Action Plan Focus

Subject: Physical Education (Sports Leadership) Year Group: Year 7 (adjusted for SEN pupils) Class Size: 8 students Lesson Duration: 40 minutes Curriculum Link: National Curriculum for England – PE – Key Stage 3 – Develop leadership skills through physical activity Specific Focus: Creating an action plan for developing leadership skills in a sports context, emphasising communication, organisation, safety, and inclusivity.

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National Curriculum Context

This lesson supports the following National Curriculum aims and statements for Physical Education at Key Stage 3 (which directly applies to Year 7 pupils):

• Develop competence to excel in a broad range of physical activities (taking on leadership roles enhances engagement and skill development).
• Use a range of tactics and strategies to overcome opponents in direct competition.
• Develop their technique and improve their performance in other competitive sports.
• Take part in competitive sports and activities and lead others to do the same.
• Develop leadership, communication, and organisational skills through physical activity.
• Encourage social skills including teamwork, respect and responsibility, especially through leadership roles.

This lesson also responds to SEN adaptations focusing on making communication clear, providing scaffolds for understanding, and encouraging participation for all ability levels.

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Learning Objectives

By the end of this session, pupils will be able to:

1. Identify key qualities and responsibilities of a sports leader.
2. Understand why these qualities matter for leading safe, enjoyable, and inclusive sports sessions.
3. Construct a simple action plan to develop their own leadership skills.
4. Demonstrate clear communication strategies used by a sports leader (verbal & non-verbal).
5. Reflect on how to include all participants regardless of ability or interest.

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Resources Needed

• Whiteboard and markers
• Printed copies of the worksheet: What Does a Sports Leader Need to Know? (one per pupil)
• Sports equipment for demonstration (balls, cones, bibs, etc.)
• Visual aids/posters showing leadership qualities
• Timer/stopwatch

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Lesson Structure

1. Introduction and Engagement (5 minutes)

• Start with a brief discussion: “What do you think a sports leader does?”
• Write answers on the board, guiding pupils to mention organisation, safety, communication, fairness, and fun.
• Explain: “Today you will explore how to be a great sports leader by creating your own action plan.”
• Reference the National Curriculum aim to take leadership roles to develop skills and confidence.

2. Activity 1: Understanding Sports Leadership (10 minutes)

• Distribute the worksheet “What Does a Sports Leader Need to Know?”
• Together, as a class, complete the matching section linking information to why it matters.
• Example: Injuries → Keep people safe
• Encourage pupils to discuss why each piece of information is important in their own words to promote deeper understanding.
• Facilitate questions to make sure pupils grasp responsibility in leadership roles especially around safety and inclusivity.

3. Activity 2: Communication in Leadership (10 minutes)

• Briefly explain the importance of communication: verbal (clear instructions, encouragement, questioning) and non-verbal (demonstrations, hand signals, eye contact).
• Run a simple relay or team activity where each pupil must use one communication method to lead a small group/team.
• After the activity, ask pupils to tick off which communication methods they used on the worksheet’s “Communication Check” box.
• Reflect on what worked best and why.

4. Activity 3: Creating an Action Plan (10 minutes)

• Introduce the concept of an action plan for developing leadership skills.
• Guide pupils with prompts:
• What leadership skill do you want to develop first? (e.g., communication, organisation, inclusion)
• What activities or tasks can you practise to improve that skill?
• How will you know you’ve got better?
• Pupils write a 3-step action plan in their exercise books or on mini whiteboards. Teacher supports SEN pupils with sentence starters as needed:
• “I will practise __________________ by __________________.”
• “I will ask for feedback from __________________.”
• Invite volunteers to share their plans aloud for peer encouragement.

5. Conclusion and Reflection (5 minutes)

• Recap the key points: qualities of a sports leader, importance of communication, and making an action plan.
• Encourage pupils by highlighting how these skills help both in sport and in everyday life.
• Collect worksheets for assessment and provide positive feedback.
• Give a brief preview of next lesson where they will practise these leadership skills in a real physical activity.

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Differentiation & SEN Considerations

• Use clear, simple language and visual cues throughout the lesson.
• Provide sentence starters and writing frames for the action plan task.
• Scaffold discussions with yes/no questions and pair-share strategies.
• Allow repeated demonstrations of activities for clarity.
• Encourage all efforts and celebrate small achievements to build confidence.

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Assessment and Feedback

Formative Assessment:

• Monitor pupils during worksheet completion to assess understanding of leadership qualities.
• Observe communication in group activities focusing on use of verbal and non-verbal skills.
• Evaluate the action plans for realistic, achievable steps demonstrating reflection and goal-setting.

Summative Assessment:

• End-of-lesson collection of completed worksheets.
• Ongoing assessment during leadership roles in practical sessions following this lesson.

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What Does a Sports Leader Need to Know? (Worksheet)

Information	Why It Matters
Injuries	Keep people safe
Ability level	Choose suitable activities
Number of participants	Organise teams/equipment
Interests	Make sessions enjoyable

Fill in the boxes:

A sports leader should know ___________________________ One way to collect information is _______________________ One way to include everyone is __________________________

Communication Check Tick the methods you used today:

Verbal: ☐ Clear instructions ☐ Encouragement ☐ Questioning Non-verbal: ☐ Demonstration ☐ Hand signals ☐ Eye contact

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This lesson plan not only aligns with National Curriculum goals of developing personal and social leadership skills through physical education but also provides clear, practical steps designed for inclusive learning with SEN pupils. The focus on communication methods and action planning fosters self-awareness and responsibility—essential transferable skills for life and employment.