This Spring, Savannah got to participate in a soccer clinic for 2- 3.5 year olds. She loved it and said all the time- "I need to go play soccewwr" This is the first special thing that Savannah has ever gotten to do all by herself. She is such a trooper going to Skylar's doctors appointments and therapies, we were so happy for her to have something to call her own. Soccer was on Tuesday mornings and Skylar has three therapies between Tuesday and Wednesday- so, it made for a busy 24 hours- but it was soo worth it!
She started out as the only girl in the class and then two other 3 yr old girls joined. She was also one of the youngest in the class and it was clear how much difference there is between a 2 yr old and a 3.5 yr old. In the beginning she was able to listen/follow directions about 25% of the time, and by the end she was at least 50-75% of the time. Not the worst listener of the class :) Actually, when she was focused and paying attention she was unstoppable- and seriously a little soccer superstar. And then she would reach her attention limit and start playing with blades of grass or putting cones on the ball or cones on her head. She learned a lot though and can definitely dribble the ball pretty well.
The program was hosted by our professional team the Richmond Kickers. Coach Luke is a player on the team and he was amazing with the kids. He had a whole organzied agenda of drills, skill training, and games. Every class he would go over his two main rules of soccer 1) Listen to what your coach says and 2) No Hands! He would get everyone to repeat- no hands! But that is a hard one to learn:) He would also have all the kids stand around him and lead them in exercises and he would really say stuff like- 'we're working on your core strength' or 'you should feel that burn in your quads'. But he said it with such a straight face...you could tell he took his job seriously and that he fully expected these kids to feel the burn and be leaving his class with greater soccer skills than they came in with. He also made up great games and would have the kids chasing him around the field and having a great time. They ended every class with each child getting to score a goal and everyone cheering. It was such a great experience for Savannah. I think she is going to be a sports lover.
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Coach Luke and the kiddos
Following Coach Luke through the obstacle course
A few videos of Savannah's soccer skills in action: dribbling, touching the ball to her feet, and jumping through the rope ladder with the ball
