Game sense is an approach to teaching physical education that emphasizes learning through modified games rather than drills. It moves away from an authority-based, skills-focused model towards one where students discover skills and develop understanding through self-directed play. Game sense provides a more enjoyable learning experience for students, promotes inclusion, and helps students develop transferable tactical skills and strategic thinking.

1. GAME SENSE
What is Game Sense, and why is
it being used?
Stage 2: YEAR 4

2. ‘CAN WE PLAY THE
GAME ALREADY?!’
This is usually one of the first questions that
children will ask when they are made to simply go through
the motions time and time again.
While teaching skills through drills is useful and even
sometimes essential for the development of children; they
often miss out on elements of fun, surprise, challenge and
overall, a broader understanding of PE. It is through game
sense that such issues can be addressed.

3. WHAT IS GAME SENSE?
Game sense is a variation of Bunker and Thorpe’s Teaching Games For
Understanding model (Pill, n.d.). It is an approach to teaching physical education
that:
⚽️ Moves away from traditional, authoritative, technique based, skills and drills
education and towards learning that occurs through experience, exploration,
questioning and reflection.
 Emphasises learning through playing the game, where the game becomes
the heart of the lesson and facilitates the development of participants’
movement skills as well as their decision-making, tactical understanding and
problem solving abilities (Light 2006).
 Rests on a learner-centered or constructivist learning approach, which sees
that participants’ skill development are left for their own discovery as they play
games with one another. Participant’s are actively engaging and drawing on what
they know to construct learning and understanding (Mandigo et al., 2007).

4. WHAT IS GAME SENSE?
 Uses modified games to give participants opportunities to develop their
fundamental movement skills and other vital skills that work within game
conditions, such as understanding, communicating, tactics and decision-making
(Mandigo et al., 2007).
- Modified games from categories such as Target, Net and Wall,
Striking/Fielding and Invasion/Territorial.
 Understands that while technique is important; perception, tactical and
strategic thinking is just as vital to becoming proficient and successful game
performers (Light, 2006).
- Coaches/teachers use guiding questions and cues rather than direct
instruction to stimulate thinking and problem solving, getting participants
to think and talk about play and performance to generate understanding.

5. WHY IS GAME SENSE IMPORTANT?
Game Sense offers a holistic approach to both the teaching and learning of
physical education. It is this knowledge that informs my use of it. However, my
use of a Game Sense approach is also influenced by the fact that it can provide
your children with many other important benefits. Game Sense:
 Provides students with more enjoyable learning. Learning or more
specifically, developing skills are not practiced in isolation and focused on skill-based
drills. Rather, learning occurs through the context of direct game-play,
which increases participant’s motivation and enjoyment levels and in turn also
promotes for a healthier lifestyle!
 Offers students a place of inclusivity as all students are invited to participate
and are included in the game regardless of their level of skill and competence.
This sees that they can enjoy a sense of belonging.
- Modified games can be continually pulled apart and restructured to cater for
each and every one of your children’s individual differences.
- Also, no students are picked on as there are no ‘real’ wrong or right way to
perform skills. Creativity is encouraged.

6. WHY IS GAME SENSE IMPORTANT?
 Provides student with purpose, making their learning more meaningful as
the development of skill and understanding are contextualized. Learning occurs
in relation to the game setting and learning occurs when students discover it for
themselves, giving students reason and appreciation as they see first-hand the
value and importance of developing a certain skill.
 Increases students’ autonomy because they are made active in their own
growth and learning. The lack of authority and direct instruction gets students to
critically think about what they are doing for themselves, understanding for
themselves why they need to perform a certain skill. Therefore, they are
responsible in identifying and discovering their own strengths and limitations and
their own unique abilities.

7. WHY IS GAME SENSE IMPORTANT?
 Equips students with skills that enable them to participate in a variety of
games and modified sports. Students’ skills are developed in broader contexts
and in-keeping with similar game concepts across a number of sport. As a result,
both their technical and tactical skills are transferrable to other games. Thus,
increasing their ability to participate in a range of sports successfully. As an
added bonus, this will also increase their confidence levels and promote for a
healthy and active lifestyle.
 Allows students to develop and use tactical and strategic thinking as
questioning and periods of reflection are integral to Game Sense. Games are
stopped at regular intervals to give students the time to think, talk and report
back on play and performance, i.e. analyse situations, identify what needs to be
done, how to do it, consider options and ways to improve. Less explicitly, this is
also facilitated through giving students changing aims and objectives that they
need to adapt to or overcome.

8. REFERENCES
• Board of Studies, New South Wales. (2007). Personal development, health and
physical education K-6: Syllabus. Retrieved from:
http://k6.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/330e5ccb-782a-
432b-8ce5-122a8c42967e/k6_pdhpe_syl.pdf?MOD=AJPERES
• Light, R., (2006). Game Sense: Innovation or just good coaching? Journal of
Physical Education New Zealand, 39(1), 8-19.
• Mandigo, J., Butler, J., & Hopper, T. (2007). What is teaching games for
understanding? A Canadian perspective. Physical & Health Education Journal,
73(2), 14-20.
• Pill, S., (n.d.). Teaching games for understanding. Australian Sports
Commission. Retrieved from
http://www.ausport.gov.au/sportscoachmag/coaching_processes/teaching_g
ames_for_understanding