This is Living Barry! – South Hedland Primary School Visit

James (Senior Mentor), Jordan (Programs Coordinator), and South Hedland Primary School Student - Lou-Anne

Met with a sunny change from the gloomy weather in Perth, Dr. Garry Tester (CEO Sports Challenge), Jordan de Leo (Programs Coordinator) and James Durack (Senior Mentor) arrived on the tarmac of Port Hedland. At the airport, they were greeted with a warm welcome from South Hedland Primary School principal and fishing guru Daryl Mansfield. If this welcome change in weather wasn’t an indication for the exceptional program ahead then the successful afternoon fishing trip definitely was.

The three day visit was jammed packed with programs for both the students and the teachers respectively. The fitness testing was up first and was well received by the students who showed a great interest in each of the seven key areas of fitness, which have been successfully implemented over the past 25 years. The program tests the students on a number of areas of their personal fitness and provides valuable data for the school to gauge where they sit compared to other schools, and where the students sit against their peers.

After lunch, Jordan led from the front with a valuable session on diet and nutrition which was a hit with the students, who got hands on with the activities provided. Each student had the chance to engage in a diet and nutrition survey and a ‘Q and A’ about what foods were healthy and beneficial for physical and mental health. This was followed by a colouring activity as well as a short story and video for the younger students who really enjoyed it.

South Hedland Primary School Student Goal Setting

Day two was packed to the rafters with the fitness and diet program which ran as smoothly as it had on day one. It was great to see the school come together for a lunchtime performance from a hip-hop dance group, which got the kids up and grooving.

The Sport Challenge mentors kicked off the after lunch session in the same style with a great short dance video in which the kids could follow along. It was great to see every student participating in the activity with prizes given out for outstanding effort.

On the final day, Dr Garry Tester ran a superb P.D. session for the teaching staff. After a number of hours of careful planning the program was ready to be delivered, and delivered it was! Garry started with a valuable insight into how to interpret the fitness testing data and the key indicators for staff to monitor when implementing their own fitness sessions. This was well received by the staff who were given additional material to aid in their own daily P.E. It was also great to see James reuniting with his Year 3 teacher who had taught him back in his hometown of Margaret River. It just goes to show how small the world really is.

That was a rap. A great program from all involved.  With a huge thanks to Daryl Mansfield and Julie Rose, who were both extremely accommodating and helped make the program a real success. Big thanks must be given to the rest of the staff who all helped out where they could. We look forward to our next trip.