Since March, the cones, balls and training fields became water bottles, sometimes balloons and the living rooms homes of the members of the Reyes de Barrio schools.
Felipe Abarca, the program’s sports director, also had to adapt to the new circumstances. He was in charge of directing and conducting the online classes and training sessions, and although he says it was difficult at first, he describes it as a learning experience: “Having to develop training sessions through videos, like what is shown on social networks, allowed me to get to know a whole new world, full of challenges. From speaking without fear or embarrassment in front of the camera, to developing exercises according to the situation, considering the little space the children have at home”.
Reyes de Barrio is part of the programs of the Luksic Foundation’s formation area, which aims to support the development of competencies and skills of children and young people. This sports program aims to promote values and positive spaces for recreation and training in children and adolescents from different neighborhoods of Santiago.
45 online trainings have been carried out, in addition to personalized accompaniment by teachers via Zoom. “We have been able to consolidate an organized system that has allowed many children to maintain healthy lifestyle habits around sports safely within their homes, with the constant supervision of their teachers. In addition, we have evolved in every way, from how we communicate internally in our team meetings, to generating virtual matches between schools,” says Felipe.
Effort, passion and discipline are the values that this program seeks to transmit to its students and, according to the teacher, this year the children and parents of the program have fulfilled them to the fullest. “We thank all parents for the great commitment they have shown to our school throughout this time. There are boys and girls who have kept training throughout the year with our online program and that is mainly due to the support given by their parents,” says Abarca.
Felipe says he is very happy with the results of the work done during the pandemic: “Each of the people who participate in this beautiful program has been able to put all their skills and professionalism at the service of the children who belong to our school and between all of us we have consolidated a very solid program”.
At the end of 2019, Reyes de Barrio had 14 schools in 12 districts of the Metropolitan Region: Pudahuel, Cerro Navia, Lo Prado, San Ramón, Independencia, Renca, Puente Alto, San Miguel, La Pintana, La Florida, Estación Central and San Joaquín.
