Soccer camp at Kean University helps to develop cognitive and social skills in children

Eldridge Overton Educational Programs further develops the minds of their students through a new soccer program, helping them to expand their memory, multitasking abilities and creativity.

In a new survey released by PLoS ONE, it was shown that soccer players have higher executive functions than other people, because of the different aspects of the game.

In an interview with Men’s Health magazine, Kristen Dieffenbach explains that sports require intelligence as much as they require physical ability.

“People assume that if you have a gifted arm, or you can kick a ball that you aren’t smart, you don’t need to be smart, or both,” Dieffenbach, Ph.D., professor at West Virginia University. “High level sport is physically demanding and requires high-level cognitive skills.”

The camps at Kean University this summer will focus on different soccer skills, helping the children to develop cognitively and socially.

“We want the soccer camps to develop our students cognitive skills as well as their physical skills,” Natasha Eldridge, co-founder of EOEP said. “Soccerdemics will allow the students to have fun outside and play, while also developing core team-building and executive function skills at the same time.”

Soccer players are forced, during the game, to adapt to frequently changing environment, Predag Petrovic, Ph.D., the lead researcher and professor at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm.

This skill links to other strategies such as suppressing old plans, and quickly adapting to new factors in any situation, academic or social, Petrovic said.

The new soccer camp at Kean University will incorporate all the aspects of the game, teaching the students both one-on-one and in groups about the fundamentals of soccer.

“The soccer camps are a good way to get the children up and moving this summer,” Tiffany Overton, co-founder of EOEP said. “Healthy children perform better in all aspects of their lives, and we want to be a part of that.”

Working with the US Sports Institute, the children will be taught by professional coaches both national and international, incorporating international soccer teams into the practices.