Sport For All – Play For Life
The Aspen Institute Project Play created a document, Sport For All, Play for life. A Playbook to get every kid in the game. The Aspen Institute wants all children to have the opportunity to be active through sports. As part of this goal, the suggested model is for every child to be physically literate by age 12. Ultimately, that every 12 year old should have the ability, confidence and desire to be physically active for life.
As part of the report they suggest 8 strategies sport organizations, coaches and others can use to help every child become physically active through sports.
- Ask kids what they want!
- 9 out of 10 children say “fun” is the main reason they participate in sports
- Reintroduce free play
- Let kids play on their own terms and they will
- Encourage sport sampling
- More options mean more kids will find a sport they like
- Revitalize in-town leagues
- Children need a better pathway in sports than ‘up or out’
- Think small
- Fields of dreams are great- but innovate and they will come
- Design for development
- Kids need a new measure of success: personal improvement
- Train all coaches
- A good coach sees the potential in every child
- Emphasize prevention
- Better equipping coaches to prevent injury may help keep kids safer and ease parents’ concerns
In the full report, the Aspen Institute provides ideas for each of these strategies whether you are a National Sport Organization, community recreation group, pediatrician, school or parent!
To read the full report, download here: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/publications/sport-all-play-life-playbook-get-every-kid-game/