P E question.

[Ineed2]

Don't post in here very often but I have a question regarding learning to do a forward roll!!

My Dd3 [8] who is being assessed for an autistic spectrum disorder has come home with a certificate from school today congratulating her on her resilience when learning to do a forward roll.

We are aware that she has coordination issues but I am sure my other 2 girls learned to do a froward roll long before year 3! Also she could do one when she was at preschool.

School do not recognise her special needs and have always told me she is working within the national average in PE. Is this within the national average for a year 3 child to not be able to do a forward roll.
Just wondered if anyone had any ideas on this

Just to add she was rather insulted to be called up in assembly for this!!

To do a forward roll with technical precision - correct stance, hands position, legs tucked in, stand up straight, etc, etc, is quite some skill. To master it well in Y3 is pretty good imo - it's something I've never been able to do well, anyway.

Lots of my year 7 still can't perform a forward roll. You would be suprised how many cant do it.

Oh ok, thats fine I just wondered, I suppose when you think of the whole sequence it is complex. I suppose I just assumed she could do one.

Although she did tell me yesterday that she was never going to do one because when she did it in the swimming pool she banged her head... now thats Dd3 logic for you.

Thanx for the replies

No idea of what is within the range of "average" to be honest, but my dd is five and has been able to do a forward roll for around a year. From my general observations, I suspect that she is one of the least agile children in her peer group, and so I would guess that most of her friends can probably manage them quite easily too.

Not with technical accuracy though! And that's what we have to teach in gymnastics. We still practise them in Y5 and Y6 and as Cascade said, in Y7. We don't say 'Nah, they can all 'do' them, so we aren't teaching then any more. Even the best ones need to practise!

Yes, fair enough Feenie. Though I must say, my dd is doing pretty well with the technical stuff as well. She has a very good teacher!

But I'm not sure if the OP was talking about when children learn to do the perfect forward roll, was she? I imagine that lots of kids never get it absolutely right...

So that's why her dd went out in assembly - she can do one especially well! Common enough occurence in primary schools, honest. Although maybe someone should explain it to the op's dd!

Maybe I mis-read the OP, but I thought she was saying that her dd couldn't yet do one.

Yes, there are forward rolls and then forward rolls.
The younger child version tends to end up sideways a bit for at least th first few years.

Magic mummy... you read it right, the wording was

" resilience when learning to do a forward roll".

She can't do one but has been learning to do one.

I think the teacher should have explained the wording too.

There are forward fling yerself forward and do a vague roll things, and forward rolls.

Is this where I confess it took me a good 30 minutes on a PE course to do a backward one to the instructor's standards? I just don't have the momentum not to end up like a grounded tortoise!

DD (who does gymnastics club) does beautiful forward rolls, and has just learned proper backward ones (straight line, over her head). Her big brother rolls both ways with speed and enthusiasm, but looks a complete mess compared to her, and goes backwards over one shoulder, rather than in a straight line.

I distinctly remember a PE lecture at university - it was the day we broke up for Christmas and the morning after the night before - bastard made us do roll after roll! God knows how I wasn't sick. He must have had a really good laugh about it afterwards, he definitely did it on purpose!

'But I'm not sure if the OP was talking about when children learn to do the perfect forward roll, was she? I imagine that lots of kids never get it absolutely right..'

I very much doubt there are many generalist pe teachers in England who can teach a 'perfect forwards roll'.Maybe an 'ok' one Have seen a Beth Tweddle interview where she describes her own forwards roll as having a lot of room for improvement.

I can teach a perfect forward roll - that's different to being able to do one.

When I was teaching Y3 you would have the whole range in the class - a couple of kids who could do 'perfect-looking' forward rolls, most who could do some forward-moving roll (generally the boys flinging themselves forward a la Karate Kid, over one shoulder, legs and arms anywhere) and about 5 in each class who couldn't do a forward roll at all.

Those children who really kept trying till they succeeded might have had a merit badge/certificate at the end of the week for persistance! I hope none of them were as mortified as OP's DD.

Feenie-Maybe you need to coach Beth Tweddle then!

Galena ... sorry there is quite a lot of backgroud with Dd3 she has a suspected ASD and as far as she is concerned she is perfect in everyway.
She was insulted to be called up in asssmbly because now everyone in the school knows that she struggles to do a forward roll.

I found it slightly wierd that the teacher didn't explain to her what resilience meant!!

Feenie, she actually did do a lovely forward roll across the living room floor yesterday but is still saying she's not goin to do it at school.

Is your DD starting and ending in a tidy squat with her back straight and not overshooting it?, is she keeping her knees together throughout and getting back onto her feet squarely without using her hands?
i see so many youngsters doing what they think is a forwards roll but using a hand or a separated knees, or another little rock to get back onto their feet?

Ha ha lol princess, my Dd3's body in general is organised chaos, I think she is a long way from achieving forward roll perfection.

She is having an OT coordination assessment next week.