Challenger Sports
What is “Challenger Sports”?
“Challenger Sports” is a school-based disability-centred sports initiative that is designed to empower and promote the participation of youth with disabilities on our school sports teams. It is an expansion of the Challenger Baseball program, which was created in partnership with Baseball Canada, Little League Canada, Little League International, the Jays Care Foundation and a number of other organizations working with children and youth with disabilities. The main outcome of Challenger Sports is to enhance the life-skills that are inherent to sports – communication, teamwork, leadership, friendship, independence, and courage. These skills are ones that student-athletes can translate into their everyday lives outside of sport for years to come.
Challenger Sports has multiple entry points, with programming options available for schools that are just getting started in adaptive sport, and for those that are more experienced in running this type of program.
The Challenger Sports Model
Step 1: Commit to Inclusivity!
As a school, commit to establishing and maintaining a disability-centred sports program.
Designate a Lead Educator, whose responsibilities include communicating with staff and recruiting volunteers.
Send out a message to staff members, including all teachers, early childhood educators, educational assistants and administrators, outlining the objectives of the program and requesting nominations of students who may be a good fit for the team.
Recruit staff volunteers and student helpers who are willing to support the program.
Step 2: Build a Team
Create a list of potential athletes based on staff nominations.
Determine the logistics of the team, which will vary from school to school (e.g., number of teams per school, the age group of students participating, etc.)
Example: Bruce Trail Public School has approximately 1100 students. They run a Kindergarten team, a Junior team and a Senior team, each with approximately 20-30 athletes. Each team has their own practice time each week. Smaller schools may run one K-8 team.
Organize a meeting to invite potential athletes to participate in the sports program. Distribute permission forms during this meeting.
Follow up with families to ensure they are aware of the program and provide them with additional copies of permission forms, recognizing that not all messages may reach home.
Step 3: Choose a Sport
Coaches and/or athletes decide what sport they’d like to engage in for a period of 6-8 weeks.
Schools may choose to run a single 6-8 week session in a school year or follow HDSB’s competitive sports model and run multiple sport seasons.
Example: Bruce Trail Public School runs multiple 6-8 week sessions throughout the year, following this plan:
Step 4: Practice and Play!
Teams engage in weekly practices for 6-8 weeks at a time, working towards a common goal (e.g., competition, skills showcase, staff-student game).
The primary focus is to ensure that athletes have consistent access to skill development sessions and team-building activities, like any other school sports team.
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS?
Check out our FAQs section or Contact Us!
Ready to Start?
