The PDHPE & CAFS Podcast with Kelly Bell

Still teaching food with red, orange and green? There might be a better way. This week on The PDHPE and CAFS Podcast, we are rethinking how we teach food and nutrition in our primary classrooms, and why the language we use matters more than we think. Kate McGill is back, and this time we are talking food. We get into the trouble with the traffic light system, why good and bad food labels inject sh...

The Missed Opportunity in Every HMS and CAFS Classroom There is one task sitting in both your HMS and CAFS courses that quietly decides how ready your students are for Year 12. Most of us are wasting it. It is the big student-led research task: the Collaborative Investigation in HMS, the Independent Research Project in CAFS. We hand students total freedom too early, they pick a topic that sounds e...

Some of the most common things we do in Health and Movement Science look like solid teaching, but they're quietly costing our kids marks. In this episode I'm walking you through the four biggest culprits I see again and again: teaching content without bringing it to life, death by PowerPoint, examples that are too generic and the one hurting kids most in year one of the new syllabus, not knowing t...

Body image is not just a high school issue. It starts younger than most of us realise. This week on The PDHPE and CAFS Podcast, Kelly Bell sits down with Kate McGill, accredited practising dietitian, body image coach and presenter with the Butterfly Foundation. Kate brings warmth, lived experience and real expertise to a conversation that matters for every classroom, from Kindergarten right throug...

Drug education is in your 7-10 PDHPE program. But what does the evidence actually say works with Stage 4 and 5 students? Kelly sits down with Associate Professor Emily Stockings from the Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use at the University of Sydney to talk about vaping, prevention and what PDHPE teachers can do right now in their 7-10 PDHPE classroom. They unpack why v...

Most primary teachers were never taught how to teach PE. They were handed a ball, pointed at an oval and told to get on with it. So it is no wonder that so many feel underprepared, under-resourced and unsure of what a good lesson even looks like. This episode changes that. Kelly breaks down the five elements of an excellent primary PE lesson, from fundamental movement skills to student leadership,...

If you and your Health and Movement Science students are picking Collaborative Investigation topics that feel disconnected from the rest of the course, this episode is for you. The CI is one of the most powerful tasks in Year 11 Health and Movement Science but only when the topic is chosen well. In this episode, Kelly walks you through 8 content-connected CI topic ideas, 4 from Focus Area 1 and 4...

In this episode of The PDHPE & CAFS Podcast with Kelly Bell , Kelly is joined by PDHPE mentors Lyndelle Batten and Tara Steinbeck to unpack the new K-6 and 7-10 PDHPE syllabuses for NSW teachers. Designed for busy educators, this episode explores key syllabus changes, practical planning strategies, and ways to reimagine PDHPE with a stronger focus on movement, health, wellbeing, respectful rel...

This week on The PDHPE and CAFS Podcast, we’re sharing a special repurposed interview where Kell joined Ash from Rainbow Sky Creations to talk all things movement, primary PDHPE and classroom confidence. If you’ve ever thought, “I’m not sporty” or felt nervous about teaching PE, this episode is for you. Kell unpacks why physical education is not the same as sport, how simple movement breaks can su...

This week on The PDHPE and CAFS Podcast, I’m joined by Jade Wholohan from Netball NSW and we’re unpacking how to confidently bring netball into your PDHPE lessons, even if you don't love netball or have not played it before. We talk about where to start, how to simplify the rules and why netball is one of the most powerful ways to build teamwork, fundamental movement skills and student confidence...

In this episode, I share what I’d do differently if I started teaching Community and Family Studies and Health and Movement Science because now I have clarity on what actually improves student learning. We unpack the shift from doing more to doing what works, moving from covering content to teaching students how to think, apply and respond, and from constantly creating new lessons to refining the...

If you are teaching K-6 PDHPE or 7-10 PDHPE, you already know that not every student learns, focuses or engages in the same way. And for many teachers, supporting students with ADHD and neurodivergent needs can feel overwhelming. In this episode of The PDHPE and CAFS Podcast, I am joined by ADHD coach, educator and consultant Kimberley King to unpack what is really happening for students with ADHD...

If you're teaching Health and Movement Science, you know this challenge… How do we take concepts like biomechanical principles, movement efficiency and technology and actually apply them within the course in a meaningful way? In this episode, I sit down with Patrick Lancaster from Proform Institute to explore how these key concepts can be brought to life within the HMS syllabus. This conversation...

Primary teachers and PDHPE teachers everywhere are using brain breaks. But most are missing a huge opportunity. In this episode, I share a simple  5-minute shift that can transform classroom movement breaks into powerful learning moments. We explore the latest Australian research on children's physical activity, why many kids are not developing fundamental movement skills, and how short bursts of...

This week on The PDHPE and CAFS Podcast, I'm joined by Lyndelle, primary PE RFF teacher and K–6 Primary PDHPE Mentor, to simplify Fundamental Movement Skills under the new NSW K–6 PDHPE syllabus. We unpack what demonstrate, apply and refine actually look like in practice, how to explicitly teach movement using I Do, You Do, We Do, and how to shift from "just playing sport" to purposeful Physical E...

What actually separates average responses from high results in CAFS and Health and Movement Science? After spending 20 years involved in HSC marking, I've seen clear patterns in how students gain and lose marks. In this episode, I unpack the practical lessons learned across two decades of working within the HSC marking space and supporting teachers and students to achieve stronger outcomes. We exp...

Teaching PE in your NSW primary school can feel overwhelming, especially when confidence is low, ideas run dry and the curriculum is already packed. In this episode, we chat with Ash from Rainbow Sky Creations about how to build confidence teaching PE in NSW schools without adding more to your workload. We unpack why so many classroom teachers feel unsure about PE, how to stop reinventing lessons...

The new K-6 Primary PDHPE syllabus is in its plan and prep statge, but many NSW primary teachers in implementing and as a result feeling overwhelmed before they even begin. In this episode, we break down where to start with K-6 Primary PDHPE so you can move from confusion to clarity without adding more to your already full workload. We unpack what is actually changing, the biggest challenges prima...

Another year of primary PDHPE, PDHPE, CAFS and Health and Movement Science is here and if you're already tired, you're not alone. In this episode of The PDHPE & CAFS Podcast, we get real about what it actually takes to survive another year in the classroom without running yourself into the ground. We unpack burnout, boundaries, workload pressure and the mindset shifts that help you reclaim you...

This final episode for the year is a personal reflection on big lessons that shaped me and my work supporting busy teachers of PDHPE, Community and Family Studies and Health and Movement Science across NSW. This year stretched me. It challenged how I work, how I lead and how I protect my energy. From the importance of support and systems to knowing when to ask for help and stop playing small, thes...

In this episode, we explore why PDHPE in primary schools is far more than sport and nutrition it's a critical foundation for every child's health, wellbeing and learning. With only 26% of Australian children meeting daily activity recommendations and one in seven experiencing mental health challenges, the role of PDHPE has never been more important. We unpack the research, the rising need for move...

In this episode, we chat with Jamie Gerlach CEO of 4 CTL as we unpack what real transformation looks like in schools and why primary and high school teachers of PDHPE are uniquely placed to lead it. We explore how learning shifts when teachers focus on agency, connection and the 4Cs creativity, critical reflection, communication and collaboration. Jamie highlights the importance of teaching beyond...

In this episode, we explore food sustainability with OzHarvest Australia and what it really takes to help our students build healthier habits. As NSW primary teachers and high school PDHPE teachers, we know food choices are shaped by access, equity, culture and education, not just what's on the plate. We look at the challenges around food waste, food insecurity and misleading nutrition messages an...

Are your CAFS students struggling to move beyond a Band 3 or 4? In this episode, we break down exactly what separates Band 5 and 6 responses from the rest and how you can teach these skills with confidence in your classroom. Drawing from 16 years of HSC marking experience and insights mentoring thousands of CAFS teachers spanning 15 years, in How to Strengthen CAFS Student Responses for Band 5 &am...

Why is CAFS still getting a bad rap in NSW schools? It's time to challenge the outdated perceptions and show just how powerful this subject really is. In this episode, I unpack the misconceptions that still surround CAFS and how passionate, collaborative teachers are rewriting the narrative through innovation, connection and impact. If you're tired of fighting the same battles alone, this one's fo...