Hot on the heels of working and playing with Stoke City Community Trust, we received an invitation to join Leicester City FC Community Trust as part of ‘World Maths Day’. Needless to say, we jumped at the chance! We had heard so many wonderful things about their pioneering approaches from Mel Kinnear at Premier League Communities and the team at BBC #SuperMovers.
A Real Sense of Community
The welcome from Ryan Bromyard set the tone for the day! He was so proud to introduce us to the rest of the community trust – and rightly so! The team is certainly eclectic – including qualified teachers, an award-winning scientist with a PhD and a SEND specialist whose passion for inclusion shines through their various programmes. Click here to discover just some of the many ways by which the local community benefits! From primary to secondary schools to programmes for older people, this is very much a community trust looking to bring about improvements in health and education.
We already knew that Leicester City FC is very much a family club. We have soon come to realise that they are also true pioneers of Physically Active Learning (PAL). For World Maths Day, 4 local primary schools had been invited to the King Power Stadium to participate in 4 sessions that were active, relevant and fun!
Moving & Learning at the King Power Stadium
One session had the children moving while learning about time and sequences. Another had the children working in teams, recording the time spent balancing on wobble boards before calculating the mean, mode and median! Both of these activities emphasised the need for effective teamwork and co-operation. Watching the children smile and listening to them talking about ways to solve problems was wonderful to behold. To some of their teachers, it was very much a case of “I didn’t know they could do THAT!” Yes, the setting of the stadium helps, but it’s not just the novelty of this particular environment. As one of the visiting teachers commented: “It’s about creating opportunities for children to learn through play. Ryan has certainly up-skilled me. I am now far more confident in leading PE as well as delivering Maths & English in this way.”
Super Stars and Super Maths
Elsewhere in the stadium – in the home team changing room no less – the children were using the shirt numbers to manipulate numbers and calculate totals. This session resonated with our own ethos. The children were moving purposefully across the room, discussing the mathematical operations with their peers – and even 2 of the Leicester City FC squad. Step forward Connor Tee and Marc Albrighton, whose rapport with the children was wonderful. We were smiling when Marc stated, “Maths is usually classroom-based but this is something else…”
Meanwhile, Filbert the Fox was being put through his paces by the children sending him to different seats while developing their understanding of co-ordinates. This activity was reminiscent of a Live Lesson at the Etihad Stadium earlier this season.
Talking with the children and teachers, it was obvious that the day was a huge success – even more so with the appearance of Rachel Riley, who challenged the children with a series of Countdown experiences. She also inspired the children through her own experiences. Her line, “Maths opens up opportunities for life…” certainly had the children thinking in a different way.
Premier League Primary Stars and Podcasts
Thanks once again to Leicester City FC Community Trust – we would love to work and play with you again before the end of the season. To find out more about their work and Ryan’s ethos, check out this wonderful podcast curated by The PE Umbrella. To watch the video about the day, click here.
It’s not just schools and families in Leicester that can benefit. To find out more about the Premier League Primary Stars programmes click here and see what you can do in your locality. It’s not just about kicking a ball! It’s about kicking around ideas for schools and families. The resources are wonderful and we love their eco-campaigning with Sky’s Ocean Rescue #PassOnPlastic campaign.
