In a world where technology often competes for children’s attention, Saumil Majmudar, Co-founder, CEO & MD of Sportz Village and Vijay Krishnamurthy, a Sports Research Scholar and an Executive Coach have released their highly anticipated book titled “Get Kids To Play – An EduSports Toolkit for Parents & Schools Leaders”. This insightful work delves into the crucial aspects of encouraging and enhancing children’s play experiences, offering actionable strategies for parents, schools, and communities.
“Get Kids To Play” strategically targets two key decision-making groups – parents and school leaders. Combining research-backed strategies with practical solutions into a comprehensive toolkit, the authors empower these stakeholders to influence various factors affecting the quantity and quality of play, while also primarily overcoming barriers to play for children. With a focus on inclusivity and tailored experiences, the book aims to revolutionize the way we approach holistic child development through play.
Saumil Majmudar, shares his thoughts on the book’s release and its relevance, “In an era dominated by screens and sedentary lifestyles, it’s imperative to prioritize children’s play. Our EduSports program, as the name suggests, has been serving as an amalgamation of ‘education’ and ‘sport’ for school children. “Get Kids To Play” is written leaning on our two decades of experience and learning, aiming to offer practical guidance to parents, educators, and community leaders to create vibrant play environments that nurture children’s physical, social, and emotional well-being.”
“As a Sports Researcher, my motivation for writing “Get Kids To Play” book comes from the scarcity of resources available at the community level for parents and school leaders. Plenty of literature is available about athletes and coaches at the elite level. However, the culture of playing a sport begins while the child is studying in school during their formative years, and that’s where the journey begins for kids, parents, and school leaders. “Get Kids To Play” is a toolkit that hopes to solve the challenges at the grassroots level.”, quoted Vijay Krishnamurthy.
Rahul Dravid, ex-Indian cricketer, and Indian Cricket Coach, in his foreword to the book mentions, “I am glad that “Get Kids To Play” book has been written to explore how parents, schools and communities can get kids to play more. Such collaborative effort can benefit each of us individually and all of us as a nation.”
Rukmini Banerji, CEO, Pratham Foundation also expressed her views, “Get Kids To Play” is a call-to-action for parents and schoolteachers. The book is simultaneously inspiring and useful, providing rationale, research, and recipes for strengthening the journey of children through play.”
“Get Kids To Play” covers a wide range of topics, including the benefits of play, the role of technology, creating safe play spaces, and integrating play into the school curriculum. The authors offer practical tips, case studies, and success stories to inspire readers and facilitate meaningful change in their communities.
This book is now available in leading bookstores across India and online at Notionpress.com, Amazon and Flipkart. Parents, educators, and community leaders are encouraged to explore “Get Kids To Play” to gain valuable insights and tools for fostering engaging play experiences for children.
About Sportz Village:
Sportz Village is the world’s largest youth sports platform that is trying to make the world a better place with an aim to get 100 million children to play sports. Established in 2003, Sportz Village’s philosophy is pillared on improving the health and fitness of children and getting everyone to experience the magic of sports. EduSports by Sportz Village is India’s No.1 sports education program being implemented in over 1,500 schools across 250 locations impacting 7,00,000 children. The organization believes in making sport an integral part of the education of a child and is working towards developing a healthier and fitter generation by using a Structured Sports and Physical Education (P.E) curriculum. The curriculum has been developed based on NASPE (National Association for Sports and Physical Education, USA) standards.
About Authors:
- Vijay Krishnamurthy is a Sports Research Scholar (PhD) and an Executive Coach with 25 years of global experience comprising technology design, sports entrepreneurship, and management research. Vijay has published research articles in leading journals, including Ivey and Harvard Business Review, in addition to being a guest writer for Sportskeeda and The Bridge. Vijay also holds a USPTA tennis coach certification and has trained junior athletes for national tennis competitions. Vijay has a Bachelor of Engineering degree from Bangalore University, a Master’s degree from New Jersey Institute of Technology (USA) and is a Visiting Faculty at SDM Research Centre for Management Studies at the University of Mysore (India).
- Saumil Majmudar is the Co-founder, CEO & Managing Director of Sportz Village (www.sportzvillage.com), India’s leading sports education organization that aims to get 100 million children to play through partnerships with schools for its path-breaking EduSports in-school sports & PE program. Over the last 20 years, Saumil has tried (and failed at) multiple models of getting kids to play in a sustainable & scalable manner before arriving at the school partnership model. Currently, 600 schools (private & public) across India have partnered with the EduSports program to integrate sports into education for nearly 200,000 children. Saumil holds a mountaineering degree from Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (Uttarkashi, India) and is a certified black belt in karate. Saumil graduated with a Bachelor of Technology degree from IIT Bombay and an MBA from IIM Bangalore (India).