Yoga for Youth Athletes</h1> <article> <h1>Yoga for Youth Athletes</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Tue, 21 May 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Okay, so maybe your youth athlete isn’t ready to be doing headstands while chanting <em>Namaste</em>, but yoga is a great activity for youth athletes (and sports parents) regardless of age or experience. Yoga works to improve strength, balance, flexibility, mental control and much more, all of which can help contribute to an athlete’s overall skill. Not to mention, yoga classes designed for kids can actually be a lot of fun!</p> <h3><b>Yoga can help increase flexibility.</b></h3> <p>Believe it or not “growing pains” are a real physical thing! During adolescence youth athletes are going to experience growth spurts and their bones will grow fairly quickly (sometimes it seems like overnight!). But growing bones means tighter muscles, which could mean your youth athlete isn’t as flexible as they were when they were seven or eight. Since yoga emphasizes flexibility it can be a great way for youth athletes to stretch those tight muscles, relieving tension headaches and body aches. Greater flexibility can also help prevent sports-related injuries.</p> <h3><b>Yoga forces youth athletes to pay attention to their bodies.</b></h3> <p>Unfortunately, some youth athletes may lie about injuries in order to avoid being pulled off the field. Others may not even realize they’re hurting until the adrenaline turns off and they are back in the locker room. Yoga isn’t nearly as fast-paced as lacrosse or hockey and it’s much harder to tune out what your body is telling you—which is a great skill for any youth athlete to learn, especially those that want to go on to play in high school and college. A great youth athlete is always going to want to give it their all on the field but they need to learn when they’ve reached their max before they go too far and hurt themselves. In yoga, youth athletes can adapt the various poses to their own skill level so they aren’t pushing themselves past the point of no return. It’s a good way to learn about your own limits.</p> <h3><b>Yoga is a great way to help athletes recover when they don’t want to sit still.</b></h3> <p>The more serious your youth athlete is about their sport the more practice and game time they’ll be involved in but even the best athletes in the world need time off to rest and recover; your muscles just need a day off! But some athletes don’t like to take a rest from their training, so yoga is a great way to give them the time off their body needs from serious training but still give them something active to do. “Active recovery” can help reduce muscle lactate levels faster than total rest and help speed up recovery.</p> Yoga is also a great activity for the whole family if you’re looking for something to do together. Lots of community centers offer kids’ yoga classes, mommy and me yoga classes, yoga for teens, and so forth. It’s also great because even if you have never attempted a downward dog pose in your life the classes are designed for each individual participant; it’s not a competition! If you can’t do a headstand you can’t do a headstand and that’s okay. </article> <article> <h1>Are You Fighting Your Youth Athlete’s Battles?</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Thu, 16 May 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>As parents we all want to protect our children and try to shield them (or at least soften the blow) from some of the harsh lessons life throws at you while growing up. But there is a fine line between trying to help your child navigate the difficulties of life and doing all the work for them. Are you one of those sports parents that fight all your youth athlete’s battles for them (also known as a <a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/172241/3-Ways-to-Manage-Helicopter-Sports-Parents">helicopter parent</a>)? You might not be doing your child as big a favor as you thought.</p> <p>Janis Meredith is the sports mom behind JBMThinks, one of the best sports parenting blogs around. We were lucky enough to <a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/177029/SportsSignup-Interviews-Sports-Mom-Janis-B-Meredith">interview Janis</a> here on the SportsSignup blog and asked her what mistakes she sees sports parents making and here’s what she said;</p> <p><em>Many parents try to fight their kids’ battles for them and they are not doing them any favors when they do. They also try to manipulate situations, always wanting to smooth the path for the kids. I understand wanting our kids to have good experiences and there’s nothing wrong with looking for good youth sports environments, but sometimes they go overboard, like looking for a team where their child will have no one to challenge him at his position. Life is just not like that, and we will help our kids be stronger if we stop trying to make things perfect for them all the time.</em></p> <p>We think Janis makes a great point. There is nothing wrong with trying to give our children the best possible chances to succeed, but you can’t do all the hard work for them and expect them to get anything out if it! One of the most important life lessons that youth sports teaches you is that sometimes you lose; even when you put in all the hard work and the time, you still lose. It’s definitely not fun to lose by one run or one basket (any more than it’s fun to get blown out of the water), but learning how to deal with loss and being able to bounce back from disappointment is a life lesson kids have to learn. And isn’t it better to learn that while you are young and it doesn’t matter so much?</p> <p>Life isn’t perfect and that’s okay! Things aren’t always going to go your way but youth sports should be about teaching kids how to take pride in what they’ve done and understand that success does come to those who work for it. Fighting all your child’s battles on their behalf means they never learn how to stand up on their own; and sooner or later they’ll need to know how to do that!</p> <p>Now obviously there are circumstances where an adult can (and should) definitely step in and intervene. For instance, if you suspect your child is being bullied by their teammates you have the right to bring up your concerns to the coach. “Kids will be kids” is no excuse for one child tormenting another, especially to the point where they don’t want to play sports anymore. But should you really interfere because another player only passed to your son three times during the football game and five times to another player? Maybe not.</p> <p>There is no cut and dry method to follow when it comes to fighting your child’s battles. Sometimes kids need adults to step in and go to bat for them, but other times it’s better to let your youth athlete work it out themselves. Most parents mean well but you have to ask yourself when it’s time to fight and when it’s time to wait on the sidelines.</p> <h4>Have you ever fought a battle on your child's behalf you wish later you had let them manage alone?</h4> </article> <article> <h1>SportsSignup Interviews Michelle Peterson, National Expert on Child Abuse</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Wed, 15 May 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p><span style="font-size: 13px;">SportsSignup is committed to keeping youth athletes safe from abuse of any kind. That is why we offer </span><a href="http://sportssignup.com/products/kidsafeplus-background-checks" style="font-size: 13px;" title="KidSafePlus" target="_blank">KidSafe<em>Plus</em></a><sup>®</sup><span style="font-size: 13px;"> coach and volunteer background checks to all our customers. While we never want to think a predator could come into our community the truth is you can never be too careful when it comes to protecting our kids. That's why we're honored to bring you the expert advice of Michelle Peterson M.Ed., of Michelle Peterson Consulting. Michelle is a national expert on child abuse and currently works with youth sport organizations on creating child abuse prevention policy and procedures. She can be reached at </span><a href="http://www.mpetersonconsulting.com/" style="font-size: 13px;">www.mpetersonconsulting.com</a><span style="font-size: 13px;"> </span></p> <p><b>In the wake of the Sandusky trial, do you feel that youth sports organizations taking more serious measures to protect their players from sexual abuse?</b></p> <p>I wish I could say yes. Unfortunately many youth sport organizations believe they are immune to this issue for various reasons, despite all the credible information that shows how youth sports clubs are vulnerable to sexual predators as well as all the media coverage exposing coaches who abuse. Clubs believe that they know their coaches well, have done background checks, the kids would tell the coaches...and other myths that are associated with child sexual abuse. Clubs that have had an issue with a coach are much more likely to implement child safe policy and procedures. It also takes a leader on the BOD who understand the issues of abuse and who can get policy change to happen as well as make the financial resources available. Many NGB are adopting programs at the top level but they seldom get to the local clubs, where training and abuse education is lacking, therefore implementation and buy in from all members is challenging.</p> <p><b>What are some guidelines and protocols youth sports organizations should create to protect their youth athletes from abuse?</b></p> <p>My first piece of advice for clubs is to have an expert create the policies, not coaches or parents. Experts are objective and understand how sexual predators operate and know what situations put players at risk. It is impossible for parents to imagine their child's coach as a predator and to place restrictions on someone they would never suspect in committing child abuse. Therefore, policy’s created by Boards, staff or parents are likely to be incomplete, inaccurate and fail to protect players from abuse. An example of this was a conversation I had with the director of a soccer program who created an abuse prevention policy of his own that required only male coaches travel and stay with male players and the same for female coaches and players...this coach clearly is not knowledgeable around sexual abuse as many male predators abuse male children and females abuse young girls as well. </p> <p>Clubs are all unique and it would depend on what services, programs and age groups as to what policies they would need to address. I would highly recommend policies that address reporting abuse, physical contact guidelines, social media, locker room and travel guidelines are just a few...</p> <p><b>How good are volunteer background checks at weeding out potential predators?</b></p> <p><a href="http://sportssignup.com/products/kidsafeplus-background-checks" title="Background checks" target="_blank">Background checks</a> are just a part of abuse prevention policies and should never stand alone. Sexual predators have hundreds of victims before ever getting caught. So sexual predators can and do pass background checks therefore your hiring process should have other screening techniques such as various questions that address the issue of child abuse and go beyond background checks. Questions about their interest in youth, how they view their role with youth players plus other questions can help employers listen for concerning statements. Screening process should always include reference checks and questions to previous employers about the potential employee’s conduct with youth, and questions about any concerning behavior. Clubs need to have policies for when background checks do come up with concerning issues and what is acceptable and what is not, for employment.</p> <p><b>Should a sports league run volunteer background checks on everyone (office staff, field maintenance crews, etc) or focus primarily on the coaches and volunteers?</b></p> <p>Background checks should be done on all employees, staff, volunteers and others who will have responsibility for players.</p> <p><b>What are some of the tell-tale signs that a child is being abused?</b></p> <p>Depending on the type of abuse there are many behaviors that victims of abuse my exhibit:</p> <p><b>Physical Abuse</b>; unexplained injuries, depression, behavior problems, fear of a parent or another adult</p> <p><b>Sexual abuse</b>: sexually acting out, increased sexual knowledge or behavior, drug and alcohol abuse, poor grades, eating and sleeping disorders, refusing to change or undress in front of others.</p> <p><b>What should a parent or coach do if they suspect a player is being sexually abused?</b></p> <p>Report it. Period. They are not to think about it...or discuss it with others, investigate it or sleep one it...they are simply asked to report it. Many youth sport organizations are now requiring all employees, staff and parents to report any suspicion of abuse. Here in Colorado I initiated a bill that requires paid club coaches to be added to the list of mandated reporters of child abuse, the bill was signed by the Governor on March 22, and is now Colorado law. This supports coaches in making that call and protecting the youth in their organizations.</p> <p><b>What steps should a youth sports organization take should one of their coaches or volunteers be accused of abusing (verbally, physically, sexual) an athlete?</b></p> <p>Report it and remove the coach from interactions with players immediately. The club should have policies on how to respond and investigate concerns of abuse and misconduct. The organization should fully participate with the law enforcement investigation and conduct one of their own that does not interfere with the criminal investigation. Clubs should have a zero tolerance for abuse and misconduct violations...this is why child abuse prevention policies are necessary so all members of your organization know what behaviors are acceptable and what behaviors would lead to a firing. During these investigations club need to keep confidentiality in mind when it comes to youth who may have been a victim of abuse.</p> <p><b>Could the abuser ever be another player? Would that affect the way the league should respond?</b></p> <p>1/3 of all sexual abuse cases are perpetrated by a juvenile. So yes, this is a big concern for youth sport organizations. Many sexual predators begin abusing at the age of 14. This would not necessarily change the response. Depending on local laws on age of arrest for juveniles, clubs may still report to law enforcement or Department of Social Services and remove that juvenile from contact with other youth.</p> <p><b>Have you ever dealt with a situation where a coach was falsely accused of abusing a player? What can coaches do to protect themselves from being accused of misconduct when they are, in fact, not guilty of anything inappropriate?</b></p> <p>False allegations are rare. They can happen but kids don’t tend to lie about abuse, especially sexual abuse. Child abuse prevention policy and procedures are created to protect players AND coaches. Having rules around behavior and interactions can keep coaches out of compromising situations. For example, coaches should never be alone with a youth player, having another adult present protects coaches from false allegations or a parent from misunderstanding a situation. Coaches should not text or be friends with players on Facebook<sup>®</sup>...these are simple steps a coach can take to limit their vulnerability toward false allegations. Policies can help address these issues and provide coaches the support they need to be an amazing coach.</p> <p>If a coach believes they are wrongly accused of abusing a player I would recommend they hire an attorney and take all necessary steps to avoid contact with the alleged victim and to remove themselves from contact with youth until the investigation is complete.</p> </article> <article> <h1>New Sports and Activities to Try This Summer</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Is your son or daughter bored with the usual summer sports? With 70% of kids quitting youth sports by the time they are 13 it’s definitely up to us parents to find new ways to keep our kids active. If soccer and baseball just aren’t cutting it anymore here are a few new summer sports and activities to test.</p> <h3><b>Karate</b></h3> <p>What little kid doesn’t want to feel like a ninja?! Karate (or kung-fu, judo, taekwondo, and so forth) are a great activity for any age, with some programs accepting children as young as three. Practicing martial arts can help your child develop better focus and concentration, so it might be just the thing for a child with an extra-short attention span. They are constantly moving around which helps them stay focused on what they are doing. Karate is also a great idea if your child doesn’t seem to keen on team sports. They’ll still be in a class with other kids and make new friends but it’s not the same team dynamic like what you’d see on a basketball court.</p> <h3><b>Ultimate Frisbee</b></h3> <p>Summertime is the perfect time to give Ultimate Frisbee a try! Ultimate Frisbee is kind of like a mixture between basketball, soccer and football. It involves all the elements of an active sport like throwing, running, catching, and passing so kids will really be moving. The best part? Even at the highest level of competition there are no referees! Ultimate Frisbee is a completely self-referred game and players are responsible for making their own foul and line calls and have to settle disputes on their own. All you need a Frisbee and a field and some friends.</p> <h3><b>Kayaking</b></h3> <p>If you live near water (river, lake, ocean, etc) water sports are a definite must-try this summer! A lot of communities have summer boat rental programs where you can rent a kayak for an hour or two and paddle around the local pond or stretch of river. Kayaking with kids requires a little extra planning because you’ll need to plan your trip carefully simply because they aren’t expert paddlers; find calm water, know how long it will take you to paddle, pack some snacks in a water-proof bag, and make sure everyone has a life vest.</p> <h3><b>Beach volleyball</b></h3> <p>You don’t even have to live on the beach to try beach volleyball, as lots of community centers open up a sand volleyball court in the summer time. Have you ever tried jumping and running it sand before? It’s quite a workout! But volleyball is so much fun that you don’t even realize you are exercising. Getting kids active and moving around is always much easier when you disguise it as a game.</p> <h3><b>Sports Camps</b></h3> <p>Contact your local youth sports league or community center and see what kinds of sports camps are available for your kids this summer. They might be able to able to do something like a 2 week soccer-only camp, a ½ day all-sports camp for 6 weeks, or maybe even a general summer camp where they’ll be exposed to many different sports including things like horseback riding and archery.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Summer Sports Nutrition Tips</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Thu, 09 May 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>It’s summertime! That means we’re all spending more time outdoors and between swim lessons in the morning and a baseball game in the afternoon a busy youth athlete is going to need to eat the right kind of food so they don’t fall asleep in the outfield! Here are a few summer sports nutrition tips and ideas to keep your youth athlete feeling full and energized.</p> <h3><b>Whole-grain crackers or bagels.</b></h3> <p>Whole-grains foods contain all three parts of the grain (bran, the germ and endosperm). Whole-grain snacks like crackers and bagels are better for summer athletes because they break down more slowly and provide lasting energy. Simple carbohydrates like those in white breads and cookies are more quickly converted to sugar (which means faster energy) but cause a sugar crash later. The last thing we want is for our summer athletes to run out of gas halfway through the game!<b></b></p> <h3><b>Low-fat chocolate milk.</b></h3> <p>Believe it or not, <a href="http://www.utexas.edu/alumni-friends/research-matters/chocolate-milk-study" title="low-fat chocolate milk" target="_blank">low-fat chocolate milk</a> has everything a summer athlete needs after a hard practice or game. It has the right carb to protein ratio for optimal recovery and is packed full of good nutrients like calcium. Sports drinks are good because they contain electrolytes like sodium and potassium, which we lose when we sweat, but a big sport drink also comes with big amounts of sugar. Low-fat milk might have a little added sugar in it, but it’s far less than the amount of sugar that is usually added to sports drinks and definitely better for youth athletes than soda.</p> <h3><b>Low-fat proteins.</b></h3> <p>Fatty food and proteins (like fast food burgers) can take a long time to digest so summer athletes can get that heavy feeling in their stomachs, which is definitely not fun on a hot day! Low-fat protein options like plain greek yogurt, turkey, and eggs are a great source of good fats, vitamins and protein. If you are <a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/?Tag=Traveling">traveling to an away tournament</a> it’s always good to pack a few low-fat options in a cooler; you never know what kind of food will be around and you don’t want to rely on nachos and candy to keep your youth athlete going!</p> <h3><b>Fresh fruits.</b></h3> <p>There is a big difference between “fruit” snacks and an actual apple or orange. Fresh blueberries, for instance, are full of good carbohydrates, fiber, and Vitamin C. Some blueberry flavored fruit snacks, on the other hand, actually have very few blueberries in them and use blueberry juice concentrate to get the flavor and color. You can’t go wrong with a few bananas, pears, or pineapple slices during half-time. Watermelon is also a fantastic summer snack for athletes because it has so much water, which will help keep youth athletes hydrated!</p> <p>The most important thing to remember is to encourage your youth athlete to stay hydrated! Make sure they drink plenty of water before their practice or game, keep drinking throughout and rehydrate after! Keep extra water bottles in their sports bag or in the trunk of your car so your team is never without water. And remember to take care of your own hydration needs. Sometimes we as coaches and parents worry so much about the kids we forget to eat and drink the right things for ourselves!</p> </article> <article> <h1>Youth Sports Blog Roundup for May 8th, 2013</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Wed, 08 May 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Below you will find a few of our favorite blog posts that are related to youth sports, youth sports coaching and sports parenting from the past few weeks. Please feel free to visit each and we hope you find them as helpful as we do!</p> <p><b><a href="http://sportsmom.sportsstarsoftomorrow.com/managing-you-kids-busy-schedules/" rel="nofollow" title="Managing You Kids Busy Schedules!" target="_blank">Managing You Kids Busy Schedules!</a></b></p> <p>We all have one….a calendar on the fridge with all our daily schedules including games, practices and birthday parties! What we don’t have is a good system of keeping track (well at least I don’t!). So I went searching for a plan to keep up with my kids plans or their schedules.</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.sidelinepass.com/know-your-numbers/" rel="nofollow" title="Know Your Numbers" target="_blank">Know Your Numbers</a></b></p> <p>Without knowing your numbers, you won’t know how you are doing. If you don’t know your child’s numbers and if you do not keep up with how they are doing academically, it could cost them an opportunity to realize their dream of securing a scholarship for college and entrance into the college they are planning on attending.</p> <p><b><a href="http://mom.me/blog/6998-how-be-sports-mom/" rel="nofollow" title="How to Be a Sports Mom" target="_blank">How to Be a Sports Mom</a></b></p> <p>I am so not into sports. I do not follow March Madness. I cannot figure out why there is both a White Sox and a Red Sox baseball team, and if they have anything to do with one another. I avoid Super Bowl parties, because I never know who is playing and I never care.</p> <p><b><a href="http://sportsdadhub.com/dad-will-you-play-catch-with-me/" rel="nofollow" title="“Dad, will you play catch with me?”" target="_blank">“Dad, will you play catch with me?”</a></b></p> <p>“Dad, will you play catch with me?”</p> <p>That’s a special phrase that always has a profound impact on me. When one of my three boys asks me to play catch, I never take the question lightly.</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.allprodad.com/dungy/when-should-your-child-quit-a-sport/" rel="nofollow" title="When Should Your Child Quit a Sport?" target="_blank">When Should Your Child Quit a Sport?</a></b></p> <p>As parents, we often wonder when our kids should start playing sports. And we also wonder when it’s okay to let our kids quit a sport. Here are my thoughts on how you can support your child when he wants to quit a particular sport or activity.</p> <p><b><a href="http://blog.teamsnap.com/how-to/how-to-build-a-successful-team-part-3/" rel="nofollow" title="How to Build a Successful Team: #4 Know How Hard to Push and #5 Seek Help" target="_blank">How to Build a Successful Team: #4 Know How Hard to Push and #5 Seek Help</a></b></p> <p>Parents and coaches, keep your cool. Manage your expectations of your athlete, or they won’t find it enjoyable on a deeper level… and that would violate rule #1, which is to have fun! We’ll highlight these points and more:</p> </article> <article> <h1>Youth Running Advice for Different Age Groups</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Tue, 07 May 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>SportsSignup is a proud sponsor of the <a href="http://www.freihofersrun.com/3k.htm" title="Freihofer's Junior 3K Run" target="_blank">Freihofer's Junior 3K Run</a>. This 1.86-mile road race (for 9-13 year old boys and girls) is scheduled for Saturday June 1, 2013 at the Empire State Plaza in Downtown Albany at 11:15 a.m. There is still plenty of time left to register your youth runner (and Mom can sign up for the Women’s 5k until May 31) and get a few runs under their belt before the gun goes off! But different age groups have to run a little differently, so here are few pieces of advice for youth runners and their parents.</p> <h3><b>Preschoolers</b></h3> <p>According to <a href="http://www.runnersworld.com/running-tips/youth-movement-1?page=single" rel="nofollow" title="RunnersWorld.com" target="_blank">RunnersWorld.com</a>, “Doctors and coaches agree that kids should not start running in any purposeful way before they start kindergarten.” The concern is that since younger children don’t have a very steady running gait they are at risk for injury. The last thing we want is for a four year old to get shin splints! Preschoolers also have very short attention spans, so running more than a few hundred yards is going to get old fast. How fast and how far they run will also be dependent on how coordinated they are so just let the little kids run however they run and worry about “real” running when they get a little older.</p> <p>Freihofer’s also has a <a href="http://www.freihofersrun.com/kids_run.htm" title="Kids’ Run" target="_blank">Kids’ Run</a> for kids ages 3-11 so little brother and sister can get running too!</p> <h3><b>5-8 year olds</b></h3> <p>The biggest concern with 5-8 year olds should be to keep them from getting bored with running. This is something we want them to learn to love doing now so it sticks with them for the rest of their lives. Very few adults enjoy running in a straight line for mile after mile so don’t expect the kids to like it either. A great way to encourage running among 5-8 year olds is to make it part of their normal play. Think about how many playground games revolve around running; tag, capture the flag, kick the can and so forth. Kids can do a lot of running during those games and not be the slightest bit bored!</p> <p>You might be able to convince 5-8 year olds to short races with each other, but many experts, however, warn against serious 5-Ks for those under 8. However, if a 7 or 8 year old is having a good time just let them run!</p> <h3><b>9-12 year olds</b></h3> <p>As youth runners get older there are a lot more clubs and competitive running organizations they can join but even though you can run all year-round it’s still a good idea to let kids play other sports. “As the long bones in kids' legs grow, the cartilage is not ossified, and hard running can lead to discomfort near the ends of the bones. When this syndrome strikes the knee--a common running condition known as Osgood-Schlatter--it can be very painful and may require medical attention.” Again, we don’t want to hurt or burnout our youth runners! When they are younger kids typically have two speeds—on or off. As they get a little older they can learn how to pace themselves and work up to longer distances.</p> <p>If your son or daughter wants to race in the Junior 3k check out these <a href="http://freihofersrun.com/3k.htm#training">youth running and training tips</a>!</p> </article> <article> <h1>Finding the Middle Ground between Childhood Obesity and Overuse Injuries</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Thu, 02 May 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p><a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/163222/Fighting-Childhood-Obesity-with-Sports">Childhood obesity</a> is a scary reality in this country, with approximately 17% (or 12.5 million) of children and adolescents aged 2—19 years being obese. Obviously we as parents and coaches need to help our kids make the right kind of decisions when it comes to food and to encourage a more active lifestyle. But on the opposite end of the spectrum we have those “super youth athletes” that play sports all year round and are at risk of being over-trained, especially if they only do one sport, which can lead to burnout and overuse injuries. But does it have to be all or nothing when it comes to youth sports? Can’t we help our kids find a happy middle ground between not enough activity and too much?</p> <h4><b>Don’t just practice, play!</b></h4> <p>If you ask a youth football or basketball player what their favorite thing about their sport is you probably won’t hear “oh man, I love those passing drills!” Practice time doesn’t usually make it to the top of the list, especially if they have a coach that hasn’t quite figured out how to keep practice moving along so no one is standing around for too long with nothing to do. Never mind the fact that you aren’t doing too much moving at all while standing in line for a turn in the batting cage, let’s be honest, practices can be really boring. So instead of just practicing how about we play a little more? Instead of the usual passing drills why not turn it into a game and have some in-team competition? Give kids a reason to hustle and move and try and pay attention (but please don’t punish the “losing” side with running). Exercise is always easier when it’s been cleverly disguised as fun!</p> <h4><b>Let your child try different sports.</b></h4> <p>A lot of coaches love to hear that players are multi-sport athletes because they know that each sport will teach players different skills that can then be applied to other sports. Instead of playing baseball all year round, why not give soccer or tennis a try? Or maybe even karate or swimming? Who knows, maybe your child will discover they absolutely love floor hockey! At the end of the day the best way to keep kids active is to make sure they are having fun and aren’t bored or burnt-out. Playing a new sport every few months helps keep them on their toes and gives them the chance to stretch their wings and learn new things.</p> <h4><b>Get active with them.</b></h4> <p>Exercise is almost always more fun when you have a buddy to do it with, so if you want your kids to be more active then you need to get more active! Sign-up for a family 5k or road race (like the <a href="http://www.freihofersrun.com/3k.htm" title="Freihofer’s Junior 3K" target="_blank">Freihofer’s Junior 3K</a>) and start running together. Register for a kids and teen yoga class or family rec night at your community center; go for a bike ride, a short hike, race your kids in the pool and so forth. We want our kids to get used to being active and moving and actually enjoying it, so hopefully they will carry that attitude with them for the rest of their lives.</p> </article> <article> <h1>SportsSignup Interviews Sports Mom Janis B. Meredith</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Wed, 01 May 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Recently SportsSignup had the chance to interview Janis B. Meredith, the sports mom behind the widely read and respected sportsparenting blog <a href="http://jbmthinks.com" rel="nofollow" title="JBMThinks" target="_blank">JBMThinks</a>. She’s been a sports mom for 20 years, and a coach’s wife for 28, and sees life from both sides of the bench. We hope all the sports moms and dads out there take something away from her advice.</p> <h4><b>What are some of your favorite things about being a sports mom?</b></h4> <p>I’ve been a sports mom for 20 years and my youngest is now playing college volleyball. What I’ve loved about it over the years is watching my kids succeed and have victories.</p> <h4><b>What are some of the hardest things about being a sports mom?</b></h4> <p>It’s hard to watch your kids go through struggles, feel down about themselves. It’s hard to watch them work hard and still not get in the game.</p> <h4><b>Having two daughters and a son all heavily involved in youth sports, would you say there is any real difference between raising a female athlete vs. a male athlete?</b></h4> <p>I don’t like to label kids one way or the other; but it seems like the girls dealt more with team drama, girls gettng along, etc. My girls were more emotional about conflicts and struggles. My son--‐--‐and this just may be his personality--‐--‐seemed more steady in his reactions to things. His teams didn’t seemed to have as much drama, although boys’ teams are not totally drama--‐free zones. My husband, who’s coached both boys and girls, sees a definite difference. He couldn’t treat the softball girls the same way he treated the football players. He felt girls were much more sensitive.</p> <h4><b>How important are the parents in a youth athlete’s career?</b></h4> <p>They are the most important influence. I believe that a child brings to the court or game what he learns in the home. For instance, if his parents are complaining about the coach and saying negative things about him, the child will carry that to the team and will most likely have a difficult time respecting the coach too.</p> <h4><b>Can you still be a great youth sports parent even if you know nothing about sports?</b></h4> <p>Of course! I knew nothing about volleyball before my daughters started playing, or soccer before my kids played. You will learn by watching the game and it’s okay to ask your kids questions about the game. It shows your interest and support.</p> <h4><b>How can a parent--‐coach find a good balance between their two sets of responsibilities?</b></h4> <p>This is a tough line to draw, but a parent who decides to coach his child’s team must be willing to do what’s best for the team, no matter if it means his child doesn’t get the playing time or the position he wants. He should talk to his child about this situation, telling him that his responsibility as a coach is to the team first. “I love you and love being your dad, but when I’m coaching, I have to coach other kids too and I am responsible for the whole team, not just you.” Something along those lines. It’s almost like he has to be willing to wear the coaching hat at practice and games, and as soon as it’s over, he can put his parent hat back on. Not easy for a child to grasp.</p> <h4><b>What mistakes do a lot of sports parents make and how can new sports parents avoid them?</b></h4> <p>Many parents try to fight their kids’ battles for them and they are not doing them any favors when they do. They also try to manipulate situations, always wanting to smooth the path for the kids. I understand wanting our kids to have good experiences and there’s nothing wrong with looking for good youth sports environments, but sometimes they go overboard, like looking for a team where their child will have no one to challenge him at his position. Life is just not like that, and we will help our kids be stronger if we stop trying to make things perfect for them all the time.</p> <p>My daughter is a college volleyball player now and she is in a situation where she is fighting for every minute on the court. She transferred from a school where the program was easier and she would have been starting, to a school much more competitive. Part of me said, “no, stay where you know you’ll get lots of playing time.” But the other part said, “Janis, let her go; let her be challenged.” I see her challenge now and I know, without a doubt, that she is growing stronger as a person because of it. And quite honestly, after she graduates from college, when she applies for jobs or raises her children, it won’t make a bit of a difference how many minutes she played. But the strength she got from the challenge will make a difference in her life.</p> <p>Making things easier for our kids isn’t always the best way to make them strong.</p> <h4><b>What do you think are some of the biggest issues facing youth sports today?</b></h4> <p>Safety has been front and center a lot. Concussions and sexual abuse, specifically. I think we must do whatever we can to make youth sports as safe a possible, while knowing that there is absolutely no way to totally control all the variables, especially when it comes to injury.</p> <p>I also think that over controlling, obsessive, pushy parents are a huge issue. They are getting good coaches fired, filing lawsuits, and manipulating the system in hopes that their child will succeed, even get a chance to play in college.</p> <h4><b>What’s your best piece of advice for sports parents?</b></h4> <p>Learn how to bite your tongue. Around your kids, around the coaches, in the bleachers, around other parents. Let the kids play, let them struggle, let them fight, let them learn. Be supportive, stay positive and learn to let them go.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Why “Unstructured” Play is a Good Thing</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <P>Sometimes it seems like we as sports parents are scheduling our kids (and by default ourselves!) to death. Soccer practice, swim lessons, reserved time in the batting cages, one-on-one coaching sessions—every minute of free time during the week and on the weekends is carefully planned and organized and scheduled to keep our kids busy. And while there is nothing wrong with making sure your child stays active and off the couch (especially now that the weather is finally warming up!) there is something to be said for regular old play time. You know what we’re talking about; the “unstructured” play in the backyard, on playgrounds, on the bike path or empty basketball courts and baseball fields. Maybe we, and our youth athletes, could use a little more free play.</P> <H3><B>Here are 3 reasons why unstructured play is a good thing:</B></H3> <H4><B>1. Teaches kids to entertain themselves.</B></H4> <P>Being bored is sometimes a good thing! It might sound crazy, but think about the best ideas and games you and your friends came up with as a kid. It was probably because you were bored out of your mind and wanted to stop being bored, right? When every minute of free time is planned out for them, kids don’t have to learn how to entertain themselves or break the boredom cycle on their own. A little unstructured play time means they are responsible for their own fun. You’d be amazed at the crazy stories and games kids will come up with when left to their own devices. Pillow fort in the living room anyone?</P> <H4><B>2. Have fun with no pressure to perform.</B></H4> <P>Let’s be honest sports parents, sometimes we get a little wrapped up in Little League or PeeWee football and <A href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/165539/4-Things-Sports-Parents-Do-that-Make-Kids-Hate-Sports">turn into “that” sports mom or dad</A> that takes youth sports a touch too seriously. Unstructured play like pickup basketball games with the neighborhood kids in someone’s driveway gives youth athletes the chance to just have fun and play the sport they love, with no pressure from either us or their coaches to perform. Sure, kids will keep score even without adult interference, but hopefully they don’t agonize over every mistake or misstep when they feel that no one is there to judge them. Let’s play for play’s sake!</P> <H4><B>3. No coaches, no officials, no parents---let the players figure it out.</B></H4> <P>What happens when you strip away the coaches to call plays, officials to enforce the rules, and parents to holler from the sidelines—something amazing happens, that’s what. The kids play anyway. And they learn how to figure things out on their own. After all, you are either safe or out; the hit was foul or fair, offside or not, completed pass or fumble. Sports, for the most part, are very black and white and sometimes two teams/players will not agree. But what are they going to do? Stand around and argue about it for 20 minutes or figure it out and move on? Unstructured play doesn’t mean kids will chuck the rules of the game out the window (although they might make a few up as they go), but it does mean they will have to learn how to enforce the rules on their own.</P>So let’s leave the organizer at home today and just head out the playground for some good, ole fashioned unstructured fun. Just remember that you as sports parents still have to abide by the <A title="rules of the playground" href="http://nannybackgroundcheck.com/blog/10-unwritten-playground-rules-all-parents-should-follow/" rel=nofollow target=_blank>rules of the playground</A> (nice tips from <A title=nannybackgroundcheck.com href="http://www.nannybackgroundcheck.com" target=_blank>nannybackgroundcheck.com</A>!), just like you have to behave on the sidelines. </article> <article> <h1>2 New SportsSignup System Updates</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>SportsSignup’s <a href="http://www.sportssignup.com/products/club">online sports registration software</a> is what you call “SaaS,” meaning Software-as-a-Service. It’s an approach that has helped thousands of sports organizations transform the way they do business and interact with their members. The team here at SportsSignup is committed to making the league management process even easier for administrators, sports parents, coaches and registrants, which is why we are pleased to announce two system updates for the month of April. Take a look!</p> <p><b>UI Change: Making the Registration Process Even Easier!</b></p> <p>New buttons have been added to the end user’s (the registrant) Account page. These buttons make the registration process a lot easier for your end users, by letting them know exactly what button they need to click on depending on what they are trying to accomplish. We wanted to make sure that coaches, volunteers, and parents all knew exactly what steps they needed to complete in order to register with your league, be it filing a <a href="http://www.sportssignup.com/products/kidsafeplus-background-checks">volunteer background check</a>, registering a team, or applying to coach.</p> <p></p> <p><b>Feature Release: Sent Messages</b></p> <p>Based on one of the most popular requests from league administrators, we are pleased to announce this new messaging feature for existing customers. Under your “Reports” tab, you will notice a new feature, “Sent Messages”. This feature gives you the following information regarding emails and text messages that are sent from your system.</p> <ul> <li>The date and time the email or text was sent.</li> <li>Whether the communication was an <a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/149453/Send-Text-Messages-with-easyAlert">easyAlert</a> or an email</li> <li>The subject of the communication</li> <li>Who sent the communication</li> <li>Number of recipients (email)</li> <li>Number of SMS recipients (Text Message)</li> </ul> <p>It’s a great way to keep track of your league communications and make sure you really did send out that cancellation notice! The last thing you want is for an email or text to get saved as a draft mode instead of sent and have a lot of confused sports parents on your hands!</p> <p>If you have any questions email our support team at <a href="mailto:support@sportssignup.com">support@sportssignup.com</a><b> </b>or call 1-866-975-8600. You can also visit the SportsSignup Support Center online at <a href="http://www.sportssignup.com/about/SupportCenter.aspx">http://www.sportssignup.com/about/SupportCenter.aspx</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>4 Benefits of Online Sports Registration Systems</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Sports administrators really are the unsung heroes of youth sports. After all, without them you wouldn’t have a youth sports league! No coaches, no official teams, no maintained fields, no officials, no nothing! And while a good <a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/172825/When-Was-the-Last-Time-You-Played-a-Pick-Up-Game">pickup game</a> is always a good idea in our books, most kids really learn how to play (and love) sports from belonging to a youth sports league.</p> <p>The biggest hassle of being a sports league administrator has got to be paperwork. You’re practically drowning in it at times! So save yourself a lot of time and hassles (and more than a few trees) and consider investing in an <a href="http://sportssignup.com/products/club">online sports registration system</a>. Here are just a few of the benefits:</p> <h3><b>1. Reduce registration processing errors.</b></h3> <p>Let’s be honest, some sports moms and dads have pretty atrocious handwriting. And when you are dealing with paper registration forms your office staff has to decipher that handwriting AND make sure they input it correctly into your system (doubling the chances for a registration error like a misspelled name or email address). With an online sports registration system sports parents enter their own information electronically right into your system! This means your team doesn’t have to worry and decoding handwriting or tracking down one misspelled email out of thousands of registrants.</p> <p>The really great thing about an online sports registration system is that should your sports parents sign their child up for another season the system will remember their information! They’ll only need to update a few lines as opposed to starting from scratch.</p> <h3><b>2. Customize your registration forms.</b></h3> <p>Make sure your sports organization gets the exact information it needs from registrants with customizable registration forms! You can even create different forms for different age groups or sports if need be; forms for early-bird registration, last minute events like a community 5k and so forth. The best part is, since the registration is all online you don’t have to squeeze everything onto one printed registration form. If someone doesn’t complete the form correctly they won’t be able to register, meaning you won’t have to track that sports parent down later because they forgot to put their child’s birthday or shirt size.</p> <h3><b>3. Credit card registration is collected immediately.</b></h3> <p>Minimize the amount of cash and checks going in and out of your office and let your online sports registration form collect registration fees from credit cards and deposit them immediately into your league’s bank account. You’ll always know exactly how many funds are available to your league and not have to worry about a check bouncing or losing cash. You’ll also receive statements of all account activity each month so if any unusual money movement happens you’ll know about it sooner rather than later.</p> <h3><b>4. Email notification keeps the lines of communication open at all times.</b></h3> <p>An online sports registration system not only emails receipts and registration confirmations, it can also be used by your coaches to email their players with schedules, updates, notices, etc. You no longer have to worry about one parent not being in the loop! The email system also makes it easier for your administration team to keep in touch with all your coaches and send rosters, season schedules, practice booking procedures and so forth. You can send one email to every single registrant in your system or drill down by division, league or even a specific team.</p> <p></p> </article> <article> <h1>Youth Sports Blog Roundup for April 24th, 2013</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Below you will find a few of our favorite blog posts that are related to youth sports, youth sports coaching and sports parenting from the past few weeks. Please feel free to visit each and we hope you find them as helpful as we do!</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.prosportsexperience.com/sports-gear-organization/" rel="nofollow" title="Sports Gear Organization" target="_blank">Sports Gear Organization</a></b></p> <p>This week marks the beginning of the season for many spring sports and with a new sport season often comes new sport gear. How do you keep your sport gear organized—especially if you have multiple children playing multiple sports? The first thing you need to do is establish a “sport zone” in your house. Designating one area where sports items go will save you lots of time in trying to find equipment, uniforms, etc. Your “zone” doesn’t have to be big—you can make even the smallest of spaces work for you and your family. </p> <p><b><a href="http://iyca.org/coaching-art-or-science/" rel="nofollow" title="Coaching: Art or Science?" target="_blank">Coaching: Art or Science?</a></b></p> <p>Let me begin by posing a question for you to ponder aimed at the core of your coaching philosophy. Is training young athletes to get bigger, faster, and stronger a sports science or an art form? Do you believe the science, research or training methods are most important? Or do you believe that the <b>art of coaching</b> and working with youth is more important than any science or training methods?</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.worldclasscoaching.com/developing-confidence-in-young-players/" rel="nofollow" title="Developing Confidence in Young Players" target="_blank">Developing Confidence in Young Players</a></b></p> <p>Motivation, confidence, skill and talent are all interconnected, and are especially important at a young age. Children with low confidence tend to lack motivation. This lack of motivation leads to a reluctance to try and a lack of effort. Lack of focused effort leads to lower skill and low skill usually leads to a lack of confidence…the downward spiral (pictured here) has started. But let’s flip this around…</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.mentaltoughnesstrainer.com/strategies-for-dealing-with-tough-coaches/" rel="nofollow" title="Strategies for dealing with Tough Coaches" target="_blank">Strategies for dealing with Tough Coaches</a></b></p> <p>We hear from players all the time that they have coaches that they don’t like or don’t like them. Either way it affects a child’s performance whether positively or negatively.</p> <p>It is then necessary for them to know how to deal with these tough coaches to maintain their focus in and out of the game.</p> <p><b><a href="http://jasezone.com/youth-sports-walk-the-line/" rel="nofollow" title="Youth Sports – Walk the Line" target="_blank">Youth Sports – Walk the Line</a></b></p> <p>The Rutgers Scandal from last week is still reverberating throughout mainstream and sports conversations as more information is being brought to light – new video evidence showing assistant Men’s Basketball coach Jimmy Martelli taking the Mike Rice show to a new level. Now Athletic Director Tim Pernetti has been fired and there is a question if President Robert Barchi should step down as well – what a mess.</p> </article> <article> <h1>In Honor of Marathons</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Let be honest for a moment sports moms and dads—when we were kids running was just how we got from point A to point B the quickest. We didn’t do it to get (or stay) in shape, we just ran because that’s what we did. And it was awesome! Think about how many playground games are running based—tag, capture the flag, sharks and minnows, ghost in the graveyard, kick the can, and dozens (if not hundreds) of variations of these games and more. For a while running wasn’t thought of exercise or as punishment (some coaches love to threaten their teams with extra laps!); we just ran because we could, because we were kids, and because our own parents kicked us out the house when we had too much energy and time on our hands.</p> <p>At some point running stopped becoming something we just did and became a chore or a means to an end. But there are still those among us that love to run for the sheer joy of running. They marvel at how far their own two feet can carry them. And although most of us will never run one ourselves, marathons remind us of the days when we ran just because. Marathons are a celebration of the unbelievable machine that is the human body and the amazing power of human spirit. After all, what other animal on this planet gets up to run 26.2 miles for the heck of it? There is no lion trying to eat us that we have to out run, nor are we trying to catch our own dinner anymore. Marathons are about running for the sake of running itself.</p> <p>The Boston Marathon is the world’s oldest annual marathon and is arguably one of the best known road racing events worldwide. Every years tens of thousands of runners from across the globe and hundreds of thousands of fans and spectators line the streets of Boston and neighboring towns to cheer on the world’s most elite runners, as well as their moms and dads, husbands and wives, sons and daughters, friends, and total strangers as they do something amazing…just because they can.</p> <p>The tragic events at the finish line of this year’s Boston Marathon have dealt a shocking blow to all of us, runners and non-runners alike. The fact that someone would use a venue like the Boston Marathon, which celebrates friendly competition and human excellence, to inflict harm upon innocent spectators is heart-breaking. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families and friends and the city of Boston as they strive to pull themselves together again.</p> <p>Let us remember and honor the victims with donations to <a href="http://onefundboston.org/">The One Fund</a>, started by Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and Boston Mayor Tom Menino. Or schedule an appointment with the America Red Cross to donate blood or platelets. There are even stories of Boston Marathoners finishing the race and then running an additional two miles to the Massachusetts General Hospital to donate blood. And last, but certainly not least, let’s all get up a go for a run this week. Even you hate running, even if you’ve never run a mile since high school when they made run. Sign up for a 5k, a 10k, a marathon of your own. Get up and go run with your family, your friends, and your dog—just because you can.</p> <p>Follow the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TheBostonMarathon">Boston Marathon on Facebook</a> for updates.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Should Youth Sports Leagues Be Organized by Age, Size, or Skill Level?</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>In his book “Outliers,” Malcolm Gladwell explains that a disproportionate number of elite Canadian hockey players are born in the first few months of the calendar year. Since Canadian youth hockey leagues, much like US teams, determine eligibility by calendar year, children born on January 1 play in the same league as those born on December 31. However, players born in the beginning of the year tend to be a little bit bigger, stronger, and faster than those born towards the end of year simply because they’ve got a few extra months under their belt. He hypothesizes that the little extra bit of speed, power and size may not mean much when players are 6 or 7 years old, but it’s enough to get them noticed sooner than their teammates, which gets them better coaching and onto better teams, and that small advantage turns into a huge gap as players get older. Gladwell argues that is those younger players (June-December birthdays) had their own league more of them might have ended up in the elite league.</p> <p>For the most part, youth sports leagues divide their to-be players into teams and divisions by age; U-6, U-8, U-12, and so forth. This makes a lot of sense. After all, a 5 year old who has never played baseball before doesn’t really have much hope of hitting off a 12 year old pitcher. But grouping youth athletes together by age isn’t always that cut and dry.</p> <p>For instance, it’s entirely possible that an 11 year old boy would want to try basketball for the first time, having never been on a court in his life. His youth sports league would most likely put him in the U-12 division based on his age, but in terms of skill level he’d be miles behind his teammates. Or imagine that same 11 year old boy wants to play football, but is a little small for his age (the average 11 year old boy apparently <a href="http://www.parenting.com/article/ask-dr-sears-too-short-and-heavy">weighs approximately 80 pounds</a>). Some of his teammates are probably going to be a little big for their age so suddenly you’ve got a 20 or 30 pound swing between players. While they may not mean much in basketball, in a full contact sport like football it matters a lot. Would it be better to create hockey, football or lacrosse teams (where size can make a big difference) by size as opposed to age? Or is skill level more important because players will know the fundamentals better?</p> <p>Some sports league might allow players to petition to “play up” an age division if they (or their parents) feel they can compete with older and presumably bigger kids. Some players will excel when they become a smaller fish in a bigger pond and learn and grow as athletes as the competition level grows. After all, it’s hard to get better when you’re at the top of the pyramid, right? Sometimes it helps athletes achieve more when they have something to aspire to be. Should athletic skill be enough to move a youth athlete from division to division even if they’re “undersized”?</p> <p>And plenty of leagues let younger players sub in if a team is a few players short just so the game can still happen (fairly rarely will you let an older player step down an age division though.) Most of the time the little brother or sister stepping in just so minimum player requirements can be met, but it’s entirely possible that little sis will blow the doors off everyone else!</p> <p>Other leagues have let girls sub for boys’ teams (and vice versa) as needed to make sure the game happens as well. One soccer mom told us her daughter did this for a neighbor boy’s team and even though the team they were playing made some snide comments about having to play a girl; she kicked butt the whole time! By the end of the first quarter no one doubted her daughter’s skill, even if she was a lot smaller than her teammates.</p> <h4><b>Age? Skill level? Size? What do you think matters the most when creating divisions and teams in a youth sports league?</b></h4> </article> <article> <h1>Why You Must be the Voice of Change for Safety in Youth Sports</h1> <p>Janis Meredith — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>When your sign up your kids for youth sports, there’s a lot of issues to think about: uniforms, costs, playing time issues, and team chemistry--to name a few. The last thing you want to worry about is your child’s safety from sexual predators.</p> <p>Unfortunately, that’s a concern that parents must address in the face of today’s mindnumbing facts about sexual predators. More than 65% or predators who have been identified as child sexual abusers were in positions of trust, such as coaches or clergy. Just as you have safety expectations about your child’s teachers and babysitters, you should also have expectations about the coaches and organizers of your child’s youth sports programs.</p> <h4><b>Don’t let your guard down</b></h4> <p>It’s tempting for parents to let their guard down for sporting activities because many coaches are volunteers, parents, or guardians. And although it’s true that most coaches truly care about children and are no risk to them, there are a small percentage who will use the coaching platform as a means to gain access to children for the purpose of victimizing them.</p> <p>And let’s face it, the world doesn’t seem to be getting any safer. According to the Center for Mission and Exploited Children, U.S. law enforcement agencies have seen a huge increase in cases of sexual exploitation of children since the 1990s. As that figure grows, so does the number of children who play youth sports every year. Statistics vary, but many of them put the number of youth sports participants at close to or over 40,000,000 each year. For child predators, that’s a veritable gold mine of opportunity, and parents and sports organizations cannot let their guards down, no matter how well they think they know someone.</p> <h4><b>No wolves should get past the gate</b></h4> <p>Last November, two <a href="http://wqad.com/2012/11/20/police-bust-sex-offenders-coaching-local-youth-sports/" rel="nofollow" title="sex offenders in Illinois" target="_blank">sex offenders in Illinois</a> got past the youth sports guard gate and were allowed to coach until someone turned them in. The question is: how were they allowed to coach in the first place? It is inexecusable for any wolves--sheeps’ clothing or not--to get past the “gate” of protection that should be around children in youth sports.</p> <p>In February, parents in <a href="http://www.katu.com/news/problemsolver/No-background-check-required-Sex-offender-refs-kids-sports-190496111.html" rel="nofollow" title="GRESHAM, Oregon" target="_blank">GRESHAM, Oregon</a> were surprised to learn that a sex offender was refereeing children's games in the Portland area after he was convicted of having sex with a young teen. Another wolf in sheep’s clothing allowed past the gate.</p> <h4><b>Be the change</b></h4> <p>If your child is invited to play sports on a team that does not do <a href="http://www.sportssignup.com/products/kidsafeplus-background-checks" title="background checks" target="_self">background checks</a> for everyone in contact with kids--coaches, referees, umpires, other volunteers--for the sake of your child and the other children on the team, you and other parents must take a stand for kids’ safety and insist that background checks be done.</p> <p>Be the voice, be the change that helps make kids safer in your community.</p> <p><em>This is a guest post by Janis B. Meredith. Janis B. Meredith writes a sportsparenting blog, <a href="http://jbmthinks.com" target="_new">http://jbmthinks.com</a>. She’s been a sports mom for 20 years, and a coach’s wife for 28, and sees life from both sides of the bench.</em></p> </article> <article> <h1>Feeding a Traveling Youth Sports Team with Food Allergies</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p><a href="http://www.realsimple.com/health/preventative-health/food-allergies-00100000063498/" rel="nofollow" title="Eight foods cause 90% of food allergies" target="_blank">Eight foods cause 90% of food allergies</a>: peanuts, tree nuts, milk, eggs, wheat, soy, fish, and shellfish and as many as <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/06/20/food.allergies.pediatrics/index.html" rel="nofollow" title="8% of children" target="_blank">8% of children</a> (6 million kids) in the US suffer from at least one food allergy. And while relatively minor symptoms live hives or a scratchy throat have taught many parents to keep their kids away from shellfish or peanuts, nearly <a href="http://www.today.com/id/43447764/ns/today-today_health/t/peanuts-milk-shellfish-kids-may-have-food-allergies/#.UWQbIVeGfUU" rel="nofollow" title="40% of children" target="_blank">40% of children</a> with food allergies have suffered from a severe reaction and sadly some of those reactions can be fatal. There is a reason some schools and daycare centers are completely banning peanut butter and jelly sandwiches—even just the smell of peanuts can cause a child’s throat to swell up if their allergy is severe enough.</p> <p>If you’re the parent of a youth athlete that has food allergies you’ve probably devised a whole system of eating and shopping to keep that allergen out of your house and child’s diet by any means necessary. Home-packed lunches are a must; sending your child to parties and sleepovers with their own snacks, scrutinizing every ingredient on every menu when dining out. But what about when your child joins a travel youth sports team and is going to be gone all weekend? Dining options will be limited to what’s close and open and there is no guarantee that any of the snacks for sale at the tournament will be allergen-free. So what can a traveling sports team do to protect their youth athletes with food allergies?</p> <h3><b>1. Make dinner reservations well in advance.</b></h3> <p>Imagine how many dozens of softball teams will be hunting for a dinner spot during that overnight tournament? If you want to make sure your whole team even gets dinner at a reasonable hour (let alone making sure it’s safe for your youth athletes with allergies) you’ve got to do a little planning ahead. Look for restaurants within a 10-15 mile radius of your hotel or the tournament fields and call ahead to check and see if the menu has options for all your allergy sufferers. For instance, if one of your players has a gluten allergy a pizza place probably isn’t the best idea unless they have gluten-free crust available. And while a buffet might seem like the easiest dinner idea you can’t guarantee something wasn’t cross-contaminated with peanut oil. Plan ahead now instead of leaving one player with nothing but salad for dinner!</p> <h3><b>2. Load up on allergy-safe snacks.</b></h3> <p>If one of the players on your team suffers from a severe food allergy it’s best to make sure that ingredient just isn’t around, so before you head to the tournament load up on allergy-safe snacks. Most fruits and veggies are usually ok (although strawberry allergies do exist!), cheddar cheese snacks are lactose-free, and rice cakes are also typically a safe bet. If you have plenty of allergy-safe snacks you don’t have to worry as much about the wrong snack ending up in the wrong hands. Bonus, most allergy-free snacks are also really good for youth athletes, so hopefully that will keep them out of the hotel vending machine!</p> <h3><b>3. Don’t underestimate the severity of a child’s food allergies.</b></h3> <p>There are some parents out there who think food allergy sensitivity has gotten blown way out of proportion and that it’s really no big deal; it’s just other parents overreacting—but are you prepared to risk a child’s life on that assumption? No matter how light or severe a youth athlete’s food allergy is it’s not something you ever want to gamble with. If another parent or the athlete themselves tells you they are allergic to peanuts, wheat or dairy then that’s the end of it. </p> <p>According to a study in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, about 35% of children over age 5 with food allergies have been teased or <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/09/28/food.allergy.bullying/index.html">bullied because of their food allergy</a>. You don’t want to turn that one player into the outcast on their team for having a food allergy but you can’t leave them with nothing to eat all weekend either!</p> </article> <article> <h1>Coaches Can Be Bullies Too</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>If you haven’t heard the story yet, Rutgers basketball coach Mike Rice was recently fired after videos of him screaming and swearing at, pushing, grabbing, and throwing basketballs at his players surfaced. We’re all familiar with the antics of coaches like Bobby Knight, who are about as famous for their sideline temper as they are for their winning records. And while many sports coaches can probably remember a time or two in their coaching careers when they lost their cool and yelled at a player, the kind of physical bullying Rice was videotaped doing is completely inexcusable.</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/175224/Bullying-and-Hazing-in-Youth-Sports-Has-to-Stop">Bullying in youth sports</a> among teammates is a big enough problem; do we really have to start worrying about bully coaches as well? The coaches are supposed to keep an eye on their players but who keeps an eye on the coach? According to <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/04/sports/ncaabasketball/rutgers-fires-basketball-coach-after-video-surfaces.html?_r=0" title="The New York Times" target="_blank">The New York Times</a>,</p> <p><em>The firing came four months after Rutgers learned of the abuse allegation and punished Mr. Rice by suspending him for three games, fining him $50,000 and ordering him to take anger management counseling. State officials in Trenton who said they would hold hearings into how Mr. Pernetti and other Rutgers officials responded to initial reports of the abuse, after a video was provided to Mr. Pernetti by the former team assistant Eric Murdock.</em></p> <p>One of our sports moms made this great point, “I feel for these guys, we teach our children to respect authority and they were in a no-win situation...what were their options?” If you watch the video, none of the players react or fight back when their coach literally starts pushing them around.</p> <p>Lots of coaches yell (and some may even swear) from the sidelines in the heat of the moment and it’s important to point out that not every coach has the same motivation tactics; nor does every player respond in the same way. No player wants to have a basketball chucked at their head but some might respond better to a more “intense” coach than others. But as former assistant Eric Murdock said in the video it’s “…unbelievable to me that somebody could feel that that technique can be successful.” So where do we draw the line between intensity and bullying? And does a winning record ever justify their behavior? We might say no, but if that’s the case how did a coach like Bobby Knight maintain a 30 year career?</p> <h3><b>Do you think the athletic administration should have fired Rice four months ago or was the suspension and fine enough?</b></h3> </article> <article> <h1>Youth Sports Blog Roundup for April 10th, 2013</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Below you will find a few of our favorite blog posts that are related to youth sports, youth sports coaching and sports parenting from the past few weeks. Please feel free to visit each and we hope you find them as helpful as we do!</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.stopsportsinjuries.org/blog/entryid/105/11-ways-we-can-promote-youth-sports-safety.aspx#.UWQilFeGfUU" rel="nofollow" title="11 Ways We Can Promote Youth Sports Safety" target="_blank">11 Ways We Can Promote Youth Sports Safety</a></b></p> <p>The numbers are staggering. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, emergency departments across the United States treat approximately 2.6 million children ages 0 to 19 for sports- and recreation-related injuries each year. </p> <p><b><a href="http://www.carrickbraincenters.com/abc-news-treatment-for-athletes-suffering-from-concussions/" rel="nofollow" title="ABC News – Treatment for Athletes Suffering from Concussions" target="_blank">ABC News – Treatment for Athletes Suffering from Concussions</a></b></p> <p>Reporter Joe Trahan, from Dallas’ ABC affiliate WFAA, visited with some former Dallas Cowboys football players who were seeking treatment at the Carrick Brain Centers for issues they have experienced as a result of concussions. Hall of Fame running back Tony Dorsett is one of several former Dallas Cowboys players who have struggled with the long-term affects of playing professional football.</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.sportsletter.org/sportsletter/2013/04/states-see-a-decline-in-hs-football-participation.html" rel="nofollow" title="States see a decline in HS football participation" target="_blank">States see a decline in HS football participation</a></b></p> <p>Southern Maryland Online is reporting that the state's high schools experienced a 3.5 percent drop ("nearly" 500 students) in football participation in the 2011-2012 season, "the largest decline the state has seen in seven years, and the third drop in four years."</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.insideyouthsports.org/2013/04/is-your-child-playing-on-too-many-teams.html" rel="nofollow" title="Is Your Child Playing on Too Many Teams?" target="_blank">Is Your Child Playing on Too Many Teams?</a></b></p> <p>Many young athletes enjoy playing different sports and often excel in more than one.</p> <p>If you're the parent of one of these kids, it's likely that you can sign up your child to play in multiple youth leagues at the same time. With extended seasons in many sports, programs and leagues often overlap. Even within the same sport, different leagues run at the same time. For example, your child can play in a competitive league (AAU) or one geared more to fun and development (YMCA). Opportunity is everywhere—especially when your child is a talented young athlete.</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.playworks.org/blog/bullying-free-schools-infographic" rel="nofollow" title="Bullying-Free Schools Infographic" target="_blank">Bullying-Free Schools Infographic</a></b></p> <p>To create bullying-free schools, it’s necessary that we educate teachers, students and parents about the prevalence and consequences of it. We all believe a school should be a safe place for the children, a place where they can learn without fear or apprehension.</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.totallysoccer.com/soccer-blog/the-team-that-wins-is-usually-the-one-that-wants-it-more/" rel="nofollow" title="The Team that Wins is Usually the One that Wants it More" target="_blank">The Team that Wins is Usually the One that Wants it More</a></b></p> Sports are about winning. Soccer too is about winning. The ultimate moment of glory for any soccer player is “winning” the World Cup. Soccer players never go off on daydreams where they imagine losing the big games. No, the focus is typically about winning that big match and scoring the vital goal that sends the team and its fans into a ruckus pandemonium. But one thing I’ve noticed in soccer, at every level of the game, is that it’s not necessarily the best teams that win the big games, but often just the team that simply wants it the most. </article> <article> <h1>Why Youth Athletes May Not Tell If They’ve Been Abused</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month and we as sports parents, coaches, volunteers and administrators need to do everything in our power to ensure that every single youth athlete in our leagues is safe from both bullying and abuse. Unfortunately, stories of sexual abuse in youth sports are disturbingly easy to find. Just do a quick Google search for “coach sexually abuses players” and you’ll find far too many news reports about it, plenty of which never received the same national media attention as the <a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/146603/What-Can-Sports-Parents-Learn-from-the-Sandusky-Trial">Sandusky trial</a>.</p> <p>Most parents think that if someone were abusing their child they would find out about it immediately but <a href="http://www.d2l.org/site/c.4dICIJOkGcISE/b.6143427/k.38C5/Child_Sexual_Abuse_Statistics.htm">statistics</a> show that 73% of children do not tell anyone about their sexual abuse for at least one year. Here are 3 reasons a youth athlete might not admit they’ve been abused:</p> <h3><b>Because of the relationship with their abuser.</b></h3> <p>Only 7% of child sexual abuse cases involve abuse by a stranger. That means that the vast majority of the time the child knows, trusts, or even loves their abuser. It could be a family member, a friend, a neighbor, or even a sports coach. Many sexual predators use this relationship to their advantage, leveraging their position of power to keep the child quiet. We raise our children to respect adults and authority figures, which predators also use to control their victims.</p> <h3><b>They were shamed into secrecy.</b></h3> <p>Victimized children often blame themselves for sexual abuse, and that blame is encouraged by the abusers. They may tell a youth athlete it is their fault this is happening or that no one will believe them if they speak up. With enough pressure the players start to believe it’s true and the abuser gains even more control over their victims. Depending on how young the player is they might not even fully understand what is happening. Boys in particular may be ashamed to tell someone that they are being abused, especially if they feel they should be able to stop the abuse on their own.</p> <h3><b>Boundary lines were no longer clear.</b></h3> <p>Many sexual predators “groom” their victims, starting with innocuous touches like hugs and pats on the back, which are fairly typical physical interactions for most children. These interactions are not innocent; instead they make the child more comfortable with physical contact, which the abuser can then use to their advantage later. Over time abusers will use increasingly inappropriate comments and touches to cross acceptable boundary lines without the child (or anyone else for that matter) realizing what is happening.</p> <p>Although it's true that most youth sports coaches truly care about their players and would never abuse any of their players in any way, there are still a small percentage of predators out there that will use the coaching platform as a means to gain access to your children. Youth sports organizations can’t risk accidentally hiring a sexual predator as a coach or volunteer so <a href="http://sportssignup.com/products/kidsafeplus-background-checks/protecting-your-kids">coach and volunteer background checks</a> should be mandatory for everything that works in your organization! </p> </article> <article> <h1>Failing Is Just Another Chance to Become Great!</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Let’s be honest, no one likes losing, especially if it is something they are passionate about. But just because you lost this time around that doesn’t mean you can’t come out on top the next time. Youth sports can teach our kids a lot of great <a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/120917/Life-Lessons-Learned-from-Participating-in-Youth-Sports">life lessons</a> and arguably one of the best lessons to learn at a young age is that you can’t win them all. School, play, work, sports—sooner or later you’re not going to be #1 in something you care about. But guess what? That’s okay! Youth sports should teach our kids understand that failing is not the end of the world, but another chance at becoming great!</p> <h3><b>You can play your absolute best and still come in second.</b></h3> <p>When two teams are evenly matched and every player is giving their all someone is still going to be one run, one basket, one goal, or one touchdown behind when the clock runs out. Coming in second doesn’t mean that you didn’t play your heart out. Sometimes you can do your absolute best and still not win. And oftentimes losing a tight game is even harder than losing by a landslide but it’s important we teach our youth athletes that there is no shame in coming in second when you didn’t hold anything back.</p> <h3><b>You can’t get better without losing a few rounds.</b></h3> <p>A little healthy competition is a good thing for youth athletes because it encourages them to push a little harder, be a little more serious about practice, and gives them something to aspire to become. If you are always the best at everything you do what is the incentive to spend an extra ten minutes in the batting cages or run a few more laps around the soccer field? Losing can be frustrating and upsetting but it doesn’t have to be demoralizing. As coaches and parents we should teach our youth players how to look for opportunities in everything they do, including losing. You can learn a lot more from losing than you can from winning.</p> <h3><b>Losing stinks but you have to learn how to bounce back.</b></h3> <p>Are you going to let a loss completely undermine your confidence? Is the fear of losing going to overcome you love for playing the game? Everyone wants to be a winner, but the real lesson comes from losing at something and pulling yourself back together for round two. Dedication, perseverance and commitment are what make someone (or some team) real winners.</p> <p>We know that youth athletes (and quite a few sports parents) can get really competitive when it comes to sports. And while we love to see that kind of passion and fire in a sports family it’s important to remember that your player is not defined by how many games they win or lose. There are plenty of teams out there that only win one or two games a season but they are excited to come to every practice, are eager to learn new skills, make great friends and have a blast playing sports. Winning is just the cherry on top.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Establishing a Sports Fund and Other Ways to Keep the Cost of Youth Sports Down</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Last week we asked if youth sports organizations should hand out <a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/174702/Should-Youth-Sports-Give-Everyone-a-Trophy">participation trophies</a> and the debate got really heated! Some argued that participation trophies are good for younger teams (first and second graders) while other sports parent said they have shelves full of participation trophies that are just collecting dust so who really needs them? But one baseball coach had this to say;</p> <p><em>Save the monies and start a scholarship fund for kids parents who can't afford the fees for league, it would be much better spent.</em></p> <p>No one can really argue that youth sports, especially as your child moves up the competition ladder and onto more high-powered teams, is getting more and more expensive. In addition to the registration fees, sports parents might have to invest in new (or new-to-you) equipment and gear each season as their child grows, or buy completely different equipment if their athlete wants to try a new sport. Not to mention tournament fees, costs associated with travel (hotel, gas, eating out, etc), coaching or private training sessions and more—suddenly a fun summertime activity becomes a major financial investment! And what if you have more than one athlete in the house? Your youth sports costs might double or even triple!</p> <p>The last thing we at SportsSignup want is for the <a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/153981/Is-The-Cost-of-Youth-Sports-Too-High">cost of youth sports</a> to keep parents from registering their kids for the season. So we think that baseball coach might be onto something—what if your youth sports organization did away with participation trophies (maybe just a certificate is enough?) and started a sports fund to help to-be sports parents offset some of the costs of youth sports. Parents could apply for your sports fund like they would apply for any other kind of scholarship and the money your organization saved from ditching the trophies (and maybe other cost cutting measures) could be handed out as needed. Who knows, a $50 “sports scholarship” could be the deciding factor that convinces parents to register their kids for your league!</p> <h3><b>Here are a few other ways your youth sports organization can help offset the cost of youth sports:</b></h3> <p><b>1. Hold a sports-gear swap.</b></p> <p>Have your sports parents bring in gently used sports gear (baseball gloves, football padding, hockey sticks, etc) and give them the opportunity to swap with other parents for the equipment they need. Some of that equipment may have only been used for a season or two and has plenty of life left in it!</p> <p><b>2. Partner with local businesses when you host league events.</b></p> <p>If your sports organization likes to host an end-of-the-season event get the local hamburger joint to sign up as a sponsor and give every youth player a ticket to get one free hotdog/hamburger. The local restaurant gets to advertise to all the sports families in town and your league can save the money that would have gone to catering and put it back into your sports fund!</p> <p><b>3. Offer early-bird registration deals.</b></p> <p>With an <a href="http://www.sportssignup.com/">online sports registration system</a> you can create custom registration deals for early-bird registrants, families that are registering more than one player per season, new registrants and so forth. This is a good way to not only help offset the costs of youth sports but also encourage sports parents to register early in the season so your rosters are full come opening day!</p> <h3><b>What has your sports organization done to help make youth sports more affordable for the families in your community?</b></h3> </article> <article> <h1>Bullying and Hazing in Youth Sports Has to Stop!</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>As sad as it is to say, coaches aren’t the only ones in youth sports that can take advantage of their position of power to abuse a player. Too often we are hearing stories of older players intimidating, bullying, harassing and even physically abusing their younger teammates. Earlier this month <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/3-bronx-science-students-arrested-article-1.1278973">3 Bronx Science students</a> were arrested on hazing charges (although the allegations go far above and beyond what you might think classifies as simple “hazing”). One student on the track team said that hazing was a fairly common thing, with the juniors and seniors regularly picking on the freshman.</p> <p>As coaches and parents it is our duty to make sure this kind of behavior stops among our players! Sports should be a safe place for kids and no one should ever be the victim of bullying or hazing; they should especially be safe from abuse from their own teammates.</p> <h3><b>“Kids will be kids” is no excuse!</b></h3> <p>If kids will be kids then parents should be parents and put a stop to bullying and harassing the moment they suspect something is going on! Some parents and coaches may feel that adults need to step aside and let kids fight it out for themselves. After all, you can’t expect the parents to swoop in and save the day every time can you? No one likes helicopter parent and kids need to learn to work it out on their own. But there is a big difference between letting kids work out a playground disagreement and sitting silent while a child is being harassed by their teammates time and time again. Taking a hands-off approach to bullying just condones the behavior and teaches our players its okay to treat their teammates like that. It also tells the teammate being bullied that no one is willing to help them and they are on their own.</p> <h3><b>“It’s all in good fun” doesn’t make it better for the victim.</b></h3> <p>It’s probably safe to say that everyone has been the butt of a joke at some point or another in their lives. And while getting teased by your friends for a few minutes is one thing, getting repeatedly teased, pushed around, made fun of, shut out and bullied is no fun for anyone. Some kids might feel so isolated and tormented that they want to quit the team altogether and we should be doing everything in our power to encourage kids to NOT quit sports, and that means making sure every player feel safe. Other kids might try to grin and bear it because they want to be accepted by their team but that doesn’t make it okay either.</p> <h3><b>Just because it was a “rite of passage” for you that doesn’t mean the tradition should continue. </b></h3> <p>A lot of coaches and parents that played sports as a kid probably underwent some hazing of their own. Hopefully it wasn’t anywhere near as bad as what was going on with the Bronx Science track team, but just because it was “just how things were” when you were a youth athlete that doesn’t mean it needs to stay that way! There is no reason older players have to pick on, bully and abuse their younger teammates in order to foster team spirit or see “who can take it” the best. No player should be forced to survive being bullied by their own team just so they can grow thick skin.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Youth Sports Blog Roundup for March 27th, 2013</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Below you will find a few of our favorite blog posts that are related to youth sports, youth sports coaching and sports parenting from the past few weeks. Please feel free to visit each and we hope you find them as helpful as we do!</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.hockeymentaledge.blogspot.com/2013/03/avoid-outbursts-to-save-your-pride.html" rel="nofollow" title="Avoid Outbursts to Save Your Pride - Something all Players Should Understand" target="_blank">Avoid Outbursts to Save Your Pride - Something all Players Should Understand</a></b></p> <p>How many times have you seen it? A player loses the puck or his man. The other team scores and the player at fault skates towards the bench with his head down. He then in frustration slams his stick off the boards making a load, echoing noise that catches the attention of everyone in the rink. What do you think people watching this player think? Sometimes they think that he needs to grow up or is a hot head. At the same time, those same people would probably say that the player cares greatly about the game, and that they will take that passion over the player that does not show his emotion</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.statsdad.com/2013/02/youth-sports-stupid-immature-parent.html" title="Youth Sports: Stupid Immature Parent" target="_blank">Youth Sports: Stupid Immature Parent</a></b></p> <p>What do you think about the ACE cheer in girls volleyball?<br> <br> If you have ever watched girls volleyball you know that, the players on the court form a circle and on girls on the bench stand up in a line and they all do a coordinated cheer after each service ACE. My daughter's team stomps their feet right, left, right three times while they spell out A-C-E. Then they lift their right leg, clap their hands under their leg and then immediately raise their hands upward while pointing their index finger.</p> <p><b><a href="http://stlsportsmanship.blogspot.com/2013/03/girls-basketball-player-slams-opponent.html" rel="nofollow" title="Girls basketball player slams opponent during Illinois playoffs " target="_blank">Girls basketball player slams opponent during Illinois playoffs </a></b></p> <p>Okawville and Carrollton high schools met in the Lebanon 1A Sectional of the Illinois State girls basketball playoffs on Valentine's Day. By all accounts, Cupid was not in attendance at this game. Instead, there was a heartbreaking display of unnecessary physical play and poor sportsmanship.</p> <p><b><a href="http://swimcoachdirect.blogspot.com/2013/03/responsibilities-and-obligations.html" rel="nofollow" title="Responsibilities and Obligations " target="_blank">Responsibilities and Obligations </a></b></p> <p>Sorry about the heavy words on a Sunday, but...actually we are not sorry about discussing this topic since it needs constant refreshing. Working through these things is like having new swimmers join your team...you need to spend some time acclimating them to "the way things work around here." Running a swim team efficiently and effectively...meaning each swimmer's needs are met concurrent with their level of effort, takes enormous energy on the part of the other swimmers, all parents and the entire coaching staff. Indeed, no team functions well without full cooperation of all three "branches" - swimmers, parents and coaches</p> <p><b><a href="http://www.insideyouthsports.org/2013/03/is-your-child-going-pro-in-sixth-grade.html" title="Is Your Child "Going Pro" in Sixth Grade?" target="_blank">Is Your Child "Going Pro" in Sixth Grade?</a></b></p> <p>Along with transferring your passion for a sport onto your child, another mistake is to begin planning for your young star’s inevitable college scholarship and trip to the professional ranks based on youth sports success.</p> <p><b><a href="http://fit2finish.com/coaching-girls-vs-boys-is-it-really-that-different-by-mike-mancini/" title="Coaching Girls vs Boys – Is it Really That Different? ~" target="_blank">Coaching Girls vs Boys – Is it Really That Different?</a></b></p> When my daughter was born 13 years ago I was on the receiving end of some good-natured ribbing from family members and friends. They knew how passionate I was about sports and how much time I had spent in a male dominated environment. They wondered out loud how I was going to incorporate that mindset with a daughter the apple of her dad’s eye. Over those 13 years, I have gained much experience in the variances she has as an athlete compared to her male counterparts. </article> <article> <h1>How To Tell if You Are an Overly Involved Sports Parent</h1> <p>Jodi Murphy — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 13:00:00 GMT</p> <p>Let’s start off by saying that we at SportSignup love to hear about parents getting involved in their child’s youth sports league. Many local organizations are struggling to find enough volunteer coaches and officials to keep things running smoothly so any parent that steps up when needed deserves a trophy in our book (whether or not you think everyone deserves a trophy for just “participating” is a debate for another day!). But some parents, as parents are apt to do, can get a little overzealous about their child’s athletic career. While enthusiasm is always appreciated there does come a point where your eagerness crosses the line and turns you from excited sports parent into frustrating helicopter parent.</p> <p>We would hope that most sports parents out there don’t mean to cross that line but how is a parent to know when they’ve gone too far? Here are a few questions to ask yourself:</p> <h3><b>1. Are you only offering to coach so your kid can be the star?</b></h3> <p>Be honest about this one—when you volunteer to coach a youth sports team you are responsible for the development of a dozen kids, not just you own son or daughter. If you don’t think you can give each player the attention and coaching they need to achieve their very best than maybe you shouldn’t <a href="http://blog.sportssignup.com/blog/bid/168602/Is-Coaching-Your-Own-Child-a-Good-Idea">volunteer as head coach</a>. It’s going to become very obvious very quickly to all the other parents on the team that you’re only looking out for your own player and that won’t make for a very pleasant season.</p> <h3><b>2. Are you pushing your child to play sports because you did?</b></h3> <p>This question can be a little grey at times—if you played youth sports as a kid and loved it of course you want to give your own child the same awesome experience. And since 6-year-olds can’t <a href="http://www.sportssignup.com/sports/Soccer-Sports-Management-Solutions/soccer-online-registration-services.aspx">register for soccer</a> by themselves parents are obviously influencing their decision to play. But what if your child just doesn’t like baseball/basketball/football? Maybe they would prefer to play an individual sport like tennis or golf? Or maybe they’d be happier learning to play an instrument or join the school choir? Obviously we wish that everyone loved playing youth sports as much as we did when we were kids but you have to remember that our kids are their own people with their own interests and personalities. Encourage them to try but sports aren’t for everyone and that’s okay!</p> <h3><b>3. Does your whole life revolve around your child’s team?</b></h3> <p>Okay, so when your child is really serious about something you make it important to you as well. But are youth sports completely consuming your life? Are you already imagining the college scholarships while watching your son’s t-ball game? Can you see Olympic gold in your daughter’s gymnastics future at age 6? It’s important to remember at the end of the day that youth sports is just a game and it is supposed to be fun! If you find yourself turning into “that sports parent” on the sideline (yelling at the coach, the official, the other team’s players, etc.) that’s a good sign you’ve crossed the line. If you’ve ever gotten into a serious fight over youth sports chances are you are an overly involved sports parent.</p> <h2><b>Are you a formerly overly involved sports parent? What made you aware of your actions? Tell us in the comments!</b></h2> </article> </main></body></html>