Inspiration

Interested in learning more about how to help children and young people get more active? Then hopefully you’ll find the following information useful!

Physical literacy

Physical literacy has been adopted by the WHO and numerous governments, organizations and agencies around the world to combat physical inactivity and sedentary behaviour, as it has been proposed as the “gateway to active participation”. The application of physical literacy to enhance the quality programming in sport, recreation and education sectors is clear, however physical literacy also has a unique role for designs of places including playgrounds, parks, indoor and outdoor facilities, as well as urban design.
See short interviews, introductions of physical literacy.
See keynote presentations from IPLC 2019.

Benefits of being active

The importance of getting our children more active is something that more and more sports organisations in countries around the world are highlighting. Here’s one very charming and thought-provoking example from Wales Sport Wales – Physical Literacy.

Change the Game launch on 27/9 2014

The launch took place on 27/9 with Star Raiders, try-it-yourself activities and pep-talks in which leading experts exploded some old myths about children and young people in sport.

See interviews and seminars from the launch day.
See pictures from the launch day.

Exercises from Star Raiders

Here are all the exercises from the event 2014, complete with instructions on how you as a trainer can set up your own activity course and help practise the various physical challenges.

Age-appropriate training

Adjusting Star Raiders according to age is a key element. The science behind the course comes from a book written by among others Professor Michail Tonkonogi. Watch the film about the book which is available from SISU sports books.

Physical base

The importance of children building up a solid physical base is something more and more sporting organisations in various countries are working towards. Here is a thought-provoking example from Wales Sport Wales – Physical Literacy.

Education and guidelines

Västerbotten’s Sports Confederation is the Swedish Sports Confederation’s regional arm in Västerbotten. Here you can read about education, Swedish sports guidelines, instructions (in Swedish) and more.

Canadian Model

There’s talk about a fundamental shift in the way we should engage children and young people in sport. One reason for this is that our children’s health is in overall decline. This film from Canada shows how the population is being informed of the importance of encouraging children to lead active lifestyles.

Sport-related education

Umeå’s School of Sports Science at Umeå University offers many sports-related education programs and courses and conducts research in many different fields.

New development models

More and more national sports organisations, speciality sports bodies and others involved in sports in Sweden and abroad have begun establishing new development models based on the latest research. ‘Sport for life’ in Canada, ‘Idrotten vill’ here in Sweden. ‘Changing the game project’ in the USA and the Swedish floor ball’s development model are just some examples. This film illustrates USA Hockey’s new philosophy.

Perseverance pays off

The key to success is perseverance “grit” according to Angela Duckworth in her fascinating Ted Talk.

Sustainable and healthy sport for children

Here is an interview with Professor Joan Duda about how leaders and parents can create the right conditions to enable children’s sporting activities to contribute both to their well-being and performance development.

And here is her lecture on the same topic held on September 24th 2014 at the School of Sports Science at Umeå University.