Gymnastics - Unit Overview

In the Striver gymnastics lesson plan for nursery-aged children, Lesson 6 marks the culmination of a unit where pupils have been learning the basics of gymnastics, including various ways of travelling and balancing. The unit is designed to introduce young students to physical education with a focus on developing their fundamental movement skills. The overview of the unit provides a summary of what the pupils will achieve: mastering different methods of moving around a hall and across mats, travelling across apparatus like benches and low vaults safely, and performing sequences of movements that incorporate apparatus. They will also explore both point and patch balances, enhancing their coordination and body awareness.

Each lesson in the unit has specific learning objectives and success criteria to measure pupil progress. The first lesson aims to teach children how to move around safely, followed by lessons on traversing apparatus and performing mat movements with apparatus. As the unit progresses, pupils learn about point balances in the fourth lesson and patch balances in the fifth, with the objective of holding these balances for at least three seconds. By the sixth lesson, the children are expected to be able to create and perform a sequence of movements, showcasing what they have learned throughout the unit. Teaching tips are provided to ensure that the lessons remain simple yet challenging, with adjustments made for pupils who are exceeding expectations. The structure of the lessons is designed to be repetitive to reinforce learning, with activities built upon in complexity over time.