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New
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Year 6

The forehand

I can use the correct forehand technique and understand when to use this shot in a rally.

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New
New
Year 6

The forehand

I can use the correct forehand technique and understand when to use this shot in a rally.

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These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.

These resources were created for remote use during the pandemic and are not designed for classroom teaching.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Move: to perform a forehand shot, hit the shuttlecock in the centre of the racket, pointing the racket at the target.
  2. Move: it is important to hit the forehand shot into space, with control, to improve our chances of winning the point.
  3. Think: evaluating our forehand technique helps to identify strengths and weaknesses to improve our performance.
  4. Feel: listening and playing by the rules when trying to win a point demonstrates self-discipline
  5. Connect: cooperating with our partner and feeding the shuttlecock accurately, enables them to improve their technique.

Keywords

  • Forehand - a shot played in badminton from the midcourt and is hit with the front of the hand leading (like hitting with the palm)

  • Space - an open area where your opponent is not standing

  • Racket - an object used for hitting the ball/shuttlecock in various sports, consisting of a net fixed tightly to a round frame with a long handle

Common misconception

Pupils may struggle to throw the shuttlecock into the correct position for their partner to hit a forehand. Pupils may struggle to hit the shuttlecock to the back of the court.

Pupils may need to feed the shuttlecock overarm to get enough power behind their throw to feed to their partners forehand. Place the non-racket foot forward and follow through after hitting the shuttlecock to allow for more power behind the shot.


To help you plan your year 6 physical education lesson on: The forehand, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Provide different sized rackets to help pupils develop their control and accuracy. For pupils who struggle to make contact with the shuttlecock, practise self feeding the shuttlecock against a wall individually so pupils have more attempts before working with a partner.
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Teacher tip
equipment-required

Equipment

1 badminton racket per pupil , 1 shuttlecock between two, 30+ cones

content-guidance

Content guidance

  • Risk assessment required - physical activity
supervision-level

Supervision

Adult supervision required

copyright

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

4 Questions

Q1.
Which skill are you showing when you work well with your partner?
coordination
Correct answer: cooperation
courage
Q2.
Where should you throw or hit the shuttlecock to help you win more points?
Correct answer: into space
into the net
towards your opponent
Q3.
What position should you be in to ensure you can catch or hit the shuttlecock before it touches the floor?
net position
serving position
Correct answer: ready position
Q4.
If your opponent moves towards the net, where would you aim your next shot?
Correct answer: baseline
net
sideline

4 Questions

Q1.
Which part of the court could we aim for to try and move our opponent and create space to win more points?
Correct answer: the channels
the net
the middle
Q2.
What skill are you demonstrating if you always apply the rules of the game as a player, umpire or coach?
Correct answer: self-discipline
self-consciousness
self-awareness
Q3.
Which area of the court do we want to hit the shuttlecock to force our opponent in a defensive position?
the service box
Correct answer: the back
the front
Q4.
Which foot should we step forward with when making contact with the shuttlecock in order to hit our shot with more power?
either foot
Correct answer: non-racket foot
racket foot