Olivia Blackman has been using her summer break to work on her football skills, thanks to SuperKicks.
Whether it’s in the garden at home or at the local park, the interactive programme has been a constant companion for the nine year old.
And dad Peter admits SuperKicks has become like a new best friend as well as helping keep Olivia active and engaged.
“It’s great for Olivia to be able to see herself on there, and looking through it, especially when you’ve got a generation of kids who are constantly on some kind of device,” said Peter.
“It gives them something to say: ‘we’ll go and practise that’ and they don’t need to find a club for any of this, you can do it in the back garden or the park and the more active they are, the better.
“What’s clever is that this brings what might be classed as ‘screen time’ for kids into something active and physically engaging.
“It’s encouraging them to be active in an indirect way and it’s very user friendly and engaging.”
Olivia also has something of a role model, in the shape of her older sister who had already found the football bug previously.
“Olivia loves football, she got into it because her sister was going to Brentford’s development centre in Southall and was coming along with her to watch the sessions.
"When she was old enough, she started taking part and now she’s joined a local club and is loving that.
“It’s all about having fun and learning, so it’s been great and it’s now her favourite sport and as a rugby man, I’m trying to keep up!
“It’s a great fun way for kids to go and do something fun themselves and give themselves some self-directed learning.
“As a PE teacher, I’m trying to promote the programme to parents, because if you have just a little space, it’s a good way to get their kids active and have fun at the same time.
“Football’s been really important for both of the girls, it’s brought them out of their comfort zone and whether it’s rainy or windy, they all come off the pitch with smiles on their faces.
“They’ve had really positive experiences with football.”
Visit TheFA.com/SuperKicks for more information.
