PATTERING FEET, CHILDREN'S VOICES
BEN: I really love playing football, and maybe you do too.
But, how about playing football with a blindfold on?
Sounds difficult, right?
But don鈥檛 worry because today, we鈥檙e going to learn some of the skills that we鈥檙e going to need to play blind football.
UPBEAT MUSIC
BEN: So guys, it鈥檚 really exciting because we鈥檝e got our blind football coach here.
England blind football legend, it鈥檚 Azeem!
AZEEM: Ben, thanks for having me. Guys, it鈥檚 lovely to meet you all.
We鈥檙e going to go over some of the basics of blind football.
A big part of that is communication.
But the special thing about blind football is鈥
RATTLING
AZEEM: So, the ball itself makes a very distinct rattle sound.
Are you all ready to give it a go?
CHILDREN: Yeah!
CHEERING
AZEEM: Go!
贬颈驳丑鈥
BEN: Because blind footballers can鈥檛 see the ball, they need to use other senses, like hearing, to work out where the football is.
And that鈥檚 what we鈥檙e practising here; getting used to the sound the ball makes as it moves around the hall.
Well done, you alright?
CHEERING
AZEEM: Now, we鈥檙e going to step into the shoes of someone who can鈥檛 see, and we鈥檙e going to do that via the use of some blindfolds.
These will hopefully block out everything, so you鈥檙e solely reliant on your listening skills.
Now, we鈥檙e going to be doing it in pairs.
One person with the blindfold on, one person can be their guide.
Hand on the shoulder.
Perfect.
So, as we do this, guys, it鈥檚 really important that there鈥檚 lots and lots of talking, lots and lots of communication.
Make sure you let that person know when we鈥檙e going forward, when we're turning, when we need to stop.
And the sighted person, remember, has to go in front so they鈥檙e the one that鈥檚 guiding.
Nice and slowly, okay.
Are we ready?
Let鈥檚 go.
BEN: This exercise is all about communication.
You start with the person wearing the blindfold placing their hand on their partner鈥檚 shoulder, to gain confidence and trust in their sighted guide.
CHILDREN GIVING INSTRUCTIONS
AZEEM: Perfect. Guys, good talking.
BEN: Then, when they鈥檙e starting to feel more confident, the guide uses their voice, and the person wearing the blindfold follows that sound.
BEN: Very nice, you鈥檙e all good. One foot in front of the other.
Okay, now turn slightly, forward a little bit.
Three, four, five鈥
Do you want to stop and take your blindfold off?
You did so well!
CHEERING
BEN: Now we鈥檝e worked on listening and trust, it鈥檚 time to try with a football.
AZEEM: So, what鈥檚 gonna happen now is we鈥檙e gonna try to integrate the blindfolds and the blind football.
The coach will start with the ball in their hand, and they鈥檙e gonna do a little gentle roll towards you.
You, at this point, are gonna have your blindfold on and you鈥檙e really tuning into your listening skills.
So, your feet are gonna be in a position what we call the 鈥楶enguin feet.鈥
As the ball is rolled into you, you鈥檙e gonna have a blindfold on.
You鈥檙e gonna be listening out for the call.
The coach might say, 鈥楢 bit to the left, a bit to the right.鈥
Wait for the ball to come and hit you, put your foot onto it and then you鈥檒l pass it with the side of your foot, back to the person.
RATTLING
BEN: So now, our teams need to listen for the ball coming to them, and then try to tap it back to the coach by following the sound of their voice.
RATTLING, CHILDREN TALKING
BEN: Ah, yes!
CHEERING
BEN: Next up, it鈥檚 travel time.
As everyone starts to feel confident with listening and kicking, we can add another challenge.
Dribbling with the ball.
AZEEM: So, if the coaches could take two big steps forward鈥
UPBEAT MUSIC, BALL RATTLING
AZEEM: Yes, excellent!
BEN: Well done.
So, this is my first proper experience of blind football.
Just doing these simple steps and activities has massively increased my confidence to know where I am when I鈥檓 wearing that blindfold, and my blind football skillset.
CHILD 1: What I really loved about playing blind football was how we got to see that even if you鈥檙e blind, you can still play football.
CHILD 2: The most important things I learned was communication and listening.
CHILD 3: I will tell my friends that it was very fun and exciting.
CHILD 4: It鈥檚 a new thing and not a lot of people play it, and it鈥檚 actually really fun.
CAMERA CLICKS
PATTERING FEET, CHILDREN'S VOICES
Watch this film with British Sign Language
Watch this film with audio description
Watch this film with British Sign Language and audio description
Ben Cajee joins Azeem Amir, England blind football player as he passes on his blind football skills.
The class enjoy picking up some blind football skills demonstrated by Azeem in these fun activities.
Skills
The skills learned in the activities are: practising listening skills, communication, teamwork and learning some simple ball control while wearing the blindfolds.
Activities
Shout Out
Listening is a really important skill in blind football. The children get used to listening out for the sound of the ball in this activity.
Trust Time
Pupils guide their classmates so they get used to moving with their blindfolds on.
Penguin Feet
Pupils practise listening and kicking the football.
Travel Time
Pupils practise moving with and dribbling the ball.
Activity card
Download and print the activity card for blind football 8-11
