Me2 Club children and teens keep active online!
Since lockdown began in March, Me2 Club have been running activities for the children, siblings and teenagers via Zoom.
Before COVID-19 Me2 Club's core service focused on supporting children and teenagers with additional needs and disabilities to attend afterschool activities and sports clubs with the help of a volunteer 'buddy'.
Due to the pandemic many of these clubs have been suspended or are running sporadically. We knew it was vital to give children the opportunities to keep in touch and have some fun together, whilst their activities are not running, and so we set up Me2 Club Kids online and moved our Teenage Me2 Club Crew online. This was a huge learning curve for all of us at Me2 Club but since March we have run 23 different activities with multiple sessions of each activity to keep groups small and manageable for the children.
These online activities have been attended by 54 children and teenagers, plus 11 siblings and 16 volunteers.
It was particularly important for activities to be engaging and active as the children supported by Me2 Club have additional needs that can impact their concentration and energy levels as well as their mental health. With this in mind, we have run several sessions focused on keeping active.
Thanks to local activity providers including Usports , Alice Hudson Fitness and a local DJ, Darren, we have been able to provide active exercise and dance sessions every month for everyone.
One parent said: "V really enjoyed the sports session - Charlie was excellent at keeping everyone's attention. I was surprised how well V joined in and the effort he made."
"What Me2 Club has been doing and helping me do for the members during lockdown has brightened up my life during these troubling times and I'm sure it has had the same effect on it's members. I've really enjoyed the last 2 sessions, particularly the workout one and I'm looking forward to future sessions too!"
DJ Darren is currently running monthly discos for the children and teenagers where they can make requests and dance along to their favourite songs. These have been one of the most popular sessions, with our last disco being attended by 22 children, teens and siblings. We were keen to run them regularly to give children, teenagers, volunteers and parents a chance to have fun and dance! This month's session will be Halloween themed and we already have a few spooky song requests.
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