The Kids Run Club program has been steadily growing since it began at one pilot school in 2015.
Today, the Kids Run Club program comes with training and materials for coaches, shirts and medals for all participants, $250 for clubs to spend on healthy items, and continuous support from Active SWV.
Why should you start (or continue) a Kids Run Club at your school? Read on to see why it’s a fantastic idea to get one going.
You get to be a role model
Kids Run Clubs need parents and teachers to volunteer as coaches for kids to learn from and look up to. Why not take on a new role as a mentor coach and interact with kids in a different way than you usually do? When kids see adults making healthy choices and being active, they are more likely to follow suit.
Do it for the Kids Run Club perks
When you receive the Kids Run Club mini-grant, your school gets the following:
- Training and materials for all coaches – this includes the program curriculum, permission forms, and anything else you might need.
- Shirts and medals for all participants, and shirts for coaches.
- $250 to spend on healthy items for the club – this could be activity equipment, snacks, water bottles, stickers, color run materials, or more!
- Support from Active SWV throughout. We’re with you every step of the way to help your club be successful!
(Psst – you can apply for the mini-grant through 9/15/22 here)
Give kids and families a way to be healthier
By starting a Kids Run Club, you are providing kids with a free way to be active, learn healthy skills, and increase their confidence in physical activity. Our participant survey results show that the majority of kids are able to get someone else at home to increase their activity too. Kids take their healthy habits home, and everyone in their household can benefit even indirectly from the Kids Run Club program.
Kids love it
If you look at pictures taken at any Fun Run, it’s clear the kids are having a great time! Kids love an opportunity to run and play games with their friends, and the Kids Run Club is a structured and safe way to make that happen.
The program is flexible and fits your schedule
Kids Run Clubs can be any day of the week, before school, after school, or even during the school day. The program is designed to be flexible so that volunteer coaches can pick weekly practice times that work for them. The program curriculum can also be easily adapted for use in any space you have to work with.
Free workout for you and other volunteers.
Being a Kids Run Club coach is a facilitation role more than anything else, and you can get involved as much or as little as you like with the running and other activities. If you do go all in with the kids for the warm up, running, game time, and cool down activities, you’re bound to get a great workout.
Beginner level for everyone
The great thing about a Kids Run Club is that running expertise is not a requirement! While it’s always a bonus, volunteers (and participants) absolutely do not need to consider themselves runners. Active SWV provides an in depth preseason training as well as hands on materials (like our trusty Kids Run Club Manual) and assistance throughout the season. At the end of the program, volunteers and kids alike will have learned skills like warming up, cooling down, and how to work towards running a goal distance.
Kick start kids running and athletic skills
Kids Run Clubs are an accessible way for kids of all backgrounds and abilities to learn healthy skills. By starting them at an elementary age, you’re setting kids up to be healthier, more confident, and more competitive in athletic programs as they go through middle school, high school, and even college! Kids Run Clubs provide kids with the skills and confidence to work as a team, do warm up exercises, cool down stretches, and different types of running.
Are you ready to get started?
So, are you sold yet? To learn more about the Kids Run Club mini-grant and how to get started at your school, click here. To go directly to the mini-grant application, click here.
