Active summer challenge
Summer is here and what better way to step into the sunshine than celebrating the fantastic sports events happening in July and August. From UEFA’s Women’s EURO 2022 to the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, it promises to be a summer full of excitement!
This year has seen a welcome return to the physical activity in schools, PE lessons, break time games, school sport and after school clubs. We want to build on that and encourage primary aged children to step into their own Active Summer Challenge. The summer holidays present the perfect opportunity for time together, enjoying the weather and taking a rest from the usual routine.
The Active Summer Challenge will help children be active every day by setting their own pledge and taking part in the six weekly challenges. There are resources for teachers to help launch this challenge in schools, fun activity cards for children and links to some lots of amazing content from sport organisations. You’ll find everything you need on this website.
How do you set the activity pledge?
- The aim should be to reach the Chief Medical Officer's guidelines for physical activity. This is 60 minutes a day of moderate to vigorous activity or a minimum of 20 minutes a day for children with a disability. You can build up to 60 or 20 minutes across the day – it doesn’t need to be in one burst.
- Choose an activity – or different activities – that are enjoyable. Having fun is a key motivator for children, so supporting them to plan a fun activity, perhaps linking up with friends and family, or something you could do alongside them, would help keep them engaged.
- The pledge can be simple – it might be participating in the Daily Mile, playing their favourite sport, walking to and playing in their local park with friends, doing a set number or minutes of an action like star jumps, doing all the 10 minute Summer Shake Up activities in the holidays, or choosing videos to complete from the Active Recovery Hub.
- Use the pledge tracker to write down the pledge and record what activity takes place every day. There’s a certificate available for teachers to celebrate children’s achievements as they return to school in September.
Alongside their pledge we have six weekly activity cards with a challenge focused on a sport or activity. These are fun and inclusive with all the information provided on each page for each week.
For further inspiration, you can use the active recovery hub to find activities suitable for individual needs across a wide range of sports.
All of the 6 week challenges can be downloaded here:
Once children have completed their pledge and the challenges, there is a certificate for you to keep and celebrate all your good work! For all the links please look at :