Buntus is an exciting Irish Sports Council initiative, which is delivered and supported by the network of local sports partnerships to Primary Schools in Ireland. Buntus is a skills-based programme that provides young people with a quality, fun and enjoyable introduction to physical education and sport suited to their own level of development. The Buntus programme is available to primary schools through the provision of training for teachers, child friendly equipment and resource cards across a variety of sporting activities.

The Programme offers: Two large bags of colourful child friendly equipment, combined with resource cards illustrating a range of progressive activities in the areas of: Rolling; Receiving; Travelling with a ball; Running and jumping; Throwing and catching; Striking and Kicking. The cards have been carefully designed to ensure that children can use them, support the Irish P.E. curriculum and give useful hints to teachers on issues such as safety and organisation.

Following the Buntus training, teachers are then empowered with the skills and resources to use Buntus to support the delivery of the PE curriculum. Quality training for Primary School teachers in the delivery of the programme offers opportunities for enhanced curriculum planning and for increasing the confidence of non-specialist teachers responsible for delivering physical education. Buntus offers a broader skill-based sporting experience for Primary school children increasing participation opportunities for all levels of ability.

In March 2007, the Irish Sports Council officially launched its teacher’s resource DVD for its national primary school sports programme; Buntus. Staff of Waterford Sports Partnership and children from 4th class Waterpark National School, Special Olympics Waterford and the Fun4All sports club were selected by the Irish Sports Council to participate in the filming of the promotional DVD. The DVD shows the practical implementation of the Buntus programme in a classroom setting. The DVD also includes a chapter titled “Sports Inclusion” which shows teachers how to include children with physical disabilities in PE with examples of drills and games and the adaptations that allow for the inclusion of 64 everyone. Skills featured on the DVD include catching and throwing; striking and travelling with a ball, and games include: Catch Up; Treasure Chest; Inclusion Outback; Challenge Relay and Mini Rounders.

Practical tips on adapting activities are highlighted (e.g. Wheelchair users may prefer to begin with a bounce pass or bats and balls may be placed on a chair for wheelchair users), and can be applied to other games and activities included in the Buntus programme as well as other areas of the PE curriculum. This Buntus DVD has been distributed to all primary schools in Local Sports Partnership areas in Ireland to be used as a teaching aid for primary school teachers to assist them in the delivery of the programme. The DVD aims to add to the teacher’s knowledge to include some basic adaption strategies which promote inclusion in PE.

Irish Sports Council
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The DVD described here is a useful teaching aid that shows teachers practical examples of how simple adaptations can be made in a PE class to facilitate inclusion. The DVD aims to add to the teacher’s knowledge to include some basic adaption strategies which promote inclusion in PE. By providing images of the implementation of adaptation in a real PE class it is also hoped to have a positive impact on the attitudes of teachers towards inclusion in PE.

1. Ability to use appropriate instructional strategies (e.g., physical/verbal cues, prompts, feedback, reinforcement)
2. Ability to adapt the rules of games, physical setting , equipment
3. Ability to use task analysis for desirable skill