SKILLS
 

Introduction:
Teaching games is a progressive sequence of tasks designed to develop learners' abilities to play games skilfully. A teacher should plan a basic task noting how he or she will teach students of different abilities.  A basic task should offer students a body action within an area with equipment/objects and/or partner at a level of quality, i.e. "Selecting a ball of your choice, show me how you can keep a ball in the air with your hand after one bounce within an area that does not interfere with anyone else."   Once action is elicited from the learners, the teacher observes to decide whether to give group or individual feedback, or the redesign the task better for the needs of the learners. The boxes in Fig. 1 highlight this cyclic process.  The cycle feeds into the Basic Task model in Fig. 2.  

 

Task Analysis Observation Cycle
A task worded for the development ability of the students. For younger children the basic task usually involves each of the body, space, effort and relationship movement concepts. Task design elicits multiple responses from the students within the focus of the skill.
Fig 2

Task design & Skill Development videos grade 1 to 7

 

 

 

 

 

Fig 1
Refining implies developing what the students can already do.  Using skill cues the teacher offers (1) pointers to improve skill performance, (2) feedback as students try task, or (3)  demonstration of a student/teacher doing the task effectively.  Refinements can be what the body does to perform the skill (i.e. "bend your knees to get below the ball"), where in space to do the task effectively (i.e. "Send the ball higher for more time"), how to apply force effort from the body on an object (i.e. "keep the hand firm and flat"), and in relation to an object or a partner (i.e. "get to where the ball will go after it lands").  As you drag the cursor over the Basic Task model the refining process is indicated.  In addition, the environment in which the task is performed can be extended by the teacher or in time by the student in order to make the task more challenging (i.e. ""See if you keep the ball going using a bat"), or simplified in order to make the task easier (i.e. "Can your keep the ball going longer with a larger ball?").  There are multiple ways of modifying a task as indicated in the diagram.  The key idea is that the refining tasks and extending tasks should feed into an application task that is more like an adult game.  This game should draw on the skills being developed by the previous tasks.  For example, "Working with a partner invent a game where you score by keeping the ball up in the air after one bounce."