We in PlayOnside always emphasize that football is only a tool, a methodology to reach other goals. The PlayOnside program is as much an educational program as a football program, supplementing the traditional educational curriculums in the Migrant Learning Centers.

Another educational tool also functioning as an educational supplement is art.

Thus we teamed together with another NGO in Mae Sot called KickStart Art, to find out how we can work together on the ground to combine art and football together as an educational tools.

Studies show that art helps children understand other subjects much more clearly—from math and science, to language arts and geography.

Early exposure to visual art, music, or drama promotes activity in the brain and nurtures inventiveness as it engages children in a process that aids in the development of self-esteem, self-discipline, cooperation, and self-motivation.

As a first pilot project of many collaborative projects between KickStart Art and PlayOnside, we created individual logos for the different teams participating in the PlayOnside Rainy Season Tournament. The children at the different schools discussed what represented their team, and their school. By being inspired by different logos from other football teams, the students together with Kick-Start Art first interpreted the meanings of the different logos, and then created their own. After all the children had the chance to use their creativity and learning new drawing techniques, they chose one logo to represent their schools football team.

The logos where printed at the team’s uniforms, and the players were very excited to wear them for the Rainy Season Tournament. All in all, this was a great collective project combining art and football for educational purposes.