Pupils lose sense of themselves for blind footy game
PUPILS at Beech Hall School celebrated the Paralympic games with their own Blind Football match.
A mixture of 21 girls and boys slipped on blindfolds to take part in the sensory sport, which was organised in conjunction with the Paralympic Games #IAmTeamGB campaign.
The exercise enabled pupils to gain a better understanding of what it would be like to lose one of their senses and showed them that they can still take part in every day sporting activities, like Paralympians have demonstrated in Rio.
Silent participation was essential during the blindfolded football matches, to ensure the players could hear the bells inside the ball, a stark contrast to a traditional game of football.
Four teams went head to head to compete in three matches, the first game saw the years seven, eight and nine pupils split into two teams to take on one another with a final score of 3-3.
Then the year 10 and 11 pupils took to the field and separated into two teams for the second and third matches.
James Allen, headteacher, was the captain of one team while the new modern foreign language teacher, Alex Bedwell, made his mark captaining the second team. But it was Mr Allen’s team that took home gold with the final score at 6-1.
Fifteen-year-old Ed Gorton was awarded Player of the Match after scoring an exceptional goal from half way across the field.
Mr Allen said: “It was a great activity and everyone had a lot of fun. It was a brilliant team building exercise and it is important to help the pupils understand the struggles those less fortunate than them face. It will also help the pupils to appreciate their own abilities and senses and give them a new perspective on life.”
Ed, who is also a Senior prefect at the school, added: “I am so happy I was awarded Player of the Match.
“It was very difficult not being able to see the ball but I was surprised that I could find it just by listening for the bell. I tried really hard and our team won.”
Beech Hall is holding an open day on Friday (September 30) during school hours for anyone who is interested in visiting the school.