A project to promote language, movement and personality development for children and young people through football in Switzerland.

Exercise, sport and play are elementary components of a children’s development and have the potential to support children and young people in their holistic development and to promote curiosity, empathy, social interaction, learning, joy and much more. At the same time, the “key competence of language” is a prerequisite for individual participation in education, work and wider social life. Both language development and physical activity behavior in Switzerland are characterized by strong inequalities, with children and young people from socio-economically challenged backgrounds are at a disadvantage. These inequalities often lead to deficits in school performance, physical and mental well-being, and personal development. The primary school age sets the tone; a habitus established at this age is just as important is just as crucial for later sporting activity as sufficient language skills for the subsequent educational transition and later educational success.

Integrative power of football

In order to meet these challenges, the project “Football for Life” aims to support children and young people aged 8-13 years (grades 3-6) from challenging socio-economically backgrounds through the integrative power of football. “Fussball fürs Leben” is based on the tried-and-tested programme “Fussball trifft Kultur” by LitCam gGmbH in Germany, which has been implemented since 2007 and is now active in around 30 locations. The project approach combines weekly football training sessions that are sensitive to language development with regular cultural events, such as a children’s press conference with professional football players. The football training sessions and excursions are organised and delivered by multidisciplinary teams comprising students from PH Bern, coaches from local grassroots sports clubs, and teachers from the participating primary schools. The weekly sessions, which take place at the participating primary schools, playfully and interactively integrate topics related to football as dynamic opportunities for language use. For instance, activities during training include discussing player roles, understanding team dynamics, or collaboratively developing game strategies, all of which are purposefully utilized to enhance the children’s language skills. At the same time, the focus is on developing motor skills, football-specific techniques, and promoting values such as fairness, teamwork, and self-efficacy. At the heart of all project activities lies the development of personal and social competencies in the participating children, based on the established and award-winning SA4D approach, which fosters life skills through sport and play.

Language, movement and personality development

Using playful and activity-orientated methods, the project seeks to increase the joy of speaking and to introduce the children to movement and strengthen their existing joy of movement. The project activities are intended not only to support the children’s language and motor skills, but also strengthen their personal development. The project thereby aims to contribute to the reduction of inequalities in education and physical activity and to support the participating children in their development into self-confident, healthy members of an inclusive society.