Stickhandling smiles: Robina Baker students enjoy first official floor hockey season with AJHL hockey players
A new athletics opportunity at Robina Baker Elementary School in Devon is scoring big with students. The students are excited to have had a chance to play floor hockey with hockey players from the Devon Xtreme AJHL team over the past several weeks.
This was the first year of a formal relationship between the Devon Xtreme, a team in the Alberta Junior Hockey League, and Robina Baker Elementary School (RBES). The multi-week program involved having several Xtreme players go to the school twice per week, to run an intramural floor hockey program for elementary students over the students lunch hour.
The program was so popular that the school had to rotate grade by grade to give all the students that signed up a chance to participate.
“Students could not wait until it was their day and often asked if they could join on other days,” says Danielle Kirton, Assistant Principal, Robina Baker School. “I also had parents sharing that floor hockey was what their children were excited to talk about at the supper table.”
Kirton says the program provided a chance for athletics that doesn’t always exist for younger students. It also created a unique and meaningful community connection.
“There is something extra special about a ‘big kid in a jersey,’ as our students call them, showing up to share something they are passionate about,” says Kirton. “It creates a really authentic connection for students. Our students look up to the Xtreme players and that makes the experience even more meaningful.”
“I am grateful we get a chance to play with them,” says Lennon M., a Robina Baker student. “It’s a blessing, and it’s fun to have chances to try new things. It makes school more fun.”
Lillian W. loves playing hockey in the community and is a regular goal scorer for her team. Lillian has seen the Devon Xtreme at hockey practices and liked interacting with them again at her school. “It’s good to play with them. They can teach us a lot. We can learn more about hockey and feel how it feels on the Devon Xtreme.”
The relationship between the school and the Devon Xtreme developed over time and out of connections between the team and Devon staff members. That evolved into older players spending time with RBES students during recess, which the RBES students loved.
“From there we saw an opportunity to build on that in a more intentional way,” says Kirton. “Coach Brown did a fantastic job organizing a structured, skills-based format for the program. Our hope was to create a meaningful, active experience for students, while strengthening community partnerships.”
Cooper Orrell plays on the Devon Xtreme, and helped with the RBES program several times. “Whenever the kids come in they are happy. They like seeing what we do. The kids make it really enjoyable,” says Orrell.
Tyler Swanson graduated from John Maland High School in Devon two years ago. He plays on the Xtreme and helped with the RBES floor hockey program. “I wanted to give back to the community,” says Swanson. “I grew up playing minor hockey, and I remember meeting someone from the NHL. It feels like the kids think that of us. To be that for them is great!”
“We love seeing how much fun the students have,” says Derek Brown, Assistant Coach of the Devon Xtreme. “When things don’t go their way, they get past that. They just have fun.” Brown says the opportunity to work with RBES was important to the Devon Xtreme because “we want kids to try hockey and enjoy it.”
Although the program has now wrapped up for the season, it was such a breakaway success, scoring goals for students’ athleticism and community connection, the school hopes to continue the program next year.
