Why exercise is a vital part of our children’s education

According to a recent BBC news article, research suggests children all over the world are weaker, do less exercise and are less fit than in the past. 

Why is exercise so important at a young age?

Many experts think physical activity needs to start at a very young age, something we firmly believe at Hatherop.  This is why children in the nursery do regular exercise throughout the week.  They are taken for a PE lesson with our Director of Sport once a week on our astro pitch, where they will learn a variety of skills.  Forest school also takes place twice a week in the stunning school grounds. Regular walks around 22 acres of the school are also done and are linked to what they are learning about in Nursery at the time.

Starting sport at an early age will boost their fitness, strength, agility and skills, before they have the chance to be self-conscious about their bodies, and start trying to avoid school PE lessons.  As the children move up through the school, the range of sports they are taught broadens and their skills and confidence in sport develops.

Some thoughts from a current parent   

When we made the decision to move our son from a lovely little village school near us to Hatherop, a large factor in our decision making was the level and range of sport Hatherop offered.  The school he was at was an outstanding school but often his PE lessons would be spent throwing and catching a ball in the school hall and occasionally going outside if the football pitch wasn’t too muddy.  We really wanted him to be involved in team sports from an early age and also having two young, energetic boys, we wanted them to be as active as possible!

An Increased level in confidence

Since moving to Hatherop we cannot believe how much his confidence has grown, not only in team sports but also his concentration in class is noticeably better.  He has already started to show a keen interest in tennis and football and is absolutely loving hockey on the astro pitch.  The increased level of sport in his timetable has allowed him to burn off all his excess energy so when he goes back in to the classroom he has a clear head and is eager to learn. His younger brother is in Transition at the school and having a lesson with Mr Bailey, the Director of Sport is always a highlight of the week for him.

For us, moving our boys to Hatherop was the best decision we could have made.  Many people think sport and exercise is less important than the academics at school. However, we can clearly see that a combination of them both provides our boys with a really solid well-rounded education.