THE SCHOOLS sports festival, featured on our centre pages, is a joy to behold. Paul Bennett s pictures seem to reveal the way in which the 400-odd school children joyfully launched themselves into the event. And the best thing about it? There was a compet

THE SCHOOLS sports festival, featured on our centre pages, is a joy to behold.

Paul Bennett's pictures seem to reveal the way in which the 400-odd school children joyfully launched themselves into the event.

And the best thing about it? There was a competitive element to it.

How many parents can recall the boredom of attending a non-competitive event, where the youngsters carried a bean bag into a basket, one by one, lolloping up and down like automatons.

Children love to compete and there are lessons to learn. Of course, they need to discover how to win gracefully, but they must also deal with the pain of defeat.

And besides competing against their peers, they are able to challenge themselves.

Most of us have discovered life can be a trial and you need to be fully equipped to meet the challenges it throws up.

Events such as the one featured this week will help our children deal with the slings and arrows that life throws at them.

Of all the tools used in the teaching of our children, the polystyrene javelin could prove to be one of the most useful!