P.L.A.Y.S (Participate, Learn, Achieve, Youth, Soccer) Program
This project's parent organization is Chicago Fire Foundation
It operates in United States
It uses Football (Soccer)
Entered the Best New Project
More about P.L.A.Y.S (Participate, Learn, Achieve, Youth, Soccer) Program
Sports programs are perceived as important for recreation, not necessarily important to academic or personal development. The connection between physical activity and learning extends beyond the classroom as sports participants are more likely to develop healthy habits to support their success.
The Foundation created P.L.A.Y.S. (Participate, Learn, Achieve, Youth, Soccer) Program, a unique initiative using soccer to explicitly teach Social and Emotional (SEL) traits that students can apply to academics. SEL traits that align with academic success are inherent in sports. These programs lead to proven outcomes and demonstrate the importance of sports, which benefits youth on and off the pitch.
Studies have identified third grade as critical for predicting how well students perform academically in the future. For this reason, the P.L.A.Y.S. Program was developed for third through fifth grade students. According to Donald J. Hernandez, Professor of Sociology at Hunter College, third grade represents a pivotal point in a student’s academic career. He found students are four times more likely to drop out of high school if they are behind in third grade. Supporting these students through