Toddlers learning to play sports? It’s as cute as it sounds.
Children ages 3-5 are taught the basics of basketball and soccer at Biddy Ball, an eight- week-long program offered for the last 15 years by the YMCA of Southwestern Indiana.
“We’re trying to create a foundation in sports and see what kids enjoy doing,” says YMCA Sports Director Kaitlin Poelhuis, who doubles as a Biddy Ball instructor. “You notice how their balance, hand-eye coordination, and listening skills get better.”
YMCA employees lead weekly, separate basketball and soccer classes out of the Y’s Dunigan location on Evansville’s East Side. Class sizes average 8-10 little ballers. The eight-week program costs $65 for Y members and $90 for nonmembers. The chance to catch a core memory, though, is priceless.
“One child — it was the very last week of the session, the last run-through of the day — made his first basket of the season. He danced out the door,” Poelhuis says. “Everyone was cheering for him. It was so cute how excited he got.”
The interactions are meaningful for the Y’s instructors, too. “There are kids who … play here their whole childhoods,” Poelhuis says. “You get to watch them grow up.”
