Hello again!

I realized earlier in the week that I had not posted in a while, but my days have been so busy since then, this is the first time I've gotten the opportunity to report on how things are going on the girls' side of things here in Belfast. I just finished up my last PE class at Girls' Model this morning, with a circuit training session to show the girls different footwork and core exercises that can help improve their performance on the court. Over the past 6 weeks they have come such a long way with their basketball knowledge, and one thing they have never lacked is enthusiasm. I will now be continuing with the after school sessions every Thursday, where the turnout has been encouraging.

As Colin mentioned in an earlier post, the schools were off last week and the weeks surrounding a vacation are always a bit hectic. So, it was no surprise that attendance for the after school session at St. Louise's have been sparse during this time. To drum the energy back up from the beginning of the year, I'm really looking forward to getting into some more PE classes to find a few more girls that would be interested in playing on the team. With a smaller group, it has been easier to work on certain skills where I can give players more individualized attention; however, I would really like to see a few more girls coming out to train. This is a good challenge for me as the basketball program is more established at St. Louise's, possibly making it intimidating for a new, less experienced athlete to get involved.

In other news, the work in the primary schools have been going well, with the kids really beginning to grasp the fundamentals of the game. We have begun to play matches and it is always invigorating to see how excited they are to run around and cheer on their teammates.

I'm now headed back to Girls' Model for after school training. I will write again soon with more details on the planning of our first integrated practice, which I am hoping will happen by the end of this month!

Until then,

Emily