tuitionto ensure they meet the standard prior to entering secondary school.

• Offer additional resource and time to ensure that Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) groupsand Pupils with Special Educational Needs (SEN) are successful at meeting the minimumKey Stage 2 standards before secondary school.

• Provide qualified swimming teachers that have the required CPD to deliver effectiveschool swimming lessons to everyone.

Contact DetailsDarlington Sport and Physical Activity DepartmentEastbourne Sports ComplexBourne AvenueOff Hundens LaneDarlingtonDL1 1LJTelephone: 01325 254370www.darlington.gov.uk/schoolswimming