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Physical Education

Sprint Starts

Overview

Students practise sprinting short distances focusing on the start position and arm drive.

Learning Objective
Students improve sprint speed by learning correct starting and running technique.

Resources needed

  • Open outdoor space
  • Start and finish markers

Lesson stages

0 / 7 done
  1. 1 Mark a start and finish line 20–30 metres apart.
  2. 2 Teach the sprint start: one foot forward, lean slightly forward, arms ready.
  3. 3 Practise standing starts — no crouching needed.
  4. 4 Run three short sprints focusing only on the first 5 steps.
  5. 5 Teach arm drive: elbows bent, drive forward and back like a piston.
  6. 6 Run full 20–30m sprints.
  7. 7 Race in pairs and time with counting if no stopwatch available.

Tap a step to mark it as done.

Variations

  • Reaction start — go on a visual signal instead of a word.
  • Run three sprints and compare effort.
  • Uphill sprinting for extra resistance.
More information

Teach: sprint, start, drive, lean, arm, fast. Use the phrase 'pump your arms' — it transfers well across languages with a demonstration.

Shorter distances for students who need it. Focus on technique rather than speed.

Are students leaning forward at the start? Is their arm drive helping or hindering their speed?

Mark start and finish with lines in soil or stones. No equipment needed beyond a flat outdoor space.

Students often look down when sprinting. Teach them to look 10–15 metres ahead — looking down slows you down.

Sprint technique is transferable to all running sports. Even a small improvement in start technique makes a significant difference.

Activity details
Primary Medium 20 minutes 5 minutes prep Whole Class, Small Group Outdoor
Topics
Running Speed Technique