The Fitter School Challenge contacted us. They wrote to all PE co-ordinators  to see if their schools would be interested. And we agreed to it.  Interestingly enough I was on a PE course last week and I asked who else was doing it (because we can get prizes from this if we do well) and out of about around 40 schools who attended this meeting, we were the only ones doing it ( of those who attended the meeting) . No one else had picked it up. Which is a shame because it’s been a great success here, everybody is really keen for it –  I think it is a shame that more schools aren't’t doing it.

Do you think there is a reason for the other schools that were at that meeting  not doing it?

Yes , I think it is just that our workload is so much that to take on another initiative is quite difficult.

Do you think it is down to the passion of the PE  co-ordinator at the school?

Maybe, for me  its rewarding. It is working really well for the children. If you do aerobics in the morning, then you find the kids move onto the next lesson, the kids are switched on, and they are having a bit of a buzz still from their aerobic workout. As a school we are getting quite a lot out of it.

What was the kids reaction the first time you introduced this challenge to them?

We first brought their attention to it by a DVD made by Manchester United and its them doing other sports, so my point was – if you are no good at football, it doesn't’t matter. The United team were playing Frisbee amongst other things and the kids loved it – it was quite funny little video and they really liked it – the point being we were saying, fitness is for everybody and we are all good at something. You are not necessarily going to be the best horse rider or the best football player – so we talked about that and how important it was to be fit. And then I set out a challenge and said who is interested in a challenge then; and by then we had wound them up to such a state that just everybody’s hand was up and everybody was keen for it.

Was there a bit of a domino effect? Was it a slow reaction or slightly different?

A little different – the sporty hands went up first, and then by the kids looking up to those, others joined in

I guess when kids see their friends do this and they aspire to them. They want to copy them and it starts at playground level and goes through life. But it’s slightly different for sports, I mean if somebody is particularly good academically. The kids don’t really say, I wish I was great at maths because such and such is - and I’m not taking that away from gifted academic children, because it is good to have a uniqueness to your own particular skill – but if that happens to be sport orientated, you bring with you a certain amount of respect and with that comes confidence.

Yes very much so – the kudos is massive here, we are quite a sporty school. We go to all the youth games and they are always celebrated in assembly and it doesn't’t matter where we come we always celebrate and we do quite well actually, but that is due to the ethos of the school. So the kids come up and they get their badges and colours for playing for the school, so again the events are hugely celebrated

When the kids first did the challenge, did you find they immediately responded positively to it? Like it was almost an instant liking  ?

Oh , definitely. But I have to say they were all exhausted too ! Because they are set four tasks to do.

Do you talk much about why you should want to exercise to the children?

Yes, every morning. We do aerobics and there is a time set aside for the importance of  why are we warming up and why are we cooling down , and then doing some light exercise. All of this is to try and give the children an aerobic  work out so that when we do the challenge is six weeks time again, hopefully they are improving their fitness.

Does the school target children who they think have an exceptional skill in sport at an early age?

We have a lot of external sports clubs and through participation in these if the child shows a particular talent we often encourage them to pursue a more active role in that sport.

Yes, definitely. It has been really rewarding seeing the kids respond to it and made me think about what else we can do. Sometimes we will be teaching science – and just by introducing a quick walk around the field during the lesson, the kids come back into the class and are far more attentive.

When the kids are doing the challenge, are they individually listed as to how many they completed on each discipline?

No, each class is listed. And what happens is that the class  are set certain targets for the range of exercises completed, either bronze silver or gold and they try to achieve status to any of those. So each kid achieves something each time they do it. But the trick is for them to say, I got four bronzes in this event , but next time I want to get silver –  and I will see some that are struggling on a particular exercise and I will say to them don’t try so hard on that one , try a little harder on the other three. So it really is down to them and personally what they can do. And the theory being you re test them again after the six weeks and where ever they set their goals , is something they can achieve.

The kids that you may have thought wouldn't’t do very well at this, are they feeling a little under pressure to perform?

No , not at all. I haven’t come across that at any stage. And it s amazing, kids from year three are coming up to me in the playground saying that I could only do ten star jumps – and do you know I am doing twenty five now! And when you hear that its brilliant and also they all seem to be setting their own personal target, and because its being left to them to perform, they are being more realistic about it.

Would you say the kids are talking about it in the playground?

Oh yes. It is a big thing. They also practice at it in the playground. You see them doing shuttle runs and squat thrusts. And by the way squat thrusts were the harder of the exercises, so it was good seeing kids try to improve on the harder aspects.

If you could say to the other schools that are out there, the benefits of what this is doing for the kids what would you say?

The benefits are immense. You are waking the kids up to get fitter. And the kids because of that are watching what they eat. The lady here that works in the tuck shop is selling more fruit , so we have seen more improvement in the sales of fruit. So the knock on effect on doing one initiative is amazing. It is almost a chemical change with all of this oxygen going to the brain and its great. The kids I would say love it.

So marks out of ten for Ian Wright’s initiative?

You know , it has to be ten. It has been so rewarding. I mean, it did take a little while to set it up at the school but if you ask would I do it again next year, the answer is yes. And they are saying it will be a yearly challenge, but I don’t know for sure yet.

Personally, I think this is fantastic for kids and huge initiative taking in exactly the right direction. Ian Wright (although an Arsenal player and I won’t hold that against him) and what he has done in trying to get the kids involved in sports and targeting schools in trying to encourage a healthier lifestyle, is just amazing. He and Jamie Oliver are targeting the right area at the right time to try and make a change to improving diet and fitness.

Yes, very much so, I agree and what is amazing about this challenge, is that the kids who you think are super fit are not necessarily the ones that are performing that well. It has been amazing that some of the lesser well known sporty kids are really performing very well. It has been interesting to see that.

I agree with that. I think it is all about getting that oxygen around the body and we are all different, so you can amaze yourself at your own fitness levels and improve your own, just by trying a variety of different challenges.

Fay ( Miss Cordingly) I thank you for your commitment to this school project. It has taken a lot of your time and it is obvious to see that you are committed to it.  The kids here  are very fortunate to have somebody like yourself give such encouragement at  such a vital time in their lives and a massive well done . And as you say, around forty schools turned up at the last meeting you had  and none of them were doing it – so again well done. I am sure Ian Wright would be very proud of you too.

Thank you

The responce by The Fitter Schools Challenge.

By Claire Scott

24th April 2007

We’re delighted that the pupils of St Margaret’s School are enjoying the Fitter Schools UK Challenge so much. Fay Cordingly, the PE coordinator, is incredibly enthusiastic and this is obviously rubbing off on the pupils, who seem really up for the Challenge. At Fit for Sport we wholeheartedly agree with the idea that children should be allowed to try many different types of physical activity. Not every child enjoys playing competitive sports such as football or netball so it’s important to help them find something they enjoy. The Fitter Schools UK Challenge was conceived as a nationwide competition to encourage all children throughout the UK to participate more in PE, so we’re delighted it seems to be having such a positive impact on the children at St Margaret’s and hopefully all their hard work will pay off. Keep up the good work!