STAGE & PLAY
Sport as a Stage for Values: Physical-Theatre Methods for Fair Play and Inclusion in Early Childhood
Early sporting experiences strongly influence how children understand fairness, competition, cooperation and belonging. However, team and contact sports frequently generate exclusion, verbal aggression, accusations of cheating and unresolved conflict, while educators and coaches lack structured, age-appropriate methods to help young children process these situations rather than merely discipline them.
The gap is particularly significant for children with speech or language delays, motor challenges and socio-economic disadvantages, who can face additional barriers to participation. Existing approaches rarely integrate sport pedagogy with physical theatre in a replicable format suitable for inclusive early-childhood and primary-school settings.
The project will create a teacher-friendly Physical-Theatre Sport methodology combining Forum Theatre, physical-dramatic play and Montessori-informed embodied learning. Children will enact authentic sport conflicts, replay scenes, exchange roles and test alternative responses, enabling them to practise fair play, empathy, self-regulation and inclusive behaviour through movement and participation.
The approach will be adapted for two age groups, 5–6 and 6–10, and for children with fewer opportunities. It will include an open-access multilingual handbook, a bank of at least 20 culturally validated scenarios, a three-day training curriculum and an offline-capable Teacher App with session plans, facilitation guidance, video demonstrations, age-adapted variants and practitioner reflection tools.
The consortium will map existing European approaches, conduct national needs assessments and establish baseline indicators. Education, sport and theatre expertise will then be combined to co-design the methodology and develop scenarios based on real situations in team and contact sports, with input from children and practitioners across partner countries.
At least 30 teachers, coaches and educators will be trained through two transnational training events. The methodology will be piloted with at least 200 children in kindergarten and primary-school settings, including children with speech and language delays, motor challenges and socio-economic disadvantages. Partners will assess changes in social competences, conflict behaviour, inclusive attitudes and physical engagement, and refine the methodology based on the results.
The project will produce the handbook, scenario bank, training curriculum, Teacher App, evaluation report and policy brief. Multiplier events, school and sports-community outreach, and engagement with education and sport authorities will support dissemination, uptake and integration into early-childhood, physical-education and coaching practice.
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