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What Is Physical Literacy and How to Improve It in PE Lessons

Physical literacy is a concept that’s gaining momentum in schools, shaping how teachers think about movement, wellbeing, and lifelong engagement in physical activity. While the term is becoming more familiar, its full meaning, and the role it plays in high-quality physical education, is still yet to be fully embraced throughout education.

For many teachers, a focus on physical literacy represents a shift from traditional PE approaches toward a more holistic, inclusive, and pupil-centred experience. In this blog, we explore what physical literacy really means, why it matters in PE, and how teachers can support pupils in developing physical literacy through purposeful, inclusive PE experiences.

What Is Physical Literacy?

The meaning of physical literacy goes beyond simply being active or developing physical skills. According to the International Physical Literacy Association (IPLA):

Physical literacy can be described as the motivation, confidence, physical competence, knowledge and understanding to value and take responsibility for engagement in physical activities for life.

International Physical Literacy Association, 2017

Children holding an Omnikin Kin-Ball during a PE lesson—highlighting teamwork, inclusion, and physical literacy. A vibrant example of how PE teachers can use Kin-Ball to build communication, coordination, and confidence in every pupil.

More recently, the Sport England Physical Literacy Consensus Statement defined physical literacy as:

Our relationship with movement and physical activity throughout life.

Sport England, 2023

Children celebrating with a cricket kit during PE—showcasing teamwork, skill-building, and physical literacy. A great example of how PE teachers can use cricket to boost confidence, coordination, and inclusive participation in school sport.

Physical literacy is holistic. It’s not just about how skilfully pupils move, but also how they feel when they move, whether they understand the benefits of being active, and how likely they are to stay active as they grow. This is a welcome shift in education because it:

Broadens the focus of PE – It’s not just about what happens during a lesson, but about how those experiences can inspire pupils to build a positive, lifelong relationship with physical activity. A fun, inclusive PE lesson can plant the seed for habits that last far beyond school.

Recognises individuality – Every pupil is different. Each child brings their own interests, previous experiences, and feelings about being active. Recognising this helps teachers create inclusive lessons where every learner can find something that resonates with them, and tailor the experience to suit individual needs, aspirations and preferences.

Acknowledges personal experiences - A child’s relationship with movement is shaped by their previous experiences. These experiences can be both positive or negative, all encounters including, comments from others, family habits, cultural influences, and PE lessons all contribute towards developing a positive, neutral or negative relationship with movement and physical activity. This relationship evolves over time as pupils’ thoughts, feelings, and opportunities change.

Here’s a closer look at the key components:

Motivation

Children playing tug of war in PE—highlighting teamwork, resilience, and physical literacy. A dynamic example of how PE teachers can foster collaboration, strength, and inclusive participation through active, engaging group challenges.

Pupils are more likely to engage in physical activity when it feels enjoyable and rewarding. A sense of fun, success, and positive experiences helps spark that drive. Think of the smile after a pupil finally masters skipping, or the excitement of being part of a team win, those moments fuel motivation.

Confidence

Children need to believe they can take part. Confidence means they’re less worried about making mistakes and more willing to step in and try something new. In lessons, this might look like your students being excited to perform a new skill in front of their peers, or try a new activity for the first time, it could also present as a pupil being hesitant and joining in a game because they feel safe to give it a go.

Physical Competence

A child performs agility drills in a PE lesson, demonstrating physical literacy and competence through coordinated movement. Highlights developing agility, balance, and confidence through sport and improving physical literacy in schools.

Developing a range of physical skills including fundamental movement skills, fitness and motor competence is essential in accessing a range of physical activities. With these skills, pupils gain the practical ‘toolkit’ to join in with a wide range of activities, from PE lessons to playground games, active pursuits and beyond.

Knowledge and Understanding

A group of children huddle during a PE lesson, listening to instructions from their coach. Represents knowledge, understanding, teamwork, and communication as key parts of developing physical literacy and confidence through sport.

Pupils also need to understand why physical activity matters. Linking movement to health, wellbeing, energy levels, and even mood helps them see its value beyond the PE lesson, and in the context of their life beyond school.

The end goal is for pupils to see physical activity as part of who they are, not just something they ‘do’ for a couple of hours a week in school. When pupils value movement, they make better choices: joining clubs, playing with friends, or walking to school, and are more likely to carry these habits into adulthood.

Here’s a closer look at the key components:

Motivation

Pupils are more likely to engage in physical activity when it feels enjoyable and rewarding. A sense of fun, success, and positive experiences helps spark that drive. Think of the smile after a pupil finally masters skipping, or the excitement of being part of a team win, those moments fuel motivation.

Confidence

Children need to believe they can take part. Confidence means they’re less worried about making mistakes and more willing to step in and try something new. In lessons, this might look like your students being excited to perform a new skill in front of their peers, or try a new activity for the first time, it could also present as a pupil being hesitant and joining in a game because they feel safe to give it a go.

Physical Competence

Developing a range of physical skills including fundamental movement skills, fitness and motor competence is essential in accessing a range of physical activities. With these skills, pupils gain the practical ‘toolkit’ to join in with a wide range of activities, from PE lessons to playground games, active pursuits and beyond.

Knowledge and Understanding

Pupils also need to understand why physical activity matters. Linking movement to health, wellbeing, energy levels, and even mood helps them see its value beyond the PE lesson, and in the context of their life beyond school.

Why Physical Literacy Matters

For PE teachers, physical literacy shifts the focus from simply teaching skills or completing schemes of work to creating experiences where every child feels capable, included, and excited to move.

Focusing on physical literacy supports:

Lifelong engagement in physical activity – Pupils confident in lessons are more likely to choose to be active outside school.

Mental wellbeing – Positive PE experiences boost self-esteem, resilience, and a sense of achievement.

Inclusion – Physical literacy embraces and celebrates everyone’s unique relationship with movement and physical activity.

Participation - PE dread is real. Some pupils avoid lessons by hiding or pretending to forget their kit. A physical literacy-informed approach provides small successes, helps pupils feel included, and reduces anxiety about participation.

Physical literacy provides teachers with a powerful framework to shape a more coherent, empowering, and motivating PE and school sport offer. By focusing on nurturing positive physical education experiences that supports children and young people in developing the skills, confidence, motivation, and knowledge and understanding to become and stay active for life.

Professor Liz Durden-Myers PhD FCCT FRSA FHEA

PE Scholar

You can find out more here: A Physical Literacy Informed Approach to PE - PE Scholar

How To Improve Physical Literacy

So how can PE teachers improve the physical literacy of their learners? As with the definition of physical literacy, the answer lies in taking a holistic approach to physical education, one that focuses not only on physical skills, but also develops the cognitive, emotional and social domains of learning.

Importantly, developing physical literacy isn’t the responsibility of the PE department alone, physical literacy is best implemented when it becomes a whole-school approach. When every adult in school values and promotes movement, pupils are surrounded by consistent messages and positive experiences that strengthen their motivation, confidence, and enjoyment of physical activity.

Here, we explore practical approaches PE teachers can use in lessons and across the school to put physical literacy at the heart of both PE and everyday school life.

1 - Create a broad and engaging PE curriculum

What to do:

Student voice in PE: Collaborate with pupils to shape a curriculum that reflects their interests, needs, and aspirations. Give them a voice in what and how they learn in PE.

Diverse opportunities: Offer a diverse range of physical activities, including traditional sports, inclusive games, and creative movement, to ensure all pupils can find meaningful ways to participate and progress.

Evolve with feedback: Use pupil feedback and reflection to adapt and evolve your offer, ensuring it remains relevant, inclusive, and engaging.

How this improves physical literacy:

A meaningful curriculum lets pupils discover activities they enjoy, boosting motivation and engagement. Success in different activity areas builds confidence, while varied experiences develop physical competence and prepare pupils to participate in a range of activities.

You could broaden your PE lessons and offer diverse opportunities with these non-traditional sports below.

Suggested Equipment

YST Boccia Ball Set

£121.50

£121.50 ~~£135.00~~

Choose options

Omnikin Indoor Kin-Ball 48"

£325.00

£325.00 ~~£325.00~~

Pickleball United Starter Pack

£190.00

£190.00 ~~£190.00~~

2 - Embed Physical Activity Throughout The Day

What to do:

Whole school day movement: Encourage meaningful movement beyond PE lessons: breaktimes, lunchtimes, classroom transitions.

Active play spaces: Set up activity zones or active play spaces using outdoor table tennis tables, playground markings, or interactive playground equipment.

Movement breaks: Organise short “meaningful movement breaks” during lessons or challenges like my personal-best competitions.

How this improves physical literacy:

Embedding activity throughout the day helps pupils see movement as an important part of everyday, not just the days they have PE. Regular practice improves skills, builds confidence, and keeps motivation high.

You could encourage meaningful movement all around school using these products designed for active play at breaktimes, lunchtimes, and transitions.

Suggested Equipment

Butterfly Playground Table Tennis Table Outdoor

Choose options

Butterfly Playground Table Tennis Table Outdoor

From £800.00

From £800.00 ~~£800.00~~

Copy Me Marking - 2.5 x 1m

£275.00

£275.00 ~~£275.00~~

Choose options

Corner Skills

From £1,999.00

From £1,999.00 ~~£1,999.00~~

3 - Encourage Pupils to Focus on Their Personal Best

What to do:

Focus on personal goals: Shift the focus from competition to self-improvement. Let pupils set personal goals for skills, fitness, or participation.

Celebrate progress: Track progress over time using progress charts, fitness journals, or digital trackers, celebrating even small improvements.

How this improves physical literacy:

When pupils focus on their own progress, they gain confidence and are less anxious about PE. Seeing their improvement keeps them motivated, and it helps them take responsibility for their own learning and enjoyment of activity.

Why not support pupils in focusing on their own progress? These products make it easy to track improvement and set personal goals.

Suggested Equipment

YST My Personal Best Planner Primary Age 4-7 + 7-11

£55.00

£55.00 ~~£55.00~~

Vertical Jump

£225.00

£225.00 ~~£225.00~~

Fastime 01 Stopwatch

£9.00

£9.00 ~~£9.00~~

4 - Link Learning to the Wider World

What to do:

Make PE relevant: Connect lessons to everyday life: explain how stamina, coordination, and strength help with daily tasks.

Teach health and wellbeing: Include health education: nutrition, sleep, recovery, and overall wellbeing alongside physical activity.

Build in time for reflection: End lessons with reflective questions: “How can today’s skills help me outside school?”

Model active behaviour: Tell students about your own movement journey and lead by example with active habits.

How this improves physical literacy:

Showing pupils how physical activity matters in wider life will support PE feeling more relevant and meaningful. It helps pupils understand why being active is important, feel more motivated, and see that the skills they’re learning can really make a difference in their daily life.

You could bring learning to life and show pupils the real-world benefits of activity with these products focused on health, wellbeing and and the joys of exploring the outdoors.

Suggested Equipment

Choose options

Laminated A1 Poster

£19.00

£19.00 ~~£19.00~~

Fully Automatic BPM

£65.00

£65.00 ~~£65.00~~

Nature Explorer Kit

£74.00

£74.00 ~~£74.00~~

Final Thoughts

Physical literacy is about more than movement, it’s about helping pupils build the motivation, confidence, and understanding they need to stay active for life. As the International Physical Literacy Association reminds us, it’s a lifelong journey, and with support from expert partners like PE Scholar, teachers have the tools to make that journey meaningful.

By embedding physical literacy into your PE lessons, you're not just teaching skills. You're shaping attitudes, building resilience, and creating moments that matter, like the quiet pride of a pupil who finally joins in, or the joy of a class celebrating personal progress. These are the experiences that help children see movement not as a task, but as a part of who they are.

Want to learn more?

Try these resources:

Blog by Dr Durden-Myers – A Physical Literacy Informed Approach to PE.

PE Insights Podcast: Dr Liz Durden-Myers - Physical Literacy and the 'Combination Lock'.

References:

International Physical Literacy Association (IPLA), n.d. About. [online] Available at: https://www.physical-literacy.org.uk/about/ [Accessed 22 September 2025].
Sport England, 2023. Physical Literacy Consensus Statement for England published. [online] Available at: https://www.sportengland.org/news-and-inspiration/physical-literacy-consensus-statement-england-published [Accessed 22 September 2025].

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