Gymnastics — Travelling and Rolling — Year 3 Lesson Plan
National Curriculum: PE KS2 — develop flexibility, strength, technique, control and balance through gymnastics; compare performances with previous ones and demonstrate improvement
Overview
Pupils develop gymnastic travelling actions — walking, running, skipping, jumping — and learn to perform a forward roll with correct technique. They explore how rolls can be used to link balances and shapes, and begin to understand the performance principles of extension and tension. Pupils create and perform sequences combining travel, roll and balance.
Learning Objectives
- Perform a forward roll from standing with chin tucked, rolling through the spine to a standing finish.
- Choose three different travelling actions and perform them with clear, extended movement.
- Link a travelling action, a roll and a balance into a sequence with smooth transitions.
- Evaluate their own and others' sequences using the terms extension, tension and control.
Key Vocabulary
Suggested Lesson Structure
Travel around mats using different locomotion: walk, skip, gallop, jump (two feet to two feet, one to two, two to one). On signal: freeze in a shape. Body tension warm-up: pupils lie on their back, teacher pushes lightly on arms and legs — can they hold their plank? Shoulder rolls and neck tilts to prepare for rolling.
Forward roll progression: (1) sit in a tuck, roll back and forth on a curved spine; (2) from squatting, put hands on mat shoulder-width apart, tuck chin to chest, push and roll over the head; (3) from standing, lower to squat and roll, come to standing at the end. Key points: chin in, push through arms, feet together on landing. Common errors: landing on head (not enough chin tuck), stopping on back (not enough push). Travelling actions with extension: demonstrate a cat leap (reaching forward with pointed toes in the air); a chassé; a skip with height. Pupils practise, teacher focuses on pointed toes and extended arms.
Sequence challenge: travel across mat using two travelling actions, perform a forward roll in the middle, finish with a held balance. Pupils practise with a partner who watches and gives one improvement using the vocabulary: 'Your extension was good but your transition was slow.'
Pupils finalise their sequence and practise it four times. They add one further element of their choice: a second roll, a different balance, or a jump before the roll. Teacher selects pupils to perform for the class at plenary.
Two or three pupils perform their sequence. Class observes: where did you see extension? Where was the sequence fluent? Cool down: lying flat on mats, slow breathing, gentle spinal stretch (hug knees to chest).
Common Misconceptions
- Landing on the head during forward roll — this is a safety issue: chin must stay tucked and weight taken through the hands before the back of the head.
- Pupils think linking movements means just 'doing one then the other' — true fluency means the end of one movement flows into the start of the next.
Prior Knowledge
Pupils should already be able to:
- Body shapes and balances from Year 2 gymnastics.
- Experience on mats and basic travelling actions from KS1.
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