Get Active at Home — #StayHomeStayActive, Personal Challenges and Pupil Wellbeing
A working library of activity ideas for Leeds North West pupils to use at home, on the move and during the school day. Built for parents, teachers and pupils themselves — no equipment assumed, no garden required.
Why #StayHomeStayActive Started — and Why It's Still Useful
#StayHomeStayActive launched during the 2020 school closures as a partnership response to a real problem — pupils were losing not just school PE but the structured movement that came with the school day (walking to school, break time, lunchtime). The original resource pack was a set of teacher-recorded video sessions, parent-friendly activity cards and a daily challenge calendar.
What's interesting is that the pack stayed useful after schools reopened. The mix of low-equipment activities, no-garden-needed games and short routines turns out to be exactly what families want for school holidays, illness recovery weeks, and the dark winter afternoons when getting outside is hard. It's still maintained as a live resource on the #StayHomeStayActive page.
Home-Learning Activity Packs — KS1, KS2 and SEND-Friendly
The current resource set has three tracks. Each is designed to deliver 30 active minutes per day across a week without needing more than a hallway and a chair.
KS1 pack (5–7 yrs)
30 activity cards. Fundamental-movement focus — balancing, hopping, throwing, catching. 2–3 minute activities. Visual instructions; minimal text. Pet-friendly versions for families with dogs.
KS2 pack (7–11 yrs)
60 activity cards plus a personal-challenge tracker. Skills get more specific (basketball dribble, badminton wall-rally, skipping double-unders). 5–10 minute blocks. Suitable for solo or with a sibling.
SEND-friendly pack
All activities adapted for chair-based, single-side or limited-mobility participation. Sensory considerations called out (sound-quiet versions of each activity). Co-developed with SEND specialist colleagues.
All three packs download as printable PDFs plus an interactive digital version. Parents can request hard copies via their school's PE lead.
Personal Challenges That Pupils Will Actually Finish
The trick with personal challenges is that they need to be short enough to be finishable in a week. Month-long challenges fail at the first missed day; weekly challenges that pupils can restart on Monday actually build habit.
Five challenges we know land well:
| Challenge | Year group | Time per day | Why it works |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 skips in a row | Y3–Y6 | 5 min | Clear measurable target; failure visible immediately; pupils can self-coach using YouTube tutorials |
| 10-day plank progression | Y4–Y6 | 1 min | Tiny daily commitment; visible weekly improvement; no equipment |
| Active mile (run/walk) | Y1–Y6 | 10 min | Time-based not pace-based; introvert-friendly; school can run it as a class version |
| Wall handstand hold | Y5–Y6 | 2 min | Strength + balance challenge; visible progress in days; very low equipment |
| Catch & throw streak | Y1–Y4 | 5 min | Hand-eye coordination; siblings can pair up; non-competitive ladder |
The partnership runs a quarterly Personal Challenge of the Month linked into the #StayHomeStayActive resource — schools can opt their year groups in.
Active Breaks During the School Day — 5-Minute Resets That Work
Active breaks aren't the same as PE. They're 2–5 minute resets inserted into a normal classroom lesson — usually between subjects or 20 minutes into a long stretch of seated work. Done daily, they add 15–25 minutes of MVPA per day without using any timetable slots.
What works in a Leeds primary classroom:
- Wake Up Shake Up routines — the partnership's morning routine works mid-afternoon too; pupils know the choreography already.
- Just Dance / GoNoodle short clips — pre-curated playlist of 3-minute clips at the right activity intensity, screened by partnership.
- Active maths starters — times-tables-with-jumps, fraction relay, shape hunts. Curriculum content; movement scaffolding.
- Stand-up writing breaks — pupils stand to write or read for 5 minutes; not high-intensity but breaks sedentary time.
- Classroom yoga / mindfulness — 3-minute teacher-led sequence; physical activity + emotional reset.
Health and Wellbeing — Linking Activity to Mental Health
The link between physical activity and child mental health is now uncontroversial — UK and international evidence converges on it. The partnership treats wellbeing not as a separate strand but as an outcome of the active-day approach.
What the link actually looks like in school practice:
Anxiety reduction
Pupils with regular MVPA report fewer anxiety symptoms (parent-survey evidence). Brisk activity 10 minutes before SAT-style assessments demonstrably reduces self-reported test anxiety.
Better sleep
Children with at least 60 active minutes per day sleep on average 22 minutes longer and report better sleep quality. Late-evening high-intensity activity can disrupt sleep — earlier in the day is better.
Mood and self-image
Strongest evidence base. Regular physical activity in pre-teens reduces depressive symptoms and supports positive body image — particularly in girls aged 9–11 where the steepest drop in activity typically happens.
Behaviour and focus
Schools running active breaks daily report fewer afternoon behaviour incidents and longer on-task time in the lesson following the break.
For Parents — Building an Active Routine Without a Garden
Most family activity programmes assume a garden, a park within walking distance, or a car for ferrying. None of those are universal across Leeds North West. The partnership's parent-facing resources lead with what's universal — a hallway, a stairwell, a couple of chairs, and 10 minutes.
A starter weekday template:
| Slot | Activity | Duration | Equipment |
|---|---|---|---|
| After school (3:30–3:45) | Walk-and-talk round the block / nearest green space | 15 min | None |
| Before homework (4:30–4:35) | Active reset — 5 of: jumping jacks / star jumps / squats / hops | 5 min | None |
| After dinner (6:30–6:45) | Family game — catch and throw, balloon volleyball, indoor obstacle course | 15 min | Ball or balloon |
| Pre-bed (7:30–7:35) | Gentle stretching or yoga sequence | 5 min | None |
That's 40 minutes of varied movement, none of which requires outdoor space, special equipment or sibling co-operation. The partnership publishes a fuller family routine builder in the parent resource pack.
FAQs and Where to Find the Activity Resource Pack
Where do I download the #StayHomeStayActive resource pack?
Is there a version for secondary-age pupils?
How does this fit with the school's PE programme?
Are the resources free?
Can community organisations (Scouts, Brownies, after-school clubs) use the resources?
