If you want to boost your pupils’ lesson engagement and make the most of your primary school PE lessons, you’re going to need the right equipment. A broad collection of quality PE equipment is a major key to success in this department, and it unlocks so many fantastic activities that you can make use of for engaging and physically beneficial PE lessons. To help you pick out all the right equipment that you need, we’ve compiled a list of the top 11 essential items that you need for your PE equipment collection.
Balls
Probably one of the more obvious required items on this list, balls of all varieties are going to be needed in your PE lessons. Football, basketball, volleyball, dodgeball and many other sports all need balls to be played. Balls are fantastic for developing gross motor skills and hand/foot-eye coordination, and you’ll certainly find they’re one of those pieces of PE apparatus you make use of time and time again.
Cones
Used for setting up pitches, play zones, tracks and all sorts of other play areas, cones are an essential piece of PE equipment for primary schools. At their most fundamental use, they mark and separate areas for the various sports you’ll be practising but they can also be used to set up a variety of interesting courses for training. Try getting your pupils to dribble a ball between a line of cones or set up a game of capture the cone – there are so many uses for them!
Rackets
Rackets are a very popular piece of PE equipment for primary schools for their uses in a variety of sports. Different sports sometimes use different rackets – for example, badminton rackets are very different to tennis rackets – so you’ll likely be after a variety of types for your collection of PE apparatus.
Sports Bibs
Different coloured Bibs are a vital element of a good range of PE equipment for primary schools to have available. They allow you to divide your classes into multiple easily-recognisable teams in a competitive game – your own version of a team uniform if you will. Being able to create a more competitive environment in your PE lessons is a fantastic way to increase lesson engagement and promote teamwork skills within your class.
Stopwatch + Whistle
Every PE teacher is going to need a stopwatch and a whistle. Anything involving timing, which includes many athletics activities for example, is going to need a stopwatch. They’re also a great way to set goals for students to focus on surpassing. A whistle is a necessary piece of kit you need to be able to regulate games and events, and call attention to yourself when needed.
Gymnastics Mats
As a core piece of primary school PE equipment, you’re going to want to get your hands on a collection of gymnastics mats. The floor of your indoor sports facility is going to be far too hard to properly teach gymnastics – the risk of your pupils hurting themselves if they fall during such an activity is never going to pass through health and safety standards – so you’re going to need mats to ensure pupil safety and boost confidence in these activities.
Quoits & Beanbags
Probably one of the more forgettable items of PE equipment for primary schools, quoits and beanbags are nonetheless vital for training a pupil’s throwing ability and accuracy. They can be used both indoors and outdoors, and for a whole variety of activities such as ring toss so their versatility will certainly be of use to you when planning out your PE lessons. This is an item of sports equipment for schools that you don’t want to skip out on.
Skipping Ropes
Skipping ropes have plenty of uses as a piece of PE equipment for primary schools. They’re great for warm-ups or cardiovascular exercises, as well as for training coordination and agility. You can even incorporate basic mathematics through counting and make use of them as a fun activity for break time! Skipping ropes are something that every primary school should have access to for PE lessons.
Athletics Equipment
The term athletics equipment covers a lot of different items, ranging from javelins to hurdles, curling stones and much more. A good selection of PE equipment for primary schools will have some amount of athletics equipment for PE teachers to make sure of when planning and delivering a lesson. For a primary school, a set of hurdles and bull-nosed javelins make great entry-level athletics-focused PE equipment for primary schools.
Nets
Nets are a required item of PE equipment for primary schools that want to incorporate games such as tennis, football and netball into their lesson plans. They play essential roles in spacing out players or scoring points, so if you plan on playing any of these sports you are going to need nets to do so.
Hoops
Hoops are an essential pickup for your PE equipment collection, offering tons of different uses. The classic use for hula hooping can be a great challenge for children to work on their core strength and coordination skills. You can also make use of them as targets for ring toss and other throwing activities, for hopscotch or even just for rolling along the floor. Your imagination is the limit for what you can do with hoops, and coming in a variety of sizes and colours you’re going to want to pick up a decent selection to make best use of them.
So what kind of PE apparatus do you think you’ll be investing in this year? Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us if you have any queries feel free to call us on 0333 016 5964 for professional advice from our awesome team.