Playing sports gives every child experiences and skills that will help them get a taste of early success. Such experiences can boost their levels of confidence, promote self-esteem and improve their psychological well-being.
Though there are a plethora of social, physical and mental benefits one can gain from sports – the opportunities, especially for our daughters are limited. Equal participation for young girls playing sports is still hampered by social factors. Though their participation has steadily increased over the years, we still have to ardently encourage them to excel in sports as we do for young boys.
The EL Play program over the years has severed as an opportunity for young girls to break free from discrimination and pursue their passion for football. To endorse and support young girls’ sports participation we formed our first Learning Community (for children) to guide them towards addressing restrains in their homes and at the community level.
To spread awareness among communities and parents in suburbs like Malad along with our coaches, their primary well-wishers – several activities were planned to effectively inform communities and build positive mindsets to help young girls actively use their playgrounds in their own localities. Street plays, pamphlet distributions to bring attention to the cause, and other artistic methods such as singing were used to spur dialogue and interest within the communities.
“The streets of Malad seemed like a fair, celebrating some kind of festivity during the street play that was orchestrated by young girls who were a part of the Learning Community,” said Shaheen (EL Play coach). Community members, parents and others, all gathered at the small event. During the play, the girls elicited responses from the crowd that was present. It was evident that the community favoured the idea through positive interactions that took place.
Later that week, the girls split into small groups and carefully allotted areas for each other to distribute the awareness pamphlet they put together. The pamphlet helped in receiving opinions and ideas which further gave the girls a chance to persuade locals to act upon their call. Even though the discussions were short, they developed into good opportunities and gave them the optimism to speak about their needs and aspirations.
Many girls who came aboard after watching the street play expressed that they’d never before actively taken part in sports due to several reasons, even in school – but now are encouraged to pursue sports along with their studies. The group of girls that were initially inducted went door to door inviting other young girls to join the movement. The number of girls participating became more and more after each event took place. From 15 girls, we ended up having 75 girls on board partaking in this awareness project.
In this journey, eventually, the girls ended up with a lot of support from their parents giving them the courage to take a stand for their rights to play sports.
To memorialize this collective effort by the Learning Community participants, our coaches conducted a sports event in a close-by public football turf/ground. All girls partook in the games, while their parents watched their daughters showcase their skills.
The main outcome for us to create this opportunity was the allow them to take charge and influence their community with confidence, and strength. The diverse competencies that we witnessed while they executed the entire project were a positive reinforcement of our Vision – Every Child Can be a Leader.
Storyline and Facts by Shaheen Siqqiue(EL Play Coach, Mumbai), Ashraf Shaikh (EL Play Coach, Mumbai) & Rushikesh Gaikwad (Operations Manager – Pune & Mumbai)
