Matawan-Aberdeen Kids to be Newest Group of Peer Buddies

Pencil in hand, a Matawan Aberdeen Middle School student leaned over a worksheet with her jaw set in determination as she attempted to trace alphabet letters reflected in a small mirror.

Gab, who will be an eighth grader this fall, leaned in even closer to the mirror as she then tried to draw a smiley face and despite how slowly she went, the lines still looked shakey and out of place.

"It was really hard. I just tried to focus," Gab said.

The exercise was just one station during Melinda Jennis' Pathways to Exceptional Children training session held at Cambridge Park Preschool. Matawan and Aberdeen students also attempted to balance on a Bosu ball while trying to catch a balloon, play soccer with their legs inside of a potato sack, bead a bracelet with socks on their hands, and read a book with book with vision-blurring goggles on.

Jennis explained that the purpose of these exercises was to teach young Matawan and Aberdeen student volunteers how it feels to have a disability.

"Empathy. They get for a few minutes to see what it's like. It puts them in that position so if a kid gets frustrated with them they understand, 'Oh, this is harder for them and is going to take longer,'" Jennis said.

The twenty-five graduates of her workshop, which was co-hosted by Parents of Special People (PoSP) and the Aberdeen Matawan Soccer Club (AMSC), will be peer buddies this fall to special needs and disabled children who play soccer in AMSC's .

Phoenix Soccer is prepping for the league's fourth season. Jennis came to teach the first group of local peer buddy volunteers when the league first started, explained Andy Ginsburg, AMSC vice president of recreation.

"We did this three years ago. Melinda volunteered to teach our buddies, and most of those kids just graduated. We wanted to give you guys all the same opportunity," Ginsburg said to the newest group of volunteers.

Jennis' Pathways to Excellence Program began ten years ago as a way of providing an inclusive environment for mentally or physically disabled students to participate in activities ranging from music and photography to and alongside typical students their age.

True socialization between the athlete and the buddy will take time, Jennis explained, and buddies should be patient while building a relationship with the athlete. The first step should be look at the world through athlete's eyes.

"Everything they do, everything they bring, pick up clues because they may not be able to communicate to you," Jennis said. "I don't care about the diagnosis, I care about how they perceive the world."

Jennis emphasized to the peer buddy trainees that it's alright to forego the rules to allow an athlete the chance to enjoy participating in their own way, telling them to allow athletes to use their hands if they need to or to wear earbuds if they are sensitive to noise.

"We don't care about soccer. We want them to come out and play and socialize and have a great time," she said.

Ginsburg noted that AMSC and PoSP hopes to hold another training session soon to accomodate the additional volunteers on the waiting list.

Interested in learning about becoming a buddy or signing up your child to be an athlete? Send an email to questions@amsoccer.org.