TOFFA players enjoying another morning of football fun and learning
Rise and Shine
The sports practices of most school-aged athletes occur in the afternoon but to achieve optimal learning outcomes training is best held in the morning.
Mornings Are The Best Time to Learn
Early morning is the time of the day that an individual is most creative, willpower stocks are high, and the challenges of a day of learning or work have not yet been unleashed.
By 3.30pm most people are tiring. The brain has had to make a range of decisions and absorb information – it needs a rest.
Early morning on the other hand is a clean slate. It is the time of the day when a young athlete is at their cognitive best. They are fully rested and in the right frame of mind to learn.
Parents will understand this given their typical experiences during the course of the day. For most adults, the morning is when more gets completed in both the home and work environments.
Being able to learn and understand new information is such an important part of a footballing education.
To maximise the learning experience, both teacher and learner need to be at their cognitive best. Having sessions early in the morning aids this process.
Academic Outcomes
Over the last few years several parents have suggested that early morning trainings have also benefited the academic achievement outcomes of their children.
While the sample size of Top Flight Football Academy is relatively small, it is reasonable to expect that a young person is arriving at school ready to learn after an early morning training session.
Rather than sleep in, stumble through the morning “getting ready” routine and then hop in the car to be dropped of at school, students are arriving at school rearing to go – they are primed to learn, energized and focused.
Discipline and Routine
Getting outside for a run, football training, or a walk first thing in the morning helps get the day moving.
Routines help build consistency. Too often afternoon activity can be impacted by what has happened over the course of the day – be it personal interactions or increased requirements.
Linked to this is the discipline of the early start.
At Top Flight Football we value individuals who have a deep seated desire to continue to develop and be the best footballers that they can be. If they want to have a lifetime of improvement in the game they need to have discipline.
As children become young men or women other options relating to how they spend their time will be made available to them. If they want to continue their sporting career (or any other passions/interests) they will need to make an appropriate choice, quite possibly without the guidance of their parents.
Getting up early through the course of the year, getting ready for training, and then getting stuck into a 60 minute training session with the ball helps embed this discipline. Young athletes start to learn and make the important connection that commitment leads to achievement.
They also build self-efficacy that will be invaluable when taking on challenges later in life, particularly as they become aware that not all children have the same routine.
2017 Trials
Top Flight Football Academy will continue to train early through 2017.
Our confidence in the value of the early morning program is why we are also holding trials at that time.
If a young footballer has the desire to turn up for a 6.30am trial then that shows they want to learn. Those are the types of footballers that we want at our academy.
Top Flight Football Academy trials for Uni-Mount AFC junior teams will be held on the following dates:
- 9th Grade – Monday 10 October 2016
- 10th Grade – Tuesday 11 October 2016
- 11th Grade – Wednesday 12 October 2016
- 12th Grade – Thursday 13 October 2016
For more information, please visit https://topflightfootball.co.nz
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