High School Soccer: Integrating Training in the Curriculum
We educators and coaches are always looking to enhance student well-being and achievement. While extracurricular activities offer certain advantages, integrating performance soccer trainingwithin the school day presents a compelling opportunity to leverage the game we love for broader development.
1. Enhanced Academic Performance:
We all know in hearts as we were ourselves student-athletes looking out the window drying our eyes wishing that we could be there, and yes! research demonstrates that exercise, prior to academic instruction can significantly improve cognitive functions crucial for learning as well as prosocial behavior. Specifically, physical activity has been shown to enhance focus and concentration, facilitating improved information processing.¹ Moreover, exercise stimulates neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity, promoting memory consolidation and cognitive function.² This neurological vitamin shake translates to improved planning, organization, and time management, all essential for both academic and athletic pursuits.
2. Strengthened Familial Engagement:
Quality family time has been lost to the demands to the misnomered "soccer academies," impeding meaningful familial interaction every single night.. and weekend.. and vacation.. and. Family time is an American Value! Yet, even the most "family-centered" "America Values" folk have sacrificed the core our American core, the family dinner, to the "elite" soccer club (Not really and academy.) Research emphasizes the importance of parental involvement in a child's educational trajectory.³ Integrating performance soccer training into the school day alleviates the time constraints imposed by after-school activities, freeing evenings for families to engage in more enriching interactions. This time shift allows for more opportunities for communication and stronger emotional bonds within the family unit.
3. Mitigation of Stress:
As I eluded to earlier the traditional after-school routine {Insert image of; parent in car, on sideline} generates stress for both parents and children. "Hurry up! You're going to be late" "Sorry. I'm running late." Parents face the pressure of balancing work commitments with transportation logistics and childcare arrangements, while students experience the burden of transitioning rapidly from academic extracurricular demands, or faced with a choice to prioritize one over the other. Performance training in the school day streamlines these schedules creating a better work/academic-life balance.
I can address the answers on "How?" this can be done in the comments. Or, better yet visit my website fairosport.com , email fairosportsoccer@gmail.com , or give me a call! I am a people person and love talking soccer and education. 509-903-6901
Footnotes:
¹ APHCS. (n.d.). Academic Programs. UNC Charlotte. Retrieved from https://aphcs.charlotte.edu/academic-programs/undergraduate-degrees/bachelor-science-exercise-science/health-and-fitness/
² Shape America. (2020, August). Why Physical Education and Physical Activity Are So Important for Early Learners. Shape America Blog. Retrieved from https://blog.shapeamerica.org/2020/08/why-physical-education-and-physical-activity-are-so-important-for-early-learners/
³ A.E. Casey Foundation. (n.d.). Parental Involvement Is Key to Student Success, Research Shows. Retrieved from https://www.aecf.org/blog/parental-involvement-is-key-to-student-success-research-shows