Playing with Positivity

Carson Dodge, 10, of South Phoenix, is helping to create a supportive, inclusive environment on the playground for the young students of Paideia Academy South Phoenix. As a Junior Coach for Playworks Arizona, the fifth grader leads K-1 students in games and social-emotional skill building activities on the playground during recess. When disagreements or bullying arise, Dodge knows what to do, helping kids talk out their problems or using ro-sham-bo to resolve minor conflicts on their own. As a role model for kindergartners and first graders, Dodge is teaching kids that win or lose, it’s cool to be kind.

More than 3.2 million students report feeling left out or bullied at school each year. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than seven percent of all students admit to skipping school due to fear for personal safety from physical and verbal bullying.

This is Dodge’s second year as a junior coach. The Playworks Junior Coach program gives select 4th and 5th grade students the tools they need to navigate through school and through life. As Junior Coaches, students lead peers through games during recess on the playground. Wearing Junior Coach T-shirts and carrying whistles, they work with Playworks site coordinators to help classmates engage with one another, develop teamwork, inclusion and conflict resolution skills, and have fun, while developing their own self-confidence and leadership skills.

Through his training as a Junior Coach, Dodge has learned how important it is to encourage his young peers on the playground and reinforce positive behavior and communication. “When I’m on the winning team, I say ‘good job, that was a fun game, and I look forward to playing with you next time,” says Dodge. “If I’m on the losing team, I say good job, you guys did a good job. I like the way you play.”

Daniel Taylor, 29, who is also a South Phoenix native, has worked for Playworks Arizona for more than two years and currently serves as the site coordinator at Paideia Academy. Site coordinators receive training on group management and how to address conflict on the playground, and they pass these tools down to the junior coaches they mentor during bi-monthly trainings.

“Carson is helping students find their voices and helping to change the culture at recess,” says Taylor. “When your friends are doing the right thing, and we make that the cool thing, then it becomes the norm.”

Playworks Arizona, part of a national nonprofit, partners with elementary schools, school districts, and afterschool programs across the country, providing the tools and resources needed to ensure that every kid, regardless of race, socioeconomic background, or athletic ability, experiences safe and healthy play every day.

“At Playworks Arizona, our goal is to create a culture of play that enables kids to feel a real sense of belonging,” says Kerryann Tomlinson, Executive Director of Playworks Arizona. “The Junior Coach empowers kids to be leaders and serve as mentors for the younger students to model positive, inclusive behavior.”

Playworks Arizona is leading the regional play movement. The nonprofit has grown from three elementary schools to more than 100 elementary schools and organizational partners and serves more than 60,000 students across Arizona.