Niche question: hockey with no protection

[OpiningGambit]

Just wondering if there are any PE teachers out there?

I'm in primary, and we are doing hockey this term. I've been doing dribbling and passing, but I'm wary about doing matches/games as we have wooden sticks but no protective equipment! When I was at school we had shin pads etc.

I feel like getting competitive without is going to be a recipe for disaster! Is this something where you would say you just can't do matches as it's not safe, or am I trying to wrap them in cotton wool (and avoid lots of injury forms!)

As a hockey player and coach I would say shin pads as a minimum. You really need mouth guards too.

I certainly wouldn't let my own children play without both and I check all my younger team members before a match begins.

However, if you can get even one child to love hockey you've given them something they can carry on with for most of their adult life.

Love hockey 

I didn't even think about mouth guards!

Some of them are on the football teams and are already bringing their own shinpads in, but there aren't any for PE lessons, sadly.

They do enjoy it. Something about having a big stick

I didn’t have anything 24 years ago, it wouldn’t have occurred to me but dhinpads and mouth guards sounds good-could you ask your Pta?

Are you using proper hard hockey balls?

Shin pads would be a minimum & mouth guards are advised but not sure you can get them at primary school.

Maybe instead of tackling do a game where they can only make 4/5 passes before it goes to the other team?
Also no goalkeepers as that really does need protection.

Good point you could try playing with tennis balls.... I've done it in training drills before.

I've seen some horrific mouth injuries so probably am cautious.

DS started playing hockey in Y6, both in Primary school and also at the local hockey club.

For both he had to have mouth guards, wouldn't be allowed to play without them

Contact England hockey.

You need Quikstiks kit and instructions.

Like an updated, better unihoc using plastic kit but the proper hockey rules.

Depends on age of kids but my 5 year old plays without safety kit as ball barely moves and it's closely supervised but older kids all wear gumshield and shinpads

Check the AfPE guidance. You should be following what that says or you may invalidate the school's insurance if there is an accident.

At my school, any form of tackling in practice or game requires shin pads and mouth guard. Any child without them can only participate in passing, dribbling shooting practices or umpiring.

We have the plastic sticks and the lighter, plastic balls to avoid the need for shinpads and mouth guards. I'd still rather we had them, but am at least glad that we got rid of the wooden sticks - which have caused injuries in the past when children have forgotten and raised the stick behind them too high into someone else's face .

When mine did hockey at primary school it was quick sticks - so plastic balls and sticks. My ds was one of the few who also played for a club at that age - and they insisted on gum shields and shin pads right from the start at age 6 or you could not join in any training. At 8 one of the other boys had his nose broken by an over enthusiastic back swing with a stick. Certainly wouldn’t have done his teeth much good if it had been a bit lower.

Would the PTA be able to help fund?

(Our secondary school requires shin pads and recommends mouthguards)

Wow, I wasn't expecting this response!

We have have hockey balls, but have only been doing dribbling and some gentle passing with them. Anything more exciting and it'll be tennis or foam ones.

We do have some plastic sticks, but quite a lot of them are broken, so not enough for even 1-between-2.
Perhaps we can spend some of our new 'little extras' money on new ones

I'll have a look and see if we can do some competetive games which aren't actually hockey matches! My class this year are perfect angels, but last year I wouldn't even have got them out - someone would have lost a tooth!

We do a lot of drills that don't require sticks. Like having a load of balls on the pitch and the running around and when whistle blows, squatting down to touch the balls.

It helps kids to understand they need to get low without bending over.

Good luck

Our primary and secondary require mouth guards and shin pads, supplied by home.