In the City of Surrey, 600 children aged 6 to 12 will take part in the after school sports programming initiative set forth by the Surrey School District called the Jumpstart Academy. The Jumpstart Academy will run twice a week in 10 inner-city schools for the remaining weeks of the 2010/2011 school year. This after-school organized sport initiative is targeting ‘at risk’ youth within the district, and its purpose is to promote access, inclusion, participation and a sense of belonging in low income, immigrant and Aboriginal children ages 6 to 12, who do not have the means to participate in sport, organized or otherwise. Best part of all; it will take place right on school grounds following the final class bell for no cost, directly removing some key participation barriers.
The programming within each school will include one hour of RunJumpThrow, and an hour of other basic sports skills, twice a week for each of the groups: Kindergarten through grade 3 & grade 4 through 7. A group of 30 students have been identified in each school in each age group.
RunJumpThrow (RJT) will be delivered to 300 children in grades K-3 in 10 inner city schools (30 children per school), two days a week, for one hour, throughout the school year. The skills acquired through RJT will help these children develop physical literacy and a positive self image, laying a strong foundation for continued sports participation through their lives.
Another 300 children, the second group of the Academy, grades 4-7 will also receive RJT instruction in the same 10 schools (30 children per school), two days a week, for one hour. This group will participate in RJT activities and in track and field, mimicking the K-3 schedule, but their focus will also include learning how to lead peers and younger students in games during lunch hours and recess in their school.
The Surrey School District partnered with the local YMCA to utilize their Instructors as the site leaders for each of the schools involved. The YMCA has 150 years of experience in providing programs for children and youth and provides their staff with the ongoing training they need to support each child’s development. Creating full community involvement, 40 high school students were chosen as ‘youth leaders’ and have been trained to assist in the delivery of RJT to the 600 children in the Academy. The high school students and YMCA staff completed a full weekend of training in RJT and other sports components.
The Jumpstart Academy began its delivery on Monday, October 18, 2010 in the 10 initial Surrey schools. Plans for expansion across other schools in the District are being formulated for January 2011.
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