Is Your Child Ready For Organized Sports?

By Stacy DeBroff 

With visions of Olympic medals, lucrative professional contracts, or college scholarship money, many parents feel tempted to start their children as early as possible in order to get as much experience as possible. Unfortunately, this early start approach can also lead to early burnout long before a child gets anywhere close to her parents’ lofty goals.

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To Quit Or Not To Quit?

By Stacy DeBroff 

Encouraging Your Child to Stick with it a While Longer 

• Many kids go through periods when they question their commitment to an activity. Your job is to help your child ascertain if it is a phase that will pass or an irresolvable issue.

• Agree with your child that she must do her best for a specific amount of time. Talk with your child about giving new activities a fair chance. Set a “wait and see” time period for the rest of the season or the remaining prepaid lessons. After that point, she can decide whether she still wants to quit or wants to stick with it. This extra time may enable her to enjoy the activity, or at the very least be able to make a more informed decision about quitting.

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When Your Child Wants To Quit

WHEN YOUR CHILD WANTS TO QUIT

• When is it okay for your child to stop participating in an activity or sport? How do you respond when your child announces, “I QUIT!” two practices into a sport? What do you do when your child declares: “I hate flute and I’m never going back!” Of course, this is often the same activity she begged you to sign her up for in the first place.

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Supporting Your Child After A Game Or Performance

By Stacy DeBroff

After a game or recital, focus your comments on how your child performed. Provide support for your child by listening to her and try to understand her feelings. Ask your child open-ended questions such as, “Did you enjoy yourself?,” “What did you think of the game today?,” or “How did you think it went?”

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Improving Your Skills As A Spectator

By Stacy DeBroff

At almost any game, you are bound to hear some parents yelling loudly from the sidelines, their voices carrying over the others. You’ll see parents screaming at the ref, shouting out instructions to their children (such as “run faster” or “down the left side”), hollering, gesturing, and jumping out of their seats. You’ll also, no doubt, experience parents berating their children from the sidelines (“Focus, Sam!”) or being ecstatic depending on the play of the moment, and in general, modeling inappropriate and immature behavior. Also, in the anonymity of a crowd, you’ll often hear parents screaming things that they might otherwise never say. Many team coaches have resorted to insisting that parents sit sequestered on the opposite side of the playing field from the kids.

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Balancing Activities With Homework

BALANCING ACTIVITIES WITH TIME FOR HOMEWORK

• Schools give homework more than ever before and children 6 to 8 years old have three times as much homework as they did in 1980.

• In organized sports, a large number of volunteer coaches are working parents who hold weekday practices late in the afternoon or early evening hours. Suddenly, homework has to get done right after school when your child wants to shut down her brain after seven long hours in class. Otherwise, homework takes place after an evening practice when your child is starting to become cranky, easily discouraged, and frustrated when trying to memorize spelling words, write sentences, or solve math problems.

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