“I began to realise how important it was to be an enthusiast in life. If you are interested in something, no matter what it is. Go at it full speed. Embrace it with both arms, hug it, love it, and above all become passionate about it. Lukewarm is no good” (Roald Dahl).
Adolescents are diverse in development, interests and needs. “No other age level is of more importance to the future of individuals, and, literally, to that of society; because these are the years when youngsters crystallize their beliefs about themselves and firm up their self-concepts, their philosophies of life and their values – the things that are the ultimate determinants of their behaviours” (Lounsbury, 2004). It is with this in mind, that here at Fitter Futures, we have created specific programs to cater for this Tween age group.
Young adolescents do have distinctive needs and therefore the coaching and programming have been designed to be responsive to those specific needs. Tweens need to see the purpose of what they are doing. They need an enthusiastic coach who makes learning and the acquisition of new skills active and fun, interesting and creative (Crosswell, 2004). Tweens learn best through interaction and activity, rather than by listening (Department of Education and Training, 2002). Productive partnerships need to be fostered with coaches, tweens and families in order for learning and success to be achieved. According to the Carnegie Council (1996), those responsible for nurturing adolescents must seek to build a caring and supportive infrastructure that can sustain them through the difficult transition years.
At Fitter Futures, we see ourselves as part of your wider support network and aim to play an important role in maintaining this love of life, learning, health and fitness in your adolescent. We want to see them grow in skill acquisition, improve confidence, widen their friendship group outside of school and sport, and most importantly, keep the fun in fitness!