Book Nook - Making Every PE Lesson Count: Six principles to support great physical education teaching

PE provides a unique opportunity for students to flourish: some become professional athletes, others achieve excellent outcomes from exams. However, if you ask any PE teacher, their main aim is for all students to leave school with a love of physical activity and the lifelong habit of participation – at any level of expertise.

Premier Education explains that “Physical education has long been the undervalued – and often dismissed – subject. Derided as a ‘break’ from the more important academic lessons, PE has a reputation for being merely a chance for kids to slack off and play a few games.”¹ But the subject’s benefits on physical, mental and social health are undeniable. Remaining active is vital for children and young people and it’s crucial to establish these healthy habits early on. PE is therefore fundamental to society in that it acts as a vehicle to promote physical and mental wellbeing, resilience, and determination.

Written by James Crane, Making Every PE Lesson Count: Six principles to support great physical education teaching offers a fresh perspective on teaching PE and embedding the subject into students’ lives in the long term. This insightful guide provides realistic and practical strategies that will help teachers make abstract ideas more concrete and meaningful in all PE lessons, both practical and theory. Making Every PE Lesson Count focuses on all aspects of PE in high schools with reference to real-life examples and experiences from a huge range of sports and physical activities and classroom theory.

Writing in the engaging style of the award-winning Making Every Lesson Count series, James articulates the fundamentals of great PE teaching and shares evidence-informed strategies designed to challenge students across all aspects of the subject. In an age of educational quick fixes and ever-moving goalposts, this precise and timely book returns to the fundamental question that all PE teachers must consider: ‘What can I do to help my students thrive in the wide world of physical education?’





James unpacks how teachers can achieve this very goal in Making Every PE Lesson Count. This practical guide is underpinned by six pedagogical principles – challenge, explanation, modelling, practice, feedback and questioning. Good PE teaching should contain all these principles, not as a checklist or plan as such, but to ensure that teaching is well structured and thought out. This book will enable all PE teachers to implement these principles in their own settings and provide them with evidence-informed strategies that they can try out to make every PE lesson count.




The book contains an in-depth explanation of each pedagogical principle in respective chapters, which are all outlined with: Practical strategies backed up by evidence from educational specialists, findings from cognitive science, as well as real-life examples and experiences from experienced PE teachers.
Accessible and transferrable ideas that can be used and adapted in any setting or at any level.
Reflective questions that will allow teachers to sharpen their practice.James is a passionate advocate for the importance of PE and his book offers a valuable insight into fostering a life-long love of physical activity in students. Students get one chance; high school lasts from the age of 14 to 18. James says: "We have that relatively short period of time in which to foster a love of sport and physical activity and give students the best chance of achieving excellent outcomes in PE. Let’s not waste time. Let’s ensure we provide a high-quality, evidence-informed educational experience for each and every student that we come across.”






Suitable for PE and sports teachers at any level, from ECTs to department leads.





1 ‘Why PE is Important for Health and Personal Development’, Premier Education, 2024. Available at: https://www.premier-education.com/news/why-pe-is-important-for-health-and-personal-development/