New
New
Year 5

Evaluating sprinting: personal bests

I can evaluate my own and others sprinting technique and make suggestions as to how we can improve our performance throughout the race.

New
New
Year 5

Evaluating sprinting: personal bests

I can evaluate my own and others sprinting technique and make suggestions as to how we can improve our performance throughout the race.

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

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These resources were created for remote use during the pandemic and are not designed for classroom teaching.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Move: applying the correct technique at different stages of a race can help us to sprint faster.
  2. Move: changing our stride length in different stages of the race can help improve acceleration and maintain speed.
  3. Think: if we slow down before the end of a sprinting race and don't dip at the line we are likely to be overtaken.
  4. Feel: staying positive if we don't beat our personal best shows good control of our emotions.
  5. Connect: providing others with constructive feedback on their strengths and weaknesses can help improve technique.

Keywords

  • Race - a competition where runners compete to see who can run the fastest over a certain distance.

  • Technique - the method we use to perform a task

  • Speed - a measure of how quickly we move from one point to another

Common misconception

Pupils sometimes think that holding their breath or shallow breathing helps them focus or exert more power.

Ensure pupils stay relaxed when sprinting and understand that deep rhythmic breaths will help their muscles recieve more oxygen to generate energy.


To help you plan your year 5 physical education lesson on: Evaluating sprinting: personal bests, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Sprinting involves accelerating at the start of a race, maintaining speed in the middle and dipping the body forwards at the end.
Teacher tip

Equipment

30+ cones, worksheet: personal bests, stopwatches

Content guidance

  • Risk assessment required - physical activity

Supervision

Adult supervision required

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Prior knowledge starter quiz

Download quiz pdf

4 Questions

Q1.
Which word is a measure of how quickly you move from one point to another?
sprint
Correct answer: speed
technique
Q2.
What should runners do as they approach the finish line?
slow down
stand up straight
Correct answer: dip their body
Q3.
What can help you to sprint fast for the whole short distance race?
Correct answer: maintaining good technique
tensing your body
turning your head
Q4.
How can you help others to improve?
beating them
letting them win
Correct answer: encouragement and support

Assessment exit quiz

Download quiz pdf

4 Questions

Q1.
Which word describes the method you use to perform a task?
sprint
Correct answer: technique
speed
Q2.
Why is it necessary to lengthen your stride length after accelerating?
to accelerate more
to slow down
Correct answer: to maintain speed
Q3.
What can help you to maintain energy in a sprint race?
Correct answer: deep, rhythmic breathing
holding your breath
shallow, quick breaths
Q4.
How should you react if you don’t win your race?
complain
ignore others
Correct answer: stay positive