Integrating Indigenous Movement Cultures for Global Competence and Holistic Development

This session explores how integrating indigenous and traditional games into physical education can foster cultural competence, social-emotional learning, and inclusive practice. Drawing on global examples from Polynesia, East Asia, Africa, the Americas, and Europe, participants will discover strategies to embed cultural heritage into PE through a three-level integration model: festival alignment, thematic units, and cross-curricular links. Attendees will gain access to practical tools, including game instructions, cultural calendars, and lesson adaptations, enabling them to create meaningful, culturally rich learning experiences. Educators will experience a variety of movement cultures through practical learning in a jigsaw learning format. The session emphasizes decolonizing curriculum, honoring ancestral knowledge, and positioning PE as a vital space for building global citizenship and student belonging. Engaging, interactive, and ready to implement, this approach transforms PE into more than movement, it becomes a celebration of identity, community, and the stories that shape us.