Newsletter Issue 6

1. Children of "the Rainbow" star in the intro of the CD-ROM

“The Rainbow” (de regenboog) is a centre for leisure for children, youngsters and adults with a physical and/or mental disability. They also organise fun after school activities as well as exciting holiday programs for their members. We are very grateful to the Rainbow for their contribution to the introduction of our CD-ROM. We would like to express our special thanks to all children that have showed us how they like to spend their free time during our special photoshoot. Soon you will see few of them in the introduction of our “Count Me In” CD-ROM. More information on this organisation.

2. Preparation dissemination and final report

The end date of the project is approaching soon. We are in the final stages of the development of our 2 main products. As we discussed on the forum in Leuven, dissemination is one of the most important aspects to turn this project into a big success.
There are many different strategies to reach our main target groups: children and youngsters with a disability and their parents, teachers, coaches and volunteers. We should use all the means we have to reach the widest audience possible.
To have a good overview on how and where our products are/will be disseminated, all national partners are requested to complete the dissemination report and list in detail what means of dissemination were used.
Additionally, the project would like to make an overview of all activities, presentations and workshops that were organised nationally within the framework of the project. All national partners are requested to complete the final report.
You can find the format for both the dissemination and the final report here.

3. Inclusive watersports camp in Neveber, Bulgaria

From 14th until 26th of June 2006, our Bulgarian partner, the National Sports Academy (NSA) has organised a watersports camp at the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast in Neveber. A group of 30 youngsters with mental and /or physical disability participated in this camp together with 12 NSA 5th year students (of which 1 had a hearing impairment). During the first week, all participants took part in the camp together. During the second week, the NSA students took over the job of the instructors. About half of the youngsters live in an institution while the other half lives at home. Because of the big success, the NSA is now exploring the possibility of creating an instructors course for these youngsters. This would enable them to use their knowledge back home in their institution and organise sports events throughout the year.
Within the framework of this inclusive sportscamp, a workshop was organised on our joint actions project and the inclusive sports participation of children and youngsters with a disability.

4. Demo Gymnastics for gymnasts with a disability on Eurogym 2006 in Ghent, Belgium.

From 8th until the 14th of July 2006, the Eurogym 2006 brought together 3500 gymnasts from 23 different countries. During one week, the gymnasts took part in workshops, demos and leisure activities. This year, the National Disabilities Display Team from Great Britain also took part in this event. During one of the Eurogym forums for coaches and team leaders, the topic of Gymnastics for youngsters with a disability was also addressed by the British team leaders. Additionally, Erkki Tervo, from our partner university in Finland, has presented his project on the promotion of gymnastics. His excellent work on inclusive gymnastics will also be included in our educational kit as an example of good practice.