Moving safely in a space
Physical Education · Key Stage 1 · The School
Looking up
Moving safely in a hall full of people starts with looking UP and AHEAD rather than at your feet. Most collisions happen because two people are both watching the floor. Looking where you are going, and glancing where others are going, prevents nearly all of them.
Finding a space
A SPACE is a gap big enough for you to move into. Good movement means constantly heading towards spaces rather than towards people. If everyone bunches in the middle, the edges are empty — noticing that and going there is the same skill that matters in every team game later on.
Stopping safely
Stopping needs a small crouch, feet apart, weight low. Trying to stop upright and straight-legged leads to sliding or overbalancing. Practising a quick stop on a signal is a real skill, and being able to stop instantly is what makes a busy hall safe. All of this is done with an adult present.
Everyone jogs around the hall. Freeze on the whistle and look: how many people are within one arm's length? Now go again, but this time look at where people are HEADING rather than where they are, and aim for the space that will still be empty when you get there. Freeze again and count. The second count is almost always lower, and nobody slowed down to achieve it.