Football continues to excite and inspire young people. The world’s most beloved sport, it is enjoyed by millions of people around the globe and in recent years many youth football clubs have seen a rise in numbers wanting to play the beautiful game.
To coincide with the Women's Worlds Cup, we are sharing a free football resource pack (PDF 1.83MB). Made up of five challenges, it also contains activity suggestions and worksheets to record achievements. Learners can create a profile of their favourite footballer and attend a training session in the participation section. The health, fitness and nutrition challenges involve making an exercise plan, as well as planning and cooking a meal for a footballer. Looking at the rules of the game, there is the opportunity to discover more about the role of referees and other match officials.
The resources are based around our Football Short Course, a flexible and multi-level programme for young people of all abilities between ages 11 and 18. The content is learner-led, meaning the individual can boost a wide range of skills through a topic they enjoy. As with all ASDAN Short Courses, the programme allows learners to complete challenges and work on their skills to the level that suits the individual.
Football has the power to inspire and uplift individuals, and our Short Course has the same aim. Alison Widdowson is the Deputy Head of Blue Mountain Homes, a residential facility that offers care, education and opportunities to young people. She previously shared with us the transformative effect the programme has had on one of their learners, Jack.
“Jack has been diagnosed with Global Development Delay Syndrome, which is when a child takes longer to reach certain development milestones. ASDAN's Football Short Course helped to show Jack that he could achieve so much more than he believed… he began to develop a variety of skills and knowledge, not only in practical sports skills but in maths, English, and ICT”.
Jack even took the initiative to arrange an online interview with Derby County goalkeeper Kelle Roos for his final challenge. Through practice and determination, Jack completed the interview and as a result, his confidence was boosted sky high.
“ASDAN’s Football Short Course sparked the lightbulb moment where a young person realised that he could really achieve something,” says Alison. “The key outcomes from ASDAN’s Football Short Course were improved confidence, literacy and numeracy skills, which were all achieved through a passion of Jack’s. ASDAN’s Football Short Course has better equipped Jack for interview situations, while helping him to overcome personal challenges”.
Let us know what you think of this free resource (PDF 1.83MB). Please share your stories and tag us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.
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Get in touch if you’d like to find out more about any of our courses.