Key Stage 2 PE · Athletic skills

KS2 running and jumping skills: a guide for parents

In Years 3 to 6, children are taught to use running and jumping on their own and in combination, and to link skills into longer actions and sequences of movement. That means going beyond simply running fast or jumping far. They learn how to run with good technique, how to pace a longer run, how to take off and land safely from one foot or two, and how to join a run and a jump into one smooth movement, such as a run-up leading into a long jump.

Running and jumping, explained

In the early years of primary school, running and jumping are mostly about confidence and fun. By Key Stage 2 the focus shifts to technique and control. Teachers break a skill into a few clear parts and give children one thing to think about at a time. For sprinting, that might be driving the arms back and forwards, lifting the knees, staying tall and pushing off the balls of the feet. Children are often asked to watch a partner and say which of those parts they can see, which builds understanding as well as skill.

Running is taught in two broad ways. Sprinting is about short, fast, all-out effort, with a quick reaction to a start signal. Longer running is about pace: choosing a speed you can keep up, breathing steadily and not setting off so fast that you have nothing left. Children often learn this by running for a fixed time and trying to cover a similar distance each lap, rather than racing each other. Many schools also include relay-style activities, where running is combined with passing something on, and low hurdles or markers, where running is combined with stepping or jumping over something.

Jumping is taught from different starting points. Children practise jumping for distance, such as a standing long jump, and jumping for height, and they learn that a good jump has three parts: take-off, flight and landing. The landing matters as much as the jump. Children are taught to land on both feet with knees bent, like a spring, and to stay balanced for a moment before moving off. Many schools also teach a hop, step and jump sequence, where a child hops (taking off and landing on the same foot), steps onto the other foot and then jumps from that foot to land on both feet. Schools choose which jumps to teach, so your child’s lessons may look a little different from another child’s.

The National Curriculum asks schools to teach running and jumping in isolation and in combination, and to help pupils link actions into sequences. A standing long jump is a jump in isolation. A running long jump joins a run-up, a take-off and a landing, and the speed from the run has to be turned into distance through the jump. Children often find this hard at first, because the fastest run-up is not always the best one: if they cannot control their speed, they cannot take off cleanly. Teachers also ask children to look at their own performance, measure it, set a small target and try again, so the idea of improving is built in.

Words your child will hear

Sprint: A short run done at top speed, with the arms and legs driving hard.
Pace: The speed you choose to run at, so you can keep going for a longer distance.
Take-off: The moment you leave the ground in a jump, using your legs and swinging your arms.
Run-up: The short run before a jump that builds speed to carry into the take-off.
Flight: The part of a jump when you are in the air, when you keep your body shape under control.
Landing: Coming back to the ground safely, usually on two feet with the knees bent.
Personal best: Your own best result so far, which you try to beat rather than beating someone else.

What the National Curriculum says

The programme of study for Key Stage 2 says:

Pupils should be taught to use running, jumping, throwing and catching in isolation and in combination
Pupils should continue to apply and develop a broader range of skills, learning how to use them in different ways and to link them to make actions and sequences of movement.

Objectives from the National Curriculum in England, © Crown copyright, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Try it: improving a standing long jump

A child jumps 1.2 metres in a standing long jump and wants to jump further. What should they change, and how do they measure the result fairly?

Set up. Stand with feet about shoulder-width apart behind a line, on soft ground such as grass or a mat. Choose one landing spot that is clear and flat.
Prepare. Bend the knees and swing both arms back behind the body. Children are often told to think “bend and swing” before they jump.
Take off. Swing the arms forwards and up as hard as possible, and push through the legs so the body goes up as well as forwards. A jump that goes only forwards and low is usually shorter than one that has some height.
Flight and landing. In the air, bring the knees up and reach the feet forward, then land on two feet with the knees bent to absorb the landing. Stay on both feet rather than falling backwards.
Measure. Measure from the take-off line to the back of the heel that landed closest to the line. If the child falls back and puts a hand down, the mark is wherever the hand landed, so it is better to stay balanced.
Compare and choose one change. If the arms barely moved on the first try, make that the focus for the next jump. Jump three times, write down each distance and keep the best.

Swinging the arms strongly, bending deeply before take-off and landing on two balanced feet are the changes most likely to add distance. The child measures to the closest heel mark, records every attempt and compares with their own earlier results, so they can say, “My arm swing gave me 10 centimetres more.”

Common mistakes and how to help

Believing that taking bigger steps makes you run faster

It seems logical that longer strides cover more ground, so children reach forward with the front foot, which lands ahead of the body and acts like a brake.

What helps: Encourage quick, light steps with the foot landing under the body and the arms driving back and forwards. Watching your child run from the side, or asking them to watch you, often makes the difference easy to see.

Setting off as fast as possible in a longer run

Children are used to racing in short bursts, so they treat every run as a sprint and then slow right down or have to stop.

What helps: Try running for a few minutes at a pace where you could still talk. Ask your child to run a second lap in the same time as the first, which teaches them to feel their pace.

Thinking a jump only uses the legs

The legs seem to do the work, so the arms are held still or flung out wide for balance.

What helps: Show that swinging the arms up and forwards helps lift the body. Try a jump with the arms held still and one with a strong swing, and compare how far each goes.

Landing with straight legs or falling backwards after a jump

Children are keen to reach as far as possible and forget the landing, or they are worried about slipping.

What helps: Practise “stick the landing”: land on both feet with bent knees and hold still for a count of three. Jumping on grass or a mat helps children feel safe enough to try.

How to help at home

Set a time, not a race. In a park or garden, ask your child to run for one minute at a steady pace and mark where they get to. Then try again and see if they can reach the same place. It teaches pace without needing a competitor.
Personal best jump. Lay a skipping rope or a stick flat on the grass as a take-off line and have your child jump from behind it. Mark the landing with a shoe or a stick and keep a record of each attempt. Celebrate any improvement, however small.
Hop, step, jump. Mark three spots on the grass and ask your child to hop to the first, step to the second and jump to the third, landing on two feet. Try swapping the hopping foot. It builds balance and strength in each leg.
Stepping stones. On a flat lawn, lay a few skipping ropes or sticks across the grass, a few strides apart. Your child runs and leaps over each one without stopping, which links running and jumping into one movement. Avoid cushions or plates on a hard floor, as they can slide when landed on.
Be the coach. Let your child watch you jump or run and pick one thing to tell you, such as “swing your arms more”. Explaining a skill in their own words is a strong way to show they understand it.