As the Holiday Season is upon us, I thought it would be appropriate to send a letter to Santa with my wish list for youth sports. We should be well aware of the impact that youth sports has on the development of children around the world and as we continue to see growing numbers in participation and leagues formed to facilitate the interest in youth activities. Much of this growth has been the result of an increase in opportunities for females and the usual quest for many to chase a dream that is the result of exposure brought about by television. This country has always used sport to increase activity levels of our youth, teach the principles of teamwork, dedication, and competition. Although it has taken a different turn from the days of playing in local leagues, participating in Physical Education classes that were actually required, to today’s world of pay to play and travel around the country with select teams, private trainers and coaches. Parents today many times look at this experience as an investment for our children’s education and professional career opportunities. There is a tremendous amount of tireless hours put into these programs from parents, volunteer coaches and administrators to give our kids a great opportunity to develop physically, mentally and emotionally and begin the building of a foundation that will last a lifetime – even when the games end!
How can we assure that the vision of youth sports and the true purpose of participation and personal development continue to move in a positive direction and provide a stable environment for kids to enjoy their participation while developing character, self-esteem, teamwork, and positive competitive spirit? There must be some guiding principles in our vision and application to make youth sports a positive experience for all that are involved. Here is my wish list if I could be Santa for the day:
- Remember why kids begin playing sports in the first place (fun, exercise, and friends).
- Avoid laps, lines, and lectures – players come to practice to play not to sit and listen
- Understand the different characteristics of youth and stages of development – skill development is the most important to begin and gradually as the skills get proficient, competition is introduced.
- Everyone is taught the fundamentals of the game – especially how to throw and play catch!
- Practice includes some life lessons, not just sports
- Kids learn to communicate with others through competition, teamwork, and not cell phones!
- Kids learn how to deal with adversity through failure (life is not a success only experience).
- Parents relish the time they have to watch their kids play a game that they love – not become a distraction in their experience.
- Parents & Coaches determine success by playing the game the RIGHT way.
- I wish all tournaments had a Champion!
- That coaches and parents remember to help kids keep a balance between sport, school, family and friends.
- I wish kids today had a chance to play more whiffle ball, stick ball, pickle, work up etc. These are the games that allowed us as kids to learn the game and create a passion and love for the game!
- I would like all kids to learn every position on the field!
- I would like all coaches to be prepared for practice – the younger they are, the more organized you should be. Activities need to be developmentally appropriate and fun!
- I would like to see a better practice to game ratio! Not enough practice time to develop skills!
- I wish all coaches understand the importance of rest and recovery!
Until Next Month,
