Durrington High pupils try cheerleading and ultimate frisbee for sports week

The week long celebration of sport, held by Youth Sport Trust, saw pupils at Durrington High try different sports during PE lessons and lunchtimes, incuding American football, cheerleading, ultimate frisbee, footgolf, Danish longball, catch the flag, tchoukball and lacrosse.

In addition to this the PE team dressed up in various sporting attire on each day of the week including tennis and golf.

Maisie Trafford, PE teacher and lead on the week, said: “National Schools Sports Week is a great opportunity to move away from our normal timetable and try something new. Some students have found they have a particular skill for one of these lesser known sports, and it gives them the opportunity to discover that and maybe go on to develop it with a local club.”

The students were privileged to have experts in their field deliver some of the sessions. Beth from local cheerleading squad Zodiac All-stars taught several groups some cheerleading routines, and Jim Loader, who played ultimate frisbee for Brighton University, shared his expertise.

Outside of the PE timetable there was a tug of war for each individual year group on at lunchtime which encouraged team work and having fun whilst being active. There was also the opportunity to play Goal Ball and sit-down volleyball.

Tom Pickford, director of PE, said: “We take every opportunity to encourage our students to take part in sports and be active. Taking part in National Schools Sports Week is a great way to offer some more unusual sports to our students, and remind them that having fun is an important part of playing sport.”

Durrington High School also won Youth Sport Trust’s outstanding secondary school of the year 2018/19.