The month of July couldn’t have started any better than at King’s Ely School with another wonderful Games2Inspire. With 115 pupils from King’s Ely and Fairstead House, a prep school in Newmarket, the day brought together students from years three to eight for a Monday filled with inclusive sport.
Our youngest participants, the year threes and fours, enjoyed six adaptive games on the sports ground in front of the school. These activities were organised in a carousel format, meaning every child had a chance to participate in each one.
The six activities included: Boccia, Sitting Volleyball, Target Games, Parachute Games, Goalball, and Walking Touch Rugby.
In a spring of luck, the weather was beautiful which certainly added to the ease and enjoyment of the day. The parachute games were a particular highlight, offering the kids a unique opportunity to experience a game that was completely new to all of them!
The year fives and sixes were spread out around the school, participating in various inclusive games too including Sitting Netball, New Age Curling, Goalball, and Quick Cricket. The feedback from the teachers was overwhelmingly positive; they spoke of how
“engaged and enthusiastic the children were with each student demonstrating remarkable teamwork, communication, and adaptability, learning new skills quickly and having a lot of fun in the process.”
The year sevens and eights, comprising around 200 students, participated in activities organised within their groups. The activities for the older students included Blindfolded Guided Running, Basketball and Netball Challenge, and Blind Football. The students were particularly excited about the four wheelchairs donated by Aveva and used for the day. A special shoutout goes to Aveva for the generous donation of the wheelchairs, which added a unique element to this Games2Inspire.
Learning to steer and push these wheelchairs proved challenging, but all students significantly improved with practice! This was a great example of overcoming challenges, fitting well with an assembly I led at the start of the day, where I spoke about overcoming barriers and showcased some of the gadgets made for my Road-to-Rio challenge.
Speaking of challenges, the day at King’s Ely was also part of the school’s efforts to fundraise for Power2Inspire through different 108challenges. It was amazing to see the innovative ways the students embraced the #108challenge, as well as seeing the legacy of my own #108challenge kayak down the Thames continue. For more information see the #108challenge page.
The day at King’s Ely was a resounding success, and we are grateful to everyone who participated and brought such wonderful energy to the event. I look forward to the next one!
What are Games2Inspire?
Games2Inspire events are incredible events, most often hosted in schools, with an assembly and sports day which includes activities designed to be accessible and fun for everyone, with disabilities and none, sporty and not. Participants get to meet our inspirational founder, John Willis, and hear all about how John has overcome obstacles in his life. They then get to put that learning to practice by playing adapted games and sports together learning new skills and being encouraged to test their beliefs about ability and disability and what it is to be different, learning to respect other people’s differences. Power2Inspire works with them to challenge their assumptions of what they can and cannot do.
Inspired? Then Get Involved!
If you are interested in hosting a Games2Inspire in your school / college / company / community group then we would love to hear from you.
We are also always looking out for people willing to fundraise for Power2Inspire through their own inspiring means. Or, you could volunteer individually at one of our events, or you could give to the ongoing work of Power2Inspire. There are SO MANY WAYS we can all help to ensure “no on else is left on the bench!” Click the button here to find out more.
