Creating a Safe Space in Sports

From award-winning author Dagmar Geisler, in collaboration with illustrator Nikolai Renger, comes a brand-new series for elementary school students about social-emotional learning and physical and mental health.

Nora loves gymnastics, but she's not so sure how she feels about her new coach, Sven. There's something strange about him. She doesn't like when he tries to help her. She wants to talk to her teammates or someone else about it, but she's afraid no one will like her anymore if she does.

Physical and sexual abuse of children largely takes place in their immediate environments—sports clubs and gyms included. This book sensitively provides a child-friendly explanation of what abuse may look like in this environment, as well as instructions for children to help them respond to this behaviour if it happens to them.

In addition to exploring sexual abuse and violence so that children may recognise the signs if it happens to them or even another teammate, this book also tackles other hard-hitting and difficult topics when it comes to kids in sports, including:

• Pushing their bodies beyond their limits
• Playing through injuries instead of taking much-needed breaks
• Committing to sports and teams to impress parents and coaches when their heart isn't in it anymore

As professional athlete Alexandra Ndolo writes in the afterword, "This book encourages children to pay attention to their feelings and to verbalise them, even in the context of sports. It sensitises parents and caregivers to pay attention to the warning signs and to take statements seriously and to intervene if they suspect something."

Creating a Safe Space in Sports is a strong conversation-starter for adults and children and is also a practical guide.