STARK BEWEGT project discontinued on Corona

The Corona pandemic has an impact on all population groups, but especially on children and young people. Group sports are not allowed, youth centres have closed, schools and kindergartens have to cope with a reduced presence. As a result, many opportunities for social and societal participation are lost for young people. That they suffer is already certain - what the long-term consequences will be, no one can say yet.

The restrictions mean a special challenge for educational professionals not only in schools. Youth work and administration are also called upon to develop offers on how social learning processes or personality-building measures can be implemented while observing hygiene rules and distance requirements. A very important aspect in this context are also physical activity programmes for young people.

This is where the district of Waldeck-Frankenberg comes in. Since 2012, it has been offering STARK BEWEGT, experiential education training measures that are mainly carried out in schools. They have now been adapted to the extent that they are also feasible under pandemic conditions with distance requirements and in compliance with hygiene rules. "We can be proud that with STARK BEWEGT we have an area-wide, targeted concept, thanks to which we are quite capable of mitigating the consequences of the Corona pandemic for children and young people," emphasises District Administrator Dr. Reinhard Kubat. The programme could serve as a model for school authorities nationwide, and he hopes for numerous imitators.

Already at the beginning of the pandemic in spring 2020, the department in charge of sports and youth work adapted STARK BEWEGT to the changed conditions, explains department head Matthias Schäfer. A guideline has been created that schools can use to inform themselves about pandemic-suitable procedures for conducting training and designing exercises. After the summer holidays last year, the modified concept was successfully applied. Schäfer continues: "From August to November last year, we were able to give more than 1,400 children and young people a piece of normality in the midst of Corona in 70 training measures." The feedback from teachers and trainers has been consistently enthusiastic.

District Administrator Dr. Kubat once again expressly points out: "With the STARK BEWEGT programme, we in the Waldeck-Frankenberg district already have a district-wide system with which we can counteract the consequences of the pandemic among children and young people". Discrepancies that have arisen in the social and motor areas - due to contact restrictions and the closure of sports and other meeting places - can be dealt with in a targeted and effective manner. Very topical: In February of the current year, members of the STARK BEWEGT team were able to inform themselves about the latest developments and exchange ideas at three online training sessions thanks to the guide - an optimal preparation for the new season.

The district has now started this new season. STARK BEWEGT training measures can now be booked again for all types of schools. The timing and content can be planned individually, and the arrangements are made in compliance with the applicable distance and hygiene rules. Enquiries about the training measures can be made to the district's sports and youth work department at stark-bewegt@lkwafkb.de. They can also provide further information about the training measures. Further information on STARK BEWEGT is also available there.