Handball
I wasn’t interested in handball at the beginning, I did not have a very thorough knowledge of it, so I had to study a lot with the help of many friends in this. Over time, I noticed the passion that girls had for the game, the desire to train and the love to practice this discipline and I was quickly “overwhelmed” by their enthusiasm; as a result I started studying even more, because I wanted to give my best for them.
Handball lessons are a lot of fun, and the girls’ love for the game gets bigger and bigger every time. In beginner lessons, for boys and girls aged 6 to 13, we play many games, which are essential for the child to enjoy the game and better understand it. This does not mean that these activities cannot be carried out by older children, on the contrary: even high-performance athletes use these methods in order to interrupt the tiring training routine. During the workouts with girls aged 13 to 17, I always use many games while developing technical, tactical and physical skills even more.
Socio-emotional work is very important with both children and adults: I am convinced that sports training cannot be separated from individual growth. Therefore, in every lessons I show interesting and inspiring examples or videos with content related to healthy habits, positive and constructive choices that we can make for our lives.
Sports education, besides being necessary for a good physical shape, prepares young adults and children for the challenges they will face in life and helps them develop the skills necessary for school, professional and personal success. A balanced use between ludic activities and training contributes to the human and cognitive development of the individual. According to the famous pedagogist Piaget[i], the game has a close relationship with the intellectual development and it acts as an incentive and motivation along the teaching and learning process. Likewise, sports plays an important role in stimulating curiosity, initiative and self-confidence, which favours the development of language, thought and concentration (VYGOTSKY, 1989)[ii].
In 2015, when I started teaching handball (as well as with soccer), it was very difficult for me to create a training routine, but, thankfully, the girls understood the rules of the game very quickly. From 2015 to 2019 we participated in the Bahian Scholastic handball championship, the FEEPS (Sports Festival of the Private Schools of Salvador), the Bahian Clubes Championship, the Subúrbio Ferroviário Sports Festival, the Playing with the Seasons Tournament, the Friendship Tournament , the Marta de Souza Cup and the Campina Grande handball cup.
In 2019 we had a unique experience in the city of Campina Grande, where we went to participate in an important handball tournament, the Campina Grande Cup. It was a very tiring journey, we spent 16 hours in a bus, but it has been 7 days of joy and special coexistence; for me it was an exceptional moment, which summed up the amazing years of work at the João Paulo II Educational Centre. During the trip we were able to share experiences such as taking the girls to museums, visit tourist sites and the historical places of Campina Grande. For me the most significant part of the trip, besides the tournament result – which was really satisfying – was the opportunity that the girls had to get to know people from other places, different cultures, in an intellectually rich exchange.
In 2017, the boys also started playing handball, but it took longer for them to take an interest in this discipline since the majority of them preferred playing football or basketball. Over time, however, even the boys began to learn more about this sport and became passionate, so today there is a group that is training and improving.
For me, as a teacher, it is an honour to work at the João Paulo II Educational Centre and to make a small contribution to this magnificent project, which is crucial for the education of children and young people in this community. We have a high-quality structure and equipment, which makes working at the Centre much easier. All the colleagues who work with me and who are the real promoters of the success of the activities are another incredibly positive factor. I thank everyone who is working today and worked at the Educational Centre for their valuable contribution.
Today, as a handball enthusiast, I’m doing my best to help train these guys. And I am very grateful for their trust and affection, which have significantly changed me as a person.
André Luiz Freitas Borges
[i] Jean William Fritz Piaget, 1896- 1980, Switzerland
[ii] Lev Vygotsky, 1896-1934, Russia
Futsal
I worked as a five-a-side football teacher for two years. It was a great challenge because there were many children in the training groups, and it was difficult to create a lesson routine.
In 2015 we participated in the Gabriel Cup and the JOCOPPAR School Championship (Salvador’s private school games) in the children category (mirim and chicks). The Gabriel Cup was particularly important for us, because it’s an event organized in the community and we had a wonderful time in the Church dedicated to the Risen Jesus Christ, promoter of the event. It was also our first important result and the boys were very excited, because it was an event in their community. In the JOCOPPAR championship the boys played outside the community and were enthusiastic about the idea of leaving the neighbourhood to play: for many of them it was their first opportunity to get to know other parts of the city. Participating in the Jocoppar championship was also of great importance to make the Educational Center known in the city.
An important factor that led to positive changes in the behaviour of the kids at the Centre was the possibility sports activities offered them to to meet people from other areas of the city and share their time with them. At the beginning our athletes had an aggressive behaviour towards their team-mates; however, this behaviour was not repeated with other teams. On the contrary, during the matches the boys of Nova Geração have always maintained an exemplary behaviour. I worked a lot on the relationships to create a healthier environment for the boys. In fact, we registered a significant improvement on the side of the behaviour; while I think there is still a lot to work on as for the interest in studies.
Besides the tactical and technical content, the lessons always focus on the history of futsal, its origins and its rules. I also focused on the socio-emotional content, which is an important tool to improve children’s behaviour.
Socio-emotional education consists of learning something that goes beyond the purely cognitive and physical aspect, because it involves the development of attitudes related to the individual’s character and values: empathy, communication, respect, tolerance, critical thinking, ecc. During the lessons I gave the boys many examples related to their daily life. For example, if a quarrel occurred during the lessons, I would mention an example that showed the importance of being tolerant and respectful with classmates. This process was very interesting, and we noticed a big improvement in the boys’ behaviour.