Children have a wonderful imagination! Their minds are full of creative concepts and ideas. If this is the case then surely it means having imaginative methods are the best way to teach children in whatever they learn.
Within our toddler football classes we include many imaginative games in order to engage young children, our games ensure children fully participate, and concentrate on their practice, all whilst having plenty of fun!
For example here is one of the games:
The cones in the middle of the exercise drills may just be normal obstacles to parents, however for children these cones are eruptive volcanoes that are not allowed to be touched! Once this concept is introduced, children immediately ask questions “why are we not allowed to touch these?”, ‘’what will happen to you if you touch these volcanos’’, “you will burn your hand”, but you will get a child who has a wider imagination and will confidently give you a quick briefing in front of all the other children and parents. This is a prime example of imagination providing the children with an opportunity to develop their social skills amongst the class. It also helps boost the children’s development of problem solving in their own way.
At the same time importantly when playing the game, children are practicing their dribbling skills whilst trying not to bump into the volcanoes!
We always incorporate imaginative games into our classes to ensure children have fun, learn football skills and build confidence too!
