The Parents & Players  - Learn to Play Program (P&P) is a two-year pilot funded by the OVA and the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport. It aims at providing parents and kids with a unique and inspirational first engagement to the sport. 

Participating clubs will run indoor and beach volleyball grassroots programs over 6-weeks each (1hr/wk) where parents and their children spend quality time on the court together participating in physical literacy activities, volleyball skill development and learning how to relate sports skills to life lessons. 

Parents must be fully dedicated to being actively involved in this program as both parent and child participate in the physical portion of the session and work side-by-side to more effectively learn the skills.

The program is built on a model pioneered by the Cambridge Scorpions Volleyball Club. Check out the video below to learn more about the history of the program with the Scorpions and how the OVA plans to develop this for all clubs and community partners: 

• By engaging and educating parents, children are much more likely to have a positive sports experience beyond the term of this project.
• By engaging parents and teaching them the fundamentals of volleyball, clubs will also start to build up the base of knowledgeable volunteers.  Participation in the program may also encourage parents and children who otherwise would not consider coaching/officiating - to move in that direction and participate in volleyball for a longer time.
• By providing a quality first engagement sports experience we aim to increase athlete retention and an improve the likelihood of lifelong participation in sport for both child and parent.

• 300+ Children ages 5-12 years old in the FUNdamental and Learn to Train LTAD stages
• 300+ Adults ages 25+ in the Active for Life stage
• 30 trained leaders (50% female and at least one First Nation leader)
• First Nation youth and adults as participants
• At least one low-income community
• Women and girls in sport – volleyball participation in Ontario is 80% females, so the P&P programming will attract a high number of women & girls
• Newcomers to Ontario

To find out how your club, rec centre, school, or community group can get started running the Parents & Players program, contact:

Resources