Talking about PE

Hello, my name’s Jack and welcome to This Week on Premier Skills English. In This Week, we’ve got lots of interesting words and phrases to help you talk about football in English.

If you are listening to this podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify you can also visit the Premier Skills English website at premierskillsenglish.britishcouncil.org where you’ll be able to download the podcast.

On the Premier Skills English website, you can read the transcript and join the Premier Skills English community by completing a language task in the comments section. This will really help you remember the new words and phrases from the stories from the Premier League.

Today, I’m going to do something a bit different. This podcast is part of a partnership between the Premier League and the British Council. The partnership has been going since 2007 and for most of the history of Premier Skills, the project has focussed on supporting grassroots and community football coaching. However, this year, the partnership is working more with primary teachers and the focus is physical education or PE. As part of the project, trainers and coaches from the UK travel across the world to share their experience and run training sessions to help teachers so they are more confident about doing PE with their pupils.

Before I get to PE, I want to look back at the last football phrase and the last fiendish football phrase. If you didn’t hear them last time, here’s one more chance.

The regular football phrase was ******. The clue this time is: the winning team at the Euro 2024 championship will be inscribed on the back of the Henri Delaunay ******.

The fiendish football phrase came from a profile of the Scottish midfielder Billy Gilmour. In the profile, Gilmour is described as having been a ***** ******* at Rangers. This phrase is used to describe someone who demonstrates an incredible talent for something at a very young age. It’s not really football English, but quite often, footballers are described in this way as they all start so young.

This week, the responses were really interesting. The fiendish football phrase was quite challenging as lots of you struggled with it.

Congratulations to Andretorre 102 from Brazil, Gapa fro Korea, Liubomyr from Ukraine, Denis2000 from Belarus, Alex from Ukraine, LeoFabiano from Brazil, Hasan from Turkey, Hermosillo Moreno from Mexico, Kwesimanifest from Ghana, Lukáš from Czechia and Ryohei from Japan. We’ve also had a new comment from Djanjop90 from Colombia. Welcome to Premier Skills English and I also want to welcome back Kwesimanifest from Ghana - we’ve not seen you in ages and also to Liubomyr from Ukraine. It’s really wonderful to see you back on the website with everything that’s been going on in Ukraine.

There will be another football phrase and another fiendish football phrase at the end of the podcast.

So ... today, I want to talk about PE and the different sports and activities and the different ways that PE can help you at school and in life after school. I’ve recorded a role play with two friends and we are are in a cafe talking about our memories of PE. When you listen, I want you to think about the following questions:

• What did Bob and Clare and I like about PE?
• What did we not like about PE?
• What benefits of PE did we discuss?

Role play: Talking about PE

---

Jack: I was driving past school the other day and do you know who I saw?

Bob: Who?

Jack: Mr Lewis.

Clare: Mr Lewis? Is he still there?

Jack: He was on the pitch with some kids ... er ... young ones, maybe year eight.

Clare: I can’t believe he hasn’t retired yet. He must really like teaching PE.

Jack: He wasn’t a good teacher. Did you have him?

Bob: No, I had Miss Robertson.

Clare: I had Mr Lewis. In the first year and again in third year.

Jack: I bet you were his favourite.

Clare: No, I wasn’t.

Jack: Come on! Of course you were. He loved kids like you because you were good at everything.

Clare: Ha ha.

Bob: PE was brilliant. I really miss it.

Jack: Really?

Bob: Yeah.

Jack: I remember too many cold wet winter mornings

Clare: I hated cross country

Jack: But you were really good at it

Clare: Yeah ... I liked running, but not cross country

Bob: I just remember getting very muddy and very cold.

Clare: My hands used to get so cold that I couldn’t undo my laces when we got back.

Jack: I used to play in goal all the time

Bob: You were a pretty good keeper.

Jack: I was never very nimble. I was better in defence or in goal.

Clare: You were just a bit lazy, weren’t you?

Jack: No! But when it was really cold, getting slapped on the thigh by the ball. Ah - that used to sting.

Bob: Oooh - yeah. I remember that.

Clare: Do you still miss it?

Bob: Yeah ... I mean, even on a cold wet day, the chance to get out of a stuffy classroom and just do something physical. I’d choose football in the rain over maths anyday.

Jack: Do you remember the apparatus?

Clare: You mean that climbing frame that was in the gym? The one that was on hinges?

Bob: Yeah - the apparatus. With the climbing ropes.

Jack: I was good at climbing the ropes. And anytime the teacher brought out the crash mats.

Bob: I had forgotten all about that. I loved PE in primary school as well.

Clare: I’m not sure I can remember PE at primary.

Bob: My teacher would always set up obstacle courses with benches and mats and the horse.

Jack: You had a horse in your primary PE lessons?

Bob: Not a real horse. You know, it was a sort of tall box with a padded leather cover on the top that you could climb over or sort of leapfrog.

Clare: I know what you mean. I didn’t know that was called a horse.

Bob: It was in my school.

Jack: I didn’t like gymnastics at primary school. I just wanted to play games.

Clare: Rounders, netball.

Jack: I did actually play netball a few times.

Bob: But that was for the girls.

Clare: Yeah, that wasn’t good. I never liked how boys and girls were treated differently for PE. You got to play football and rugby and cricket.

Jack: You got to play netball!

Clare: Hmmm. The boys always looked like they were having more fun.

Jack: My favourite at primary school was dodgeball. Did you ever play that?

Bob: I never got to play that.

Clare: Yeah, that was really fun.

Bob: It was good though. That’s what I miss. We played loads of different sports ... or at least got to try out lots of different sports.

Clare: We mostly played tennis and netball and hockey in the summer and basketball and badminton in the winter.

Jack: It was mostly just football for me.

Bob: No, you also did trampolining and we all went to that outward bounds place ... what was it called?

Clare: The place near Edenbridge with the climbing rocks?

Jack: That was cool. It was just one term.

Bob: Mr Murray took us.

Jack: He used to be in the army.

Bob: Yeah and he loved teaching rock climbing and abseiling.

Clare: I didn’t really like that. I’m not good with heights

Jack: I loved it. I got ropeburns abseiling. Mr Murray was impressed with my abseiling so I pretended that I was fine but it really hurt.

Bob: See. It was brilliant.

Clare: Yeah - it was good to try out lots of different sports. Hockey was my favourite. I played it right through university as well.

Jack: I loved playing football with all my mates, but I didn’t get on with Mr Lewis.

Clare: Why not? He was lovely.

Jack: Yeah, he loved you because you were good at everything. He just shouted at me and made rude jokes.

Clare: It was all just a laugh, though.

Jack: I don’t know.

Bob: Miss Robertson was great. She really helped me. It didn’t matter if you weren’t very good. As long as you tried, she was really supportive.

Jack: That’s easy for you to say. I bet you were always good at sports.

Bob: No. I really wasn’t. She really helped me and I got a lot better.

Clare: And you love sport now.

Bob: Yes. I’ve always enjoyed sport and it’s helped me stay fit.

Jack: Me too. Perhaps Mr Lewis wasn’t so bad.

---

Before the roleplay I asked you:

• What did Bob and Clare and I like about PE?
• What did we not like about PE?
• What benefits of PE did we discuss?

So. I spoke about quite a few different sports and activities and I was pretty positive, but I only really said that I liked rock climbing and abseiling. I said I liked playing football with my mates, but I didn’t really like my PE teacher. Clare said she liked hockey and said that dodgeball was really fun and Bob liked everything, even when it was cold and wet.

Clare and I didn’t like cross country in the cold and wet and Clare didn’t like rock climbing and abseiling.

We discussed or at least mentioned lots of benefits of PE, but I think the main ones were: a. It got you out of the stuffy classroom and out into fresh air to do something physical, b. You got to try out lots of different sports, and c. It gave us all a love of sports which has helped us all stay fit and healthy.

At the end of the podcast and on the page for the podcast, the task this week will be to answer some questions about your experiences of PE and to think about what benefits you’ve gained from doing PE at school.

But now, it’s time for a sports quiz. In the roleplay, I mentioned 14 different sports and activities and I’m going to challenge you to see how many of these sports and activities you know in English.

Guess the sport

I’m going to describe a sport or physical activity that I mentioned in the story and I want you to try to work out which sport or activity I’m describing.

Activity 1: This is a type of running activity, but instead of running on a running track, you run on a course that goes across fields and along paths and through the ... across natural terrain. When I did this at school, we had to follow a track that went round the school and through some woods along a very muddy path.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is cross country. In school PE, this was just called cross country. However, out of school the activity is often called cross country running.

Activity 2: This is a game that has a very long history in the UK. The rules of the game were first written down in 1845 at a school that has the same name as this activity. This game is very physical and professional players are often very big and strong. The ball is not round or spherical. It’s oval.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is rugby. I only played rugby a few times when I was at school and only during lunch break. I have some friends who went to different schools and they all got injured playing the sport so I’m quite glad that my teachers preferred football.

Activity 3: This is a team game. Each team lines up along the sides of a hall and takes turns throwing a ball at the opposing team. If the ball hits you then you are out and have to go and sit down. So the object of the game is to avoid getting hit.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is dodgeball. The verb to dodge, means to move quickly or skillfully to avoid something. Usually, boxers try to dodge their opponents punches. We also use the verb in a figurative way when politicians avoid answering questions from journalists. So you might hear someone say the politician dodged the questions about the new policy.

Activity 4: This activity was invented in the United States in 1891. It is now one of the most popular sports in the world and is played on a court with two target hoops that are suspended about 2.5m off the ground. Players have to bounce the ball when they move around the court, this is called dribbling. The really good ones can jump and put the ball in the hoop; they can dunk the ball.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is basketball. I saw a report this week on a basketball player in the US who is nearly 8ft tall. He can touch the basketball hoop and pretty much dunk the ball without even jumping.

Activity 5: This activity is also known as rappelling. To do this, you use a rope to sort of walk or jump down a rockface. It’s not normally carried out as an activity on its own, but is done by people when they are mountaineering and caving. It’s also common in films for people in the military to do this to get out of helicopters.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is abseiling. As I say, this is not something that people do as an activity in its own right, but I really did learn to do this in my PE class in secondary school.

Activity 6: This activity is played using rackets and a special projectile called a shuttlecock. You have to hit the shuttlecock over a net that’s raised off the ground. This can be played one-on-one in singles matches or two against two in doubles matches.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is badminton. I like badminton. It’s a strange sport that seems quite easy until you play against someone who is good and then the shuttlecock really flies and the game is very fast.

Activity 7: I’m not sure why I’m quizzing you on this. This activity is the best sport in the world. It’s the most popular sport in the world and ... yes. It’s the best.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

It’s football of course.

Activity 8: This activity was another that is not normally something that people do as part of PE, but I did get the chance to try it out. In this activity, one person tries to .., go up a rock face, like a cliff or a part of a mountain with a rope attached to them in case they fall off.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is rock climbing. A few years ago, I worked with a man whose hobbies all seemed to involve falling off things. He was a very keen skateboarder and he also liked a version of rock climbing called bouldering. Bouldering is like really difficult rock climbing, but on small rocks so you don’t have a rope. You can watch the world championships on YouTube and they are really very impressive.

Activity 9: This is a team game that is played on a pitch. Each team tries to get the ball into their opponent’s goal, using a stick, which is a long wooden bar with a bent bit on the end that you use to control and hit the ball.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is hockey. The name of this sport causes some controversy because there are two main types of the sport: field hockey and ice hockey. Field hockey is played on a grass pitch with a ball and ice-hockey is played on an ice rink with a puck, like a thick plastic biscuit. In the UK, if you say hockey, people will think of field hockey, but in the US and Canada, people will think of ice hockey.

Activity 10: This sport involves performing exercises that are difficult because you need really good balance and flexibility and you also need a lot of strength. The exercises use different apparatuses such as the balance beam, uneven bars, and mats on the floor.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is gymnastics. I find lots of gymnastics very impressive to watch, but a bit strange, especially the balance beam. When I’m watching it, I’m constantly nervous for the gymnast in case they fall off and I think that’s why it’s entertaining.

Activity 11: This activity is one of the most popular sports in the world. It’s a racket sport and it’s played on a court. You can play it on a grass court or a clay court and the objective is to hit a ball over a net so that it bounces inside the court and that your opponent can’t hit back.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is tennis. In the UK, the biggest tennis competition is called Wimbledon and it’s always held at around the beginning of July. For me, it always signalled the start of the summer holidays so everyone loved Wimbledon.

Activity 12: This activity is another incredibly popular sport, though it’s only popular in some countries. It’s quite a hard sport to understand because each team takes turns attacking or defending so you never know who’s winning till the end of the match. The match is played on a grass pitch which is a long thin strip of very short grass in the middle of a large field with a rope at the edge to mark the boundary. At each end of the pitch, there is a wicket which is made of three stumps that are like short posts stuck into the ground with little bars called barrels that rest across the stumps.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is cricket. I did play cricket at school, but I wasn’t a fan. If you’re not bowling or batting, you can end up standing around a lot and not doing much. However, I know some people absolutely love it and one of my colleagues plays for his local team every weekend.

Activity 13: This is a bit like basketball, but you have to pass the ball by throwing it to one another rather than by dribbling or bouncing the ball. Each of the players has a defined role on the court and has to stay in designated areas. In the UK, this is traditionally a sport played by girls.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is netball. I tried joining the netball team when I was in primary school because I thought it would be good to be different. But I’m not very good at sport and in the end, didn’t really enjoy it.

Activity 14: This is one of my favourites on this list. It involves a big apparatus which is a kind of frame with a jumping mat that is suspended by lots of springs so you can bounce on it and jump really high. In the sport, people do special tricks like somersaults and things.

Do you know which activity I’m describing?

The answer is trampolining. I bought a trampoline for my kids a few years ago and they loved bouncing up and down on it. We don’t have it anymore because we moved house, but they are a lot of fun and a good way to do some exercise.

Language challenge

Now it’s time for this week’s language challenge. I have used AI to come up with 10 sentences about the sports I’ve described and I have removed the sports so I want you to fill in the gaps with the correct sports. Now, some of these sentences are a bit tricky. I’m only quizzing you on 10 of the sports and you can only use each sport once. So you might have to use your logical powers as well as your English skills to work out the correct answers.

Question 1: The ________ team practised their passing drills to improve their throwing and catching.

Question 2: Emily won a gold medal in _________ for her flawless routine on the balance beam.

Question 3: The captain scored the winning goal leading his _________ team to win the championship after a thrilling final match.

Question 4: The ________ match lasted for five days and ended in a thrilling draw.

Question 5: The ________ team practised their stickhandling and passing drills.

Question 6: Wimbledon is one of the most prestigious ________ tournaments in the world.

Question 7: She bought a new _________ racket to improve her game.

Question 8: They went ___________ in the mountains during their holiday.

Question 9: She practised her flips, twists and somersaults during her __________ session.

Question 10: She participated in a ___________ race through the forest.

Leave your answers to this language challenge in the comments section on the Premier Skills English website.

Football phrase

Now it’s time for this week's football phrases.

I’ve been reading stories about the summer transfers and so both of these phrases are about transfers.

The football phrase is the verb to ****. In the story I read, it said that the European Champions have strengthened their side. They have ****** Kylian Mbappé on a free transfer.

The fiendish football phrase is much harder. It’s a phrase we use to describe a young player who is impressing everyone and who is quickly becoming more and more popular. Tottenham have already secured such a player, they have brought in Swedish ****** **** Lucas Bergvall.

If you know the answer to the football phrase or the fiendish football phrase, be sure to leave them in a comment on the page for this podcast on Premier Skills English.

Task

The last things I want you to think about today are three discussion questions. These are the same questions I asked you earlier about the roleplay, but I want you to answer them based on your own experiences of PE.

Question 1: What did you like about PE?

Question 2: What didn’t you like about PE?

Question 3: What benefits did you get from PE? Perhaps you got to try out lots of sports or perhaps you developed a lifelong love of sports and exercise. Or did you learn teamwork? Or resilience?

I would love to hear about your experiences of Physical education so please share your ideas in the comments section on the page for this podcast on Premier Skills English.

Before I finish, I am going to go through the answers to the last language challenge.

Question 1: He visited a psychic to get insights into his future and love life.

Question 2: Her athletic performance in the last game was nothing short of spectacular.

Question 3: Despite being twins, they have very distinct personalities.

Question 4: The hikers set off at a fast pace to make the campsite before dark.

Question 5: The young man hired a violinist to serenade his bride on their wedding day.

Question 6: Despite the tough competition, she remains a leading contender in the election.

And that’s all I have time for today. Before I finish, I just wanted to say that I hope you found this podcast useful, and I hope everyone stays fit and healthy and safe.

Bye for now and enjoy your football.