Blog Post #5:

CITC, PS1, Alfred E. Smith School, in Chinatown

8 Henry Street

Assisting Coach Eric Suarez

Wednesday, February 8th, 2017

On Wednesday February 8th, 2017, Lily and I went to PS1 in Chinatown. We met Eric Suarez, a professional soccer coach, who works for City In The Community (CITC) and Downtown United Soccer Club (DUSC). Eric used to coach me at DUSC, and he was happy that we came to volunteer. The school goes from kindergarten to 5th grade. We supervised two 3rd grade classes and one first grade class. When we got there, Eric had set up four stations for the kids to play soccer. Lily and I each ran a station. At my station, there were six cones put down in the shape of a star. One kid would start on one cone and pass the ball to the person on the next cone. After everyone had controlled and passed the ball, all the passes together created the shape of a star. While playing, the kids were having fun kicking the ball to each other and seemed excited that I was there to help. I high fived them, encouraged them, and kept them entertained. After everyone had gone to each station, Eric blew his whistle and set up three games for the kids to play. The kids enjoyed doing the drills, but were extremely happy when they got to play a real game of soccer, kicking, running, shooting, and scoring however they wanted. If the kids were getting too rough, or the ball would go out of bounds, I would stop the game and put the ball back in the middle so they could keep playing. I loved helping the kids, and I hope I can help many more.    

The kids were all over the place and they were not used to having physical education since this was their third class for the whole year. They did not have the respect for their coaches as I have learned playing sports, or an understanding of teamwork. I was surprised by that, and it was a good experience for me to try to teach them the values of teamwork and respect. It was also a great experience for me to be coaching kids, since until now I was always the one being coached and this time my role was reversed. Most of the kids treated me with respect. I encouraged them and gave them positive feedback. What I will try to do in the future is make it more personal and ask their names, ask them what their favorite classes are, and whether they play sports outside of school.

I want to do the same with the kids during our teach-in.