This week’s Play Smart, Live Strong lesson challenged our players to get creative with the ball and with the choices they make in everyday life.
Players learned about creative problem solving and how there is never only one way forward. Just as a soccer player can use different moves to get around a defender, we can find healthy alternatives when we face pressure or difficult situations.
On the field, players practiced change of direction, learning to read the defender, create space, and quickly change their path to find a better way forward.
Off the field, we talked about using that same mindset when faced with peer pressure or risky choices. Instead of giving in to pressure, players can pause, think creatively, choose a healthy alternative, or reach out to a trusted adult.
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The Play Smart, Live Strong initiative by the Northern Mariana Islands Football Association empowers our youth to make healthy choices on and off the field. Together with the Saipan Soccer School, we are using the power of soccer to promote substance-free lifestyles and reduce the risk factors related to underage drinking and marijuana use.
Every week we will share about our practical lessons, group discussion highlights, and soccer skills we learned to support our players as they Play Smart, Live Strong!
