This is the Bohemian Foundation’s second year of running the “Double Club” programme that combines numeracy and football in Christ the King School, Cabra. The programme was part of the club's More Than A Club project.
The programme runs for 90-minutes, one half dedicated to maths while the second half is focused on getting the children active with football.
While the programme is also running in other schools in the area, Paul Gannon from the Bohemian Foundation says he’s happy after a long lay off to be back in the community again.
“A lot of the maths problems are Bohs related and then after that we do football and the kids really look forward to it every week. I’m in Christ the King twice a week with fourth, fifth and sixth class,” Gannon said.
The challenge that the pandemic posed the Bohemian Foundation was tough according to Foundation President Thomas Hynes.
But it showed him that programmes like these are needed to help distract children from what’s going on.
“It remains important for the Bohemian Foundation to continue helping the club’s local communities during this pandemic,” insisted Hynes.
“Children like this who need our help don’t go away so we have to do our utmost to make sure we’re able to help in any way we can.
“Being able to take their minds off everything that’s going on currently and just enjoy a game of football is something I’m proud we can offer,” Hynes said.
Fourth Class student, Leon Brogan, said he and his classmates countdown the hours until the Bohemian Foundation arrives each week.
“We would find it a bit more interesting with the maths being all to do with Bohs. We’ve got a lot of Bohs fans in the class, so it helps us focus … so mixing Bohs with maths is the best of both worlds, really.”
The class’ teacher, Ms. Power, explained the impact the programme is having on her class.
“Having all the topics related to Bohemians has been great. They find it more relatable and I find they engage with what we’re doing in class much more. It makes the maths come to life and shows them how it can be applied to real-world situations.”
With the numeracy programme being a success for the Bohemian Foundation they are now seeking to add more ways to help students.
Áine Brennan, who has a background in theatre and art, is joining the Foundation to teach students about inclusivity, teamwork and open-mindedness.
“The Foundation has such a great ethos about education and helping out in the community and that really resonated with me and is why I wanted to get involved,” Brennan explained.
“I’ve got a huge interest in teaching and education so I’m looking forward to getting started. Of course, Covid-19 presents us with a challenge but I’ve got some exciting ideas on how to convey teamwork through art that the children will enjoy."