Football - What can it teach us from a young age?

When you think of football, you might just think of an energetic, competitive game with the sole aim of kicking a ball into the opponent’s net. Sure, it can be great fun and good for fitness, but isn’t it a little too rough for a preschooler under five? Well, actually football can be so much more than just kicking a ball around with friends. When taught by a knowledgeable coach in a safe, controlled setting, football can speed up the development of a child’s gross and fine motor skills, teach them to balance, and it is also a great way to help them advance their social skills and encourage new friendships to form (all while having great fun!).

Football, as a sport can help your child to learn to make positive relationships from a young age through playing, exploring and active learning. Let them burn off some steam in an enabling environment that will help them to think critically to overcome problems and learn new skills with their friends.

Why should I take my child to early years football?

Early years’ football is a fantastic way to help support your child’s overall development - without them realising they are even learning! There are some preschool football clubs out there who will offer a fun kick about on a Saturday morning, but it’s important that you look for a group that will go beyond just teaching the rules of the game.

Here at Footicubs, we like to think that we are a little different from the other early years’ football clubs out there. “Why?” you say? Well, here we don’t just teach football - we develop life skills. While the majority of our coaches being FA/UEFA qualified, making them experts in all things football, we are also fully trained by qualified primary school teachers so we know how to help children to grow and develop. We like to make sure that everyone who comes to Footicubs leaves as experts, in not just the game itself, but also in growing and developing into the lovely little people that they are becoming.

As Footicubs was founded by full-time primary school teachers, we all have specialised in building professional relationships with our students and know how to teach physical education to the highest standards. As well as being really passionate about football we also interweave aspects of music, numeracy and literacy into our lessons from a simple representation of numbers to expressing, describing & developing through language.

What could my child learn at Footicubs?

Introducing your child to a sport they can become passionate about from a young age is a brilliant gift. You are setting them up for a good relationship with fitness and health, allowing them to learn important life skills such as commitment and being a team player, and also, how to make lasting friendships. If you wait too long, or until you think your child is old enough to take part, you may find that the other children are more advanced in the game by the age of 6 and above, meaning that your child is having to play catch up or feeling left behind when they do eventually start.

Here at Footicubs, you don’t have to worry about the safety of your child in the game. Our coaches are very used to safely managing large numbers through their in-depth Footicubs training. We know what it takes to establish a safe, respectful environment for sport. As well as developing your child’s football skills, Footicubs will aim to develop the following areas of learning and development within every child who walks onto the pitch:

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

• Making relationships

• Self-Confidence & Self-Awareness

• Managing feelings and behaviour

Physical Development

• Developing strength

• Coordination

• Agility

• Communication and Language

• Listening and attention

• Understanding

• Speaking

All of the above are essential life skills that will really help shape your little one into a happy and well-rounded young person! As our sessions last around 40 minutes, it is the perfect amount of time to keep them interested, engaged and having fun.

How old do you have to be to start football?

With us, we teach children right from 18 months old up to 5 years (6th B-Day). Through years of experience in the classroom, we know that children develop best when engaging with other children that they can connect with, so we've grouped our sessions into three age defined teams on the pitch.

Cubs

Team Cubs is for all of our youngest budding football enthusiasts. This group is for boys and girls between 18 months to 2.5 years old. In our youngest group, we focus on teaching and developing the skills of fundamental movement, independence and gross motor skills in a fun and friendly environment.

Grizzlies

Team Grizzlies is for boys and girls between the ages of 2.5 and 3.5 years old. This is the age where your children are learning and developing so quickly. Their speech is improving, and we work on helping this move along nicely by encouraging your child to describe aspects of the game in more detail.

Our Grizzlies have fun whilst focusing on developing their balance, playing well with others and fine-tuning their coordination to get them ready for the adventures ahead at school!

Bears

Team Bears is our oldest group here at Footicubs. Our Bears are between 3.5 and 5 years old (Up to their 6th Birthday). Here, our budding professionals may be just about to begin or may have just begun, preschool, and we want to keep that learning going in a fun environment.

We will go beyond the game of football and learn fun tricks and skills with the ball that they can impress their friends with. We will focus on teamwork for improved learning and socialisation, and we will work on their fine motor skills to get them ready to ace their learning in the classroom.

Why choose FootiCubs for Early Years Football?

Footicubs is unique as all of our coaches are trained by full-time primary school teachers who have specialised in teaching Physical Education and share a passion for football. Our goal is to inspire, engage and develop each and every child that walks into the Footicubs session so that they leave with boosted confidence and a huge smile on their face, excited for next week.

We are committed to the development of all our children, and we are confident that your child will gain self-confidence and self-awareness - as well as a better understanding of positive behaviour - here with us at our stadiums. We currently have two fantastic 'Stadiums' one in Ellesmere Port (Christchurch Primary School) and one in Chester (The Catholic High School) that opened in January 2019!

If you’re interested in joining Footicubs with your little future professional footballer, then don’t hesitate to get in touch. One of our friendly coaches will be happy to walk you through what we do here and help you to get started.