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Sports

At St Columba’s Online, we believe that a balanced child is a happy and healthy child. The St Columba’s Online blended education model of online, teacher led academics and onsite sport, culture and community engagement provide a balanced environment for the modern child in which to thrive.

The sport at St Columba’s is managed by Mr. Jason Bodley  who is passionate about the life-changing opportunity sport provides to every child, regardless of skill levels. The St Columba’s passion for sport drives the school training ethos of inclusion and fairness as we strive to give each child the opportunity to develop into a sportsman/woman by ensuring they get a fair chance to participate regardless of skill level. We believe in giving children access to a range of different sports and while having fun, children will learn to love sport, giving them a powerful mental, physical and social grounding for their future.

The benefit of sport in general has been proven time and again and consists of three key areas of development for your child.

Personal Development

The personal development gained from participating in sport, whether it is an individual or a team sport, is critical for the development of a healthy perception of self.
Areas of personal development sport assists with include:
Sport provides children with a structured manner to engage with and achieve goals. Each practice attended develops perseverance and shows children how dedication and patience results in improvement.
Participating in sport, even if the child’s skill levels are minimal, develops self esteem because of the external and internal recognition sport provides them.
Research suggests that active children are happier than peers who don’t exercise. Sport is a positive emotional experience in which a child is able to learn new skills in a fun, social and encouraging environment.

Health Development

Providing children with fun, self-affirming exercise opportunities ensures a lifelong enjoyment of exercise and sport. The long-term health benefits of participating in school sport include:
Sport helps children develop a healthy body composition from a young age with more muscle than body fat, providing children with a springboard for long term health including a reduced risk of heart disease later in life and increased bone mineral density.
Dr Ratey from Harvard Medical School writes that exercise improves learning on a number of neural levels such as improved alertness, attention and motivation as well as physical changes in the brain. Studies also show that children who regularly participate in sport are less likely to be depressed and structured sport practices are known to assist children struggling with ADHD

Social Development

Sport at St Columba’s provides a platform for children to learn a wide range of social skills, from making new friends to competing with other children, sport introduces a range of soft skills that equip students for life.
These skills include:
Sport provides a structured space for friendship, companionship and community that is difficult to find elsewhere. Competing within a team provides children with a different way of communicating, working with others and being. Being involved in a sport teaches valuable lessons in teamwork, such as putting yourself in second place for the benefit of the whole team. All of this gives children a new sense of togetherness and belonging.
Sport teaches children how to cope with success and how to cope with defeat as inevitably there will be a winner and a loser in practice and competition. The St Columba’s coaching team strive to show children that the result of a match doesn’t affect who they are as people, assisting to build resilience and self-control and compassion for others.
Sport helps to develop learners who are open to being taught and understand the value of fair rules and authority – aspects that exist in every society. Sport provides a space in which children are active participants in self-discipline and team discipline and where they are able to see the results of these valuable principles.
St Columba’s provides a variety of opportunity for your child to participate in sport activities. Each activity consists of practices during the week which provide the St Columba’s Online and St Columba’s onsite body of students with an opportunity to interact and develop friendships.

Matches and competition are held throughout the year and a sports prize giving morning to recognise the continued, consistent participation as well as the achievement of students is held in June and December.

The sport available at St Columba’s include:

Tennis

Run by Mr Ken Smith the St Columba’s Tennis Program consists of a series of structured lessons in which the skills and understanding of the game are taught to all interested learners. Tennis provides students with these amazing development opportunities:
Hand/eye/ball co-ordination
Timing
Game strategy and match temperament
Patience and perseverance
Teamwork

Cricket

Run by Mr Jason Bodley and the cricket coaching team, Cricket at St Columba’s provides students with the opportunity to participate in a team sport where a multitude of skills, aptitudes and mental resilience is developed. Cricket provides students with these amazing development opportunities:
Hand/eye/ball co-ordination and muscle development
Spatial awareness
Teamwork
Mental strength
Self-control

Football

Run by Mr Jason Bodley and the football coaching team, football at St Columba’s is a fast-paced team sport that enhances students’ in-the-moment communication skills, teamwork and ability to react effectively under pressure.

The collaborative coaching methodology of the St Columba’s football staff helps to provide children with a positive and self-affirming experience with this sport. Football offers students the opportunity to develop these amazing skills:
Ball skills and spatial awareness
Teamwork
Pressure and stress management
Self-control
Work ethic development

Swimming

Run by Mrs. Justine Greisiger Swimming at St Columba’s provides students with a structured team approach in which every child in the swimming team plays an important role. Swimming training provides children with these fantastic life skill development opportunities:
Self-discipline
Perseverance
Gala performance skills
Comradery
Fitness

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Cross Country

Run by Miss Angela Kilroe, Cross Country at St Columba’s provides students with the opportunity to participate in a variety of running events around Gauteng with the benefit of a great school spirit to spur the children on. Cross Country offers students the opportunity to develop these skills:
Self-discipline
Perseverance
Resilience
Comradery
Performance and competition skills

Netball

Run by Mrs. Gerda Sutherland Netball at St Columba’s provides every student interested with an opportunity to participate in this wonderful team sport. Netball provides children with the following developmental opportunities:
Hand/ball co-ordination
Teamwork
Spatial awareness
Self- discipline
Communication and conflict management
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