Game Sense Approach

1. GAME SENSE APPROACH
GUIDE FOR PARENTS
By Marriam Americanos

2. WHAT IS A GAME SENSE
APPROACH?
 Game Sense was developed in Australia in the mid 1990s and is categorized
under the teaching games for understanding model (Pill, 2012).
 The purpose of Games Sense is to to play a game first and then skill
development will occur subsequently, after players have a greater
understanding of the game itself. The game is the focus of the lesson, rather
then the execution of skills, as players are given the opportunity to discover
what specific skills are needed to achieve results. (Pill, 2012).
 A Game Sense Approach is quite different to the traditional way of teaching
games, as there is less emphasis placed on mastering technique and more
emphasis placed on playing and understanding the game (Light, 2012).

3. Generally, teachers that use a game sense approach start with simple games and
activities and progressively build upon these games by adding more variations, in
turn making them more challenging (Light, 2012).
An essential component of Game Sense is the posing of questions by the teacher
after the game/activity has finished, such as:
 Where were the best places to run to receive the ball?
 What made it difficult to receive the ball?
 How did you overcome these challenges? What did you do?
Traditional teaching models did not necessarily produce smart game players,
where as a Game Sense Approach fosters game appreciation and develops
players cognitive skills, as well as fundamental sports skills (Pill, 2012).

4. FOUR GAME SENSE CATEGORIES
The Game Sense approach categorizes team games into 4 areas:
 Target; golf, archery, darts, bocce
 Striking (or fielding); baseball, cricket, softball
 Net and Wall; volleyball, tennis, badminton
 Invasion (or territory); football, soccer, hockey, netball

5. RATIONALE & DISCUSSION
 What are the benefits of Game Sense for my child?
 What would Game Sense look like in a PDHPE lesson?
 How is Game Sense related to the syllabus?

6. WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF
GAME SENSE FOR MY CHILD?
 Engaging and appealing way for students to develop their cognitive skills
and fundamental movement skills, whilst simply ‘playing’ a game.
 Employs a questioning component, rather then a feedback component,
allowing students to identify what worked well for them in the game and
what they could improve on, ultimately encouraging self reflection and
critical thinking.
 Provides students with the opportunity to take control over their learning,
which often leads to more meaningful learning. This is also referred to as
a learner centered approach.
 Players acquire cognitive skills that are transferable into real life settings,
such as decision making, teamwork and strategizing.

7. WHAT WOULD GAME SENSE
LOOK LIKE IN A PDHPE LESSON?
1. Teacher provides brief explanation of game and rules
2. Game Play (teacher observes)
3. Teacher makes variations; to vary difficulty
4. Teacher poses questions to players during game
5. After game, instead of giving feedback to players, pose more questions
about game play
(Nicolas, 2014)

8. HOW IS GAME SENSE RELATED
TO THE SYLLABUS?
Students will build upon all 5 skills outcomes outlined in the PDHPE
Syllabus for Stage 2 (Year 3-4):
 Communicating (COS2.1)- Students will be encouraged to participate in
class discussions about their involvement in the games.
 Decision Making (DMS2.2)- Students will be provided with the
opportunity to make their own decisions regarding game play, and will
learn how to make decisions within a group.
 Interacting (INS2.3)- Students will be exposed to interactive activities
where they will need to demonstrate tolerance of students with ranging
physical abilities and social interaction skills.
 Moving (MOS2.4)- Students will demonstrate an ability to execute a
variety of fundamental movements to familiar and new games.
 Problem Solving (PSS2.5)- Students will be encouraged to use a range
of problem solving strategies during the game and after the game, during
the questioning component. The teacher will pose questions to the class,
to trigger students to problem solve.

9. REFERENCES
Light, R. (2012). Games Sense: Pedagogy for Performance, Participation and Enjoyment. Retrieved from
http://www.eblib.com.
Nicolas, R. (2014). The Skill Based Approach vs. The Game Sense Approach. Retrieved from
http://www.rogettenicolas.com/reflective-blogs
NSW Board of Studies. (2007). Personal Development, Health and Physical Education K-6 Syllabus. Sydney,
Australia.
Pill, S. (2012). Teaching Game Sense in Soccer. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 83(3), 42-52.
doi 10.1080/07303084.2012.10598746