Grassroot Soccer Coach’s Guide
Table of Contents
Introduction / Tips…………………………………………………………………….3
Grassroot Soccer Curriculum Objectives……………………………………………5
Coach’s Contract……………………………………………………………………...6
12 Be’s of Successful Facilitation…………………………………………………..…7
Grassroot Soccer Game/Facilitation Checklist……………………………………...8
Grassroot Soccer Terms………………………………………………………………9
Praise Points…………………………………………………………………………...11
Grassroot Soccer Games & Activities……………………………………………..…12
-Coach’s Story (Stigma)………………………………………………………………………….13
-Contract / 4 Ways to Stay Strong (Peer Socialization, Resiliency)……………………………..15
-Choices (Decision Making, HIV Basics)………………………………………………………..18
-Celebration Circle (Praise, Identifying Strengths) ……………………….……………………..21
-Find The Ball (HIV Basics, VCT, Stigma)……………………….…………………………….23
-Fact / Nonsense (HIV Basics)……………………….……………………….…………………26
-Team Handball (Coach’s Voice, Resiliency)……………………….…………………………..34
-Lions & Zebras (Abstinence, Risk awareness, Decision making)……………………………...38
-High Risk, Low Risk, No Risk (Risk Awareness, HIV Basics)………………………………..41
-HIV Transmission Tree (HIV Basics, Abstinence, Partner Reduction)………………………..46
-HIV Attacks (HIV Basics)……………………….……………………….…………………….50
-Juggling My Life (Decision Making & Consequences, Abstinence)…………………………..54
-My Supporters (Stigma)……………………….……………………….……………………….58
-Where Do I Stand? (Gender, Decision Making, Values)……………………….………………63
-Role Plays: Introduction (Social Skills Development)……………………….………………...66
-Role Plays: Passive, Aggressive, Assertive (Communication skills)…………………………..68
-Role Plays: What’s My Line? (Communication skills, peer pressure)…………………………70
-Role Plays: Stigma (Stigma)……………………….……………………….…………………..72
-Team Sky Ball (Teamwork)……………………….……………………….…………………..73
-Risk Field (Avoidance, Behaviour Change)……………………….…………………………...75
-Pressure Limbo (Peer Pressure)……………………….……………………….……………….78
-Graduation (Peer Education)……………………….……………………….…………………..81
- Final Team Contract……………………….……………………….………………….82
- Individual Grassroot Soccer Contract……………………….…………………………84
Homework……………………………………………………………………………..85
-Start with the Basics: Fact / Nonsense Review……………………….…………………………86
-Study Your Opponent: Know How HIV Attacks……………………….………………………87
-Looking at My Decisions……………………….……………………….………………………88
-Risk Assessment……………………….……………………….……………………….………90
-“Are You on the Right Track?” Worksheet……………………….…………………………….91
-When I Grow Up……………………….……………………….……………………………….92
Appendix A: Programme Overview……………………….……………………….…………..95
Appendix B: Programme Planning…………………………………………………..101
-Programme Planning Worksheet……………………….……………………….………………102
-Example Programme Schedule……………………….……………………….………………...103
-Programme Materials……………………….……………………….……………………….…105
Appendix C: Monitoring & Evaluation Forms…………………………………...... 107
-Evaluation: Why? and How? ……………………….……………………….………………….108
-Daily Activity Report……………………….……………………….…………………………..109
-Programme Attendance Sheet……………………….……………………….………………….111
-Pre/Post Quiz……………………….……………………….……………………….…………..113
Appendix D: Energizers & Icebreakers……………………………………………...115
Appendix E: Basic Information About HIV/AIDS……………………………….…119
Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………………....124
Introduction
What is the Grassroot Soccer Programme?
Grassroot Soccer is an international non-profit organisation whose mission is to mobilize the global soccer community in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Using the power of soccer in the fight against HIV/AIDS, Grassroot Soccer provides African youth with the skills and support to live HIV free.
The Grassroot Soccer Programme is a series of games and activities that allow youth to explore sensitive issues relating to HIV/AIDS. Professional soccer players, teachers, peer educators and other role models are trained as Grassroot Soccer Coaches to deliver this games-based curriculum to youth aged 10-18 years. The Grassroot Soccer Curriculum creates a fun, friendly and safe environment in which youthcan share their feelings and beliefs about HIV/AIDS, increase their knowledge, and develop healthy attitudes and behaviours concerning HIV/AIDS. This Programme empowers participants with skills necessary to lead healthy lives. These skills include critical thinking, communication, self-esteem, and decision-making.
The Grassroot Soccer Curriculum was first developed in early 2003 and has since received extensive consultation from: the Zimbabwe Ministry of Education, the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, behavioural scientists, educational consultants, medical professionals, and the lessons learned from direct implementation with youth. These various formal and informal evaluations since the Grassroot Soccer Pilot Project in 2003 have helped Grassroot Soccer fine-tuned its curriculum to focus on the most important aspects of knowledge, attitude and behaviour that influence healthy decision making for youth.
How does the Grassroot Soccer Programme work?
Potential GrassrootSoccer Coaches – professional soccer players, teachers, sports coaches, peer educators, and other community role models – attend GrassrootSoccer Training of Trainers courses in which they learn about HIV/AIDS prevention through the Grassroot Soccer Programme itself. These role models are trained to facilitate the Grassroot Soccer games and activities, to practice their skills as peer educators, and to plan programmes in their communities. After completing a Grassroot Soccer Training of Trainers Course, these role models graduate as Grassroot Soccer Coaches, equipped to deliver the Grassroot Soccer curriculum and to lead the fight against HIV/AIDS. After graduating from the Grassroot Soccer TOT Course, trained “Coaches” deliver the Grassroot Soccer Programme in schools, with youth soccer teams, with youth groups, and at other venues.
Who is a Grassroot Soccer Coach?
Grassroot Soccer Coachesare role models in their communities. A successful coach must be able to:
Practice the prevention messages they spread to youth and communities;
Create a relaxed and enjoyable learning environment;
Listen actively to participants;
Be non-judgmental towards people;
Create trust and respect among participants;
Be honest about what s/he knows and does not know;
Be knowledgeable about health information and where to refer youth for services and resources;
Be comfortable talking about sensitive topics (HIV/AIDS, abstinence, condom use, etc);
Be confident in her/his presentation and technical information skills;
Be motivated to actively plan Grassroot Soccer activities;
Be sensitive to the age, gender and situation of the audience and tailor the Grassroot Soccer activities appropriately.
Be flexible (things don’t always go as planned!).
How do I run Grassroot Soccer?
It is up to the individual coach to decide how best to run the programme for a group of youth. This guide provides a list of activities that you can use. For youth to graduate Grassroot Soccer, they must participate in at least ten (10) games and activities, including Contract and a Homework assignment. You can do the activities in any order and over any period of time. Successful programmes have run for 2 – 8 weeks, for a total of ~12 hrs programming.
Tips on How to Use the Grassroot Soccer Curriculum
- Be prepared for every class session. Review the games/activities ahead of time, and practice how you will facilitate them.
- Pay attention to the Goals at the beginning of each session. These are used to guide you through the reasons for doing a certain activity.
- Memorize the Key Messagesto the games you will be delivering. The Key Messages are your guide post-game discussions and can help guide you through the steps of some of the games. Participants should understand the Key Messages by the end of any activity. But you should work on getting the key messages from them, by asking leading questions.
- Coach's Tips at the end of each activity are designed to help you run each activity successfully. Read them when you are planning an activity, not as you are doing it.
- Discussion Points at the end of some activities are meant to serve as a guide for group discussion. By asking the right questions you can help participants to discover the answers for themselves. If participants do not know the answer, then you should be sure to answer any questions that they still have.
- Whenever you conduct a group discussion, try to write participants’ answers on a flipchart or a chalkboard so that they can follow each other's ideas.
- Participants ask many questions. Make sure you are knowledgeable about HIV/AIDS before teaching this course. If you do not know the answer to a question it is much better to be honest and tell players that you will find out, than to make up an answer that is incorrect.
- Lack of materials is no excuse for not playing any of the games. Be creative! If you can’t find the materials listed you should think about other things that you can use as replacements. For example, if you don’t have cones for Risk Field you can use stones; if you don’t have tennis balls for juggling, you can use oranges.
- You are responsible for recording each activity that you complete by filling out a Programme Attendance Sheet and Daily Activity Report at the back of this guide. These tools will help you keep track of what you’ve accomplished and will be used by Grassroot Soccertotrack the effectiveness and reach of the programme around the world.
- Write down any lessons you learned or ideas of how to make the activities better and share them with other coaches. That way we can learn from our mistakes and from each other.
- When you have finished teaching all the appropriate lessons to the youth, plan a graduation ceremony as a celebration of accomplishment.
Grassroot Soccer - Curriculum Objectives
Grassroot Soccer seeks to reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS by using role models as peer educators to teach youth about developing healthy life skills and making healthy decisions.
Overall Course Objectives:
To encourage increased understanding of and open dialogue about HIV/AIDS
To diminish stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS
To educate and empower youth to make informed decisions related to HIV/AIDS
To educate participants about HIV/AIDS prevention techniques, including abstinence, fidelity and condoms
To inform youth about services available in communities, including voluntary counselling and testing and treatment centres
To address issues of gender and the roles people play in relationships
To increase the confidence and assertiveness of youth
To provide youth with a feeling of hope and a reason to stay alive and healthy
To empower youth to deliver their own HIV prevention messages to their community
Themes:
Make youth comfortable talking about difficult issues, and engage in meaningful discussions
Provide youth with more information about the choices they make
Make youth aware of risky behaviours associated with HIV/AIDS
Provide an environment with high interaction and participant involvement
Make it fun, memorable, and interactive
Soccer-Sports focus
Activities that develop key behaviours in youth that will help them avoid HIV/AIDS
Focus on basic elements of prevention - education, behavioural change, voluntary counselling & testing
Topics of Games/Activities : Peer Socialization, Decision Making, HIV Basics, Voluntary Counselling & Testing, Stigma, Positive Living, Abstinence, Partner Reduction, Risk Awareness, Peer Pressure, Gender Roles, Behaviour Development, Peer Education
The Programme will be a “win” if:
The Participants:
Rates of infection decline
Adopt safe sex behaviours
Delay first sexual intercourse
Learn their HIV status and live according to their results
Make healthy and informed choices for themselves
Feel proud of joining the Grassroot Soccer team and have a sense of accomplishment
Feel empowered by their knowledge and understanding of HIV/AIDS
Value their own life
Actively teach others in the community
The Coaches / Role Models:
Learn value of doing community work
Feel proud about their contribution to society
Develop skills for career advancement
Have fun while teaching and learning
Grassroot Soccer
Coach's Contract
Grassroot Soccer is designed to be fun, but must also be taken seriously. Using the Grassroot Soccer Programme gives you the power to save the lives of young people in your community. Before becoming a Grassroot Soccer Coach you must recognize your power as a role model and agree to work to be a positive role model in your community.
I ______(print name) accept the responsibility of becoming a Grassroot SoccerCoach. I join all other Grassroot SoccerCoaches around the world in fighting the spread of HIV/AIDS, teaching young people to stay healthy and to care for people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS.
I pledge to abide by the Grassroot Soccer Code of Conduct.
Grassroot Soccer Code of Conduct
As a Grassroot Soccer Coach, I pledge to:
- Respect the Grassroot Soccer Programme and its goals.
- Respect other Grassroot Soccer Coaches, especially when working together delivering the Grassroot Soccer Programme.
- Respect all Grassroot Soccer participants’ ideas, beliefs, and attitudes.
- Communicate openly and freely with other Grassroot Soccer coaches, volunteers and staff.
- Be on time for all meetings and programmes related to Grassroot Soccer.
- Be prepared for daily programme delivery (i.e. bring relevant Grassroot Soccer materials; review Grassroot Soccer games and teaching points for each day).
- Critically evaluate my performance as a Grassroot Soccer Coach so that I am always improving my abilities to effectively deliver the Grassroot Soccer programme to youth.
- Be a role model for my community by protecting myself from HIV/AIDS and other STIs, avoiding risky behaviours like drug and alcohol abuse, and practicing what we preach in Grassroot Soccer.
- Teach my peers, my team-mates and others in my community how to avoid HIV infection and to lead healthy lives.
- Care for people who have been infected and affected by HIV/AIDS by not discriminating, helping them with their needs, and encouraging others to do the same.
Initials: _____
Signed______Date______
The 12 BEs for Successful Facilitation
- BE exciting!
- The participants will be twice as emotional as you are. If you are excited, the participants will be twice as excited. If you are boring, the participants will be twice as bored
- BE an elephant!
- An elephant has big ears: Listen to what the participants say and they will listen to you.
- An elephant has a small mouth: Remember the 10% Rule. A good facilitator should speak only about 10% of the time. When a question is asked, throw it back to the audience to get everyone involved. A good facilitator stimulates conversation; you don’t always need to give a right or wrong answer.
- BE a role model!
- Participants will follow what you do even more than what you say. If you give a lesson on avoiding alcohol and your participants find you drunk at the bar, they will be more likely to start drinking than avoiding it.
- BE neutral!
- Don’t impose your values on the participants. Many topics you may facilitate are very sensitive topics that often involve religion and family values. As a facilitator, allow people to share their values without favoring any.
- BE prepared!
- Prepare at least the night before your sessions. This includes gathering all materials that you could possibly need, reviewing the curriculum, and finding out answers to any questions you weren’t able to answer from the previous session.
- BE in constant eye contact with all participants!
- Demand eye contact from all the participants. In many cultures, youths are not supposed to look adults in the eye. If the participants are looking at you, they are listening. If they are looking at the ground, they are not listening.
- If you are outside, make sure the sun is at the participants’ backs and in your eyes.
- It helps to be at eye-level with the participants. If they are sitting, sit with them. If they are running around, run with them.
- BE honest!
- Answer all questions as honestly as possible. Don’t feel bad if you don’t know the answer to a question. Just say you don’t know, but will do everything possible to find out.
- BE at the same level as the participants!
- If the participants do not feel comfortable talking about a certain topic, let them laugh about it. If they are allowed to laugh, they will be more likely to talk about it.
- Speak at the same level as the participants. Do not use big words that they will not know. If they do not speak English well, use local language or use a translator.
- Always be aware of who your audience is and put yourself in their shoes. If you are working with a group of orphans, don’t talk about the family support network.
- BE consistent!
- It is easy to teach to the best students. Make sure you are getting participation from all the students. Even if you have to give them very easy questions to answer, make sure you get everyone involved.
- BE gender-sensitive!
- It may take a lot more work to get girls to participate. If you are not reaching the girls, you are only reaching half your audience. Activities that involve sport will often be more familiar to the boys, but the girls can learn just as much if they are encouraged to participate.
- BE positive!
- Keeping a positive spin on things maintains energy levels and creates a receptive environment for constructive criticism. When soliciting feedback, it is important to ask, “what are the good things they did?” before talking about areas for improvement.
- BE heard!
- Volume, volume, volume!
Grassroot Soccer
Game/Activity Facilitation Checklist
Each Grassroot Soccer game or activity has a structure that can guide a Grassroot Soccer coach as s/he is facilitating. This checklist should help a Grassroot Soccer coach prepare and deliver Grassroot Soccer games and activities successfully.
□INTRODUCTION – Say the name of the game and ask a question (be an elephant). The question can be as simple as asking the name of the game with a lot of energy, or asking the meaning of a word in the name of the game (eg. What does the word “choices” mean to you? What does it mean to juggle? What is a risk? What does the “h” in HIV stand for? etc.)
□Clear Instructions – Make sure you know how the game is played so you can give clear instructions. Four steps to delivering clear instructions:
- Say instructions once
- Demonstrate the instructions you give
- Repeat instructions again
- Ask participants if they have any questions about how to play
□PLAY THE GAME & ASK QUESTIONS THAT LEAD TO KEY MESSAGES – This usually consists of playing the game, having a short discussion about the activity in the game, how participants are feeling, and how it relates to life and HIV/AIDS.
□WRAP UP – Through a short wrap-up of the game, review the key messages by asking questions.