NICOLE THOMPSON
The Hamilton Spectator
They say you can’t run before you walk — but what about playing soccer before you can talk? At a Saturday Little Kickers “Junior Kickers” class in Burlington for kids aged two to threeand- a-half, players stretched with a game of Simon Says, their parents at their sides. “Put your hands out like a star! Now in like a soldier! And out like a star!” Coach Milo Horvat called out.
“Any time we bring our children different stimuli, there’s different growth occurring,” said Ivan Joseph. “They’re at that stage where they’re just giant sponges.” Joseph is head of athletics at Ryerson University; he also holds a PhD in sports psychology and is a youth soccer coach. He said sports can be very beneficial to toddlers both physically and mentally. Kids who start playing sports at a young age are more social; they also tend to care more about academics later in life, Joseph said. Plus, sports help toddlers develop motor skills.
Joseph said the key is to think of sports as “play” rather than “competition.” Horvat, who’s trained as a high school teacher, has been the owner-operator of Little Kickers in Burlington and East-Hamilton since June. Horvat has been playing soccer since he was a kid — about the same age as the kids he’s teaching now, he said. Later in the class, the tots practise their kicking — both little kicks, “like a penguin,” and big kicks “like a dinosaur.” Kyall Galoni, aged two-and-a-half, ate goldfish crackers and sipped from a water bottle during one of the frequent water breaks. Her mom, Sarah Galoni, said her daughter’s favourite part was the Sharing Ball at the end of each class. Kids sit in a circle and pass around a bright multicoloured ball, learning to say “Thank you” and “You’re welcome.” Kyall nodded shyly in agreement, the bun on top of her head wagging back and forth as she did so.
But Little Kickers caters to kids even younger than Kyall’s two years. Many of the kids enrolled in the “Little Kicks” program — which teaches kids as young as 18 months — can’t even speak when they sign up. But that doesn’t mean they can’t play, said Brian McLeod. McLeod has owned the Niagara Little Kickers franchise since 2011. About a year and a half ago, he bought the West-Hamilton franchise as well. McLeod doesn’t have a background in business, or even early childhood education. He’s a chef by training — and a dad of two. His sons were four and six when he first got involved with Little Kickers.
The company was originally started in the U.K. in 2002, by a woman who identified preschool soccer academy as a gap in the market. Now, there are more than 200 Little Kickers franchises worldwide. Little Kickers was founded on the idea that kids should be acquainted with sports from an early age to help build their confidence. That way, they’ll remain active throughout their lives. Kids as young as a year and a half, and as old as seven, play games and practise kicking soccer balls in a structured environment.
The sessions begin with everyone who can speak introducing themselves — parents have to step in to introduce the non-verbal set. Then, the time is broken into three 15 minute chunks: games and stretches without any soccer balls, games with balls, and penalty kicks. The penalty kicks, McLeod said, are the kids’ favourite part. Little Kickers isn’t Hamilton’s only player in the soccer-for-toddlers game. Soccer World offers Lil’ Strikers, with a Bunnies class for children 18 to 24 months old. They also offer Lil’ Sluggers; their Mascot class teaches two-year-olds key baseball skills like running, throwing, and how to hold the bat.
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