New York Road Runners build their Playbook

Just because you know how to run does not mean you know how to share that knowledge.

That’s where PLAYBuilder comes in. New York Road Runners is one of the first organizations to embrace the new app, which gives coaches access to lesson plans, exercises and games they can incorporate into their practices.

And they’ve made it a fundamental part of their free youth fitness program Rising New York Road Runners.

“We’re trying to bring the idea of running for fitness and fun and therapy to the kids we work with,” says Judith Sambol, the Rising New York Road Runners coach at Rockland Boces.

“I am a runner, but I’m not a professional running coach. I didn’t know how to introduce it to the kids, so that’s where PLAYBuilder came in. It gave me the ideas, the curriculum and the lesson plans to make sure kids are engaged and challenged.”

Sambol is a school psychologist in Rockland County, NY, where many of her students have an emotional and/or behavioural disability. She said the benefits to bringing Rising New York Road Runners to her students, using a back-bone of PlayBuilder content, have been obvious to see.

“The content and presentation of PLAYBuilder are excellent.  There are PDF versions of the lesson plans which can easily be printed and shared. The coaches of our running program and the students who participate all take it more seriously because of the high quality of the lessons,” she says.

The way she figures, this is all saving her school district money.

“If it weren’t for this resource, we either would have to invest in materials or training opportunities.  But with PLAYBuilder, there is an easy-to-read script you’re handed which is easy to follow.”

To learn more or to request a demo visit getplaybuilder.com.