At The Youth Life Project one of our goals has been to get more young people active in order to promote physical health, mental/emotional health, and social health.
We know it's important in these current times to try and minimise the build up of young people out in the streets and outside shops and buildings that may cause upset to other members of the public. We as a society recognise that this happens because in some areas there aren't places for young people to go. This is why at TYLP we've taken the step to provide activities and places for young people.
We also understand that with the current financial state of our country not all families can afford to pay for regular activities or training for their children. This is why the activities we provide are free of charge.
Alongside our many workshops that include, beauty, street art, and music, we have also set up the SAY campaign (Swindon's Active Youth).
By setting up this campaign we have created a fun, positive, safe and stable environment for young people to flourish and learn new skills.
The SAY campaign is run by The Youth Life Project and Cheney FC
....In a partnership that combines youth workers and footballers, the young people involved with the SAY campaign can benefit from learning life skills as well as sporting skills.
We asked young people of both sexes what sports they would most like to take part in. Football topped the poll with boys and cheerleading with the girls, so these are the two activities that have kicked off the campaign.
We made the decision to hold both these activities alongside each other as a way of bridging the gap between girls and boys in sports.
This isn't to say only boys should play football and girls cheerleading; In fact we had a young lad who joined in with the cheerleading and enjoyed it very much.
Our aims within this campaign are to teach basic fundamentals, explain concepts, enable the players to think logically and allow opportunities for growth.
We will consistently encourage the importance of being part of a team but as coaches/mentors, we also remember to treat them as individuals because we understand that each child has different learning patterns and different levels of tolerance.
We have made it clear that both cheerleaders and footballers must adhere to a reasonable set of rules both on and off the field and we will not tolerate any rude or insulting behavior.
FOOTBALL
This is led by the players from Cheney FC.
In the football the group of boys were taught a range of skills including heading, passing, shooting, throw ins and penalty taking.
During the SAY campaign the Cheney FC lads have demonstrated they have the skills needed to teach, motivate, and mentor young people within a sporting environment. They've displayed encouragement, understanding, respect, and enthusiasm.
As well as teaching basic football skills they also have the ability to teach good sportsmanship, a love for the game, and motivation.
They communicate well with the young players in a way that gets results and we are very honored to have them working with us.
CHEERLEADING
This is led by the TYLP ladies and was a high energy, fun and friendship building activity. The girls were taught flexibility, rhythm, and the importance of working together as part of a team.
Throughout the cheerleading the young ladies showed a great deal of determination and willingness to learn.
We have gone through many confidence and team building activities with them, which was very helpful as well as important.
Collectively we've made a code of conduct; these are a set of rules and behaviors that the girls felt needed to be met in order to be a cheerleader.
We've came up with cheers and moves to accompany them that were designed to cheer on the footballers and to encourage spectators support.
The young ladies came up with a name for themselves- 'The TYLP Angelz' and a group motto which was "never give up, be yourself, and always do your best"
The TYLP ladies as well as the young people are very enthusiastic and have motivated and demonstrated a lot of spirit which we told them was a key ingredient in being a good cheerleader.
At all the training we have provided healthy snacks and drinks for everyone and we also made goody bags for each child, containing sports related toys. Each child also received a personalised certificate and small trophy.
A lot of time and effort has, and will continue to be put into this campaign in order for us all to achieve a common goal. We as leaders will continue to work hard to motivate and inspire these young children.
The purpose of The Youth Life project is to provide support and guidance to
young people, empowering them to reach their full potential by building a
better and brighter future, not only for themselves but for the next generation
of youth, creating future community leaders and role models. We call this a
'spiral of inspiration'.
We equip young people with the skills required to make positive life
choices and support them in their growth and development.
The Youth Life Project is centered around the voice of the youth, therefore
being the charity they want and need us to be.
© 2011 The Youth Life Project
theyouthlifeproject.org
