Sportz Village Schools Developed Programs To Enable Children To Be Physically Engaged In Safety And Comfort Of Their Homes

By  Mr. Krish Iyengar- Head Sportz Village Schools & Group Head - Marketing, Sportz Village 

How did Sportz Village Schools engage with children during the COVID?  

Children all over the world had their schooling disrupted due to the pandemic. Post the schools shut down in India, Sportz Village Schools developed programs and offerings which enabled children to be physically engaged in the safety and comfort of their own homes. We introduced ‘Play at Home’ a program that consisted of physical education classes with the curriculum suitably adapted to be conducted online. In addition to this, we also developed a web-based platform called ‘Sportz Village Leaderboard’. The Leaderboard incentivized children to be physically active by gamifying different physical activities. With these digital programs, Sportz Village was able to engage with close to 1.5 Lakh children and conducted more than 50,000 sessions. 

How are the programs of Sportz village Schools different from the ones conducted by regular schools and how has the experience been for children?

The Sportz Village in-school program is different from standard Physical education programs in a variety of ways. Firstly the Sportz Village program is implemented with the help of a scientifically designed curriculum. This curriculum is designed in such a way so as to be engaging and inclusive. The Sportz Village program also utilizes props and equipment which is designed as per the age of the children. Our program also has bi-annual assessments which helps track the performance of the child in different fitness and skill parameters. These assessments also help parents identify which sports their child could specialize and excel in. We also provide schools with content that seeks to teach academic concepts through sport.

What measures schools should take for children post-re-opening, to conduct physical activities? 

As recently the government has given a go-ahead to schools to re-open, physical education classes should also be normalised to ensure basic health and fitness of children. Schools need to implement social distancing norms. Sportz Village Schools curriculum has been modified in such a way that there is minimal physical interaction between children and minimal sharing of props and equipment. Although the introduction of these classes is necessary, care must be taken that the children are reintroduced to physical activity in a gradual, phased manner as we must take into consideration their reduced fitness levels. 

How Sportz Village Schools is enabling children to be fit and active?

Sportz Village Schools keep children fit and active through our in-school programs. These programs are a part of the school curriculum and ensures that children achieve the necessary amount of physical activity . These programs are implemented with the help of our dedicated trainers who are experts in their field. They are trained extensively on the Sportz Village curriculum ,both before deployment to schools as well as during refresher trainings throughout the year.  Our programs are also designed in such a way that all children irrespective of age and skill level are meaningfully engaged. The curriculum consists of different lesson plans, which focus on different fitness parameters as well as sports specific skills. The program also consist of a lot of both inter-school and intra-school events which give a children a chance to take part in competitive matches.