Coaching Youth Sports Research Paper

On average 35 million children play youth sports each season and 85% of coaches are parents coaching their own kids. Whether basketball, soccer, baseball, or softball; furthermore, involves players, parents, referees, and a ball; additionally, if it is played as a game, in a tournament, is practiced, it will require a coach. This single figurehead will often be the deciding factor as to the level of satisfaction everyone involved receives from the experience. Coaching youth sports can be a balancing act between developing good players and cultivating great kids. Acquire some knowledge about the sport you anticipate coaching, and you will be on the path to attaining the trust of your players and parents. With the deftness of a little league

As a general rule, parents are much more critical than they lead you to believe. Parents want to have a successful team where their child plays 100% of the game and is coached by the most knowledgeable coach in the league. Winning parents over can be difficult; hence, they can become a coaches biggest ally or worst nightmare. Just such a situation occurred when I drafted my first softball team. Sitting at the table with all the other coaches, I was encouraged to select a particular player acknowledged as an excellent pitcher with irascible parents. I needed a pitcher so I took her and after our first workout I found out just how bad-tempered they were. Fortunately, I was prepared and had a solution that would keep me in their good graces and allow me the room I needed to develop the team. I created a position on the field that they enjoyed, which kept them occupied, and that benefited me as a coach. My problematic parent’s became the team statisticians recording all data for games and practices. With a little ingenuity, I averted a potentially disastrous scenario; however, the best advice for preserving a positive group of parents is for them to see an enthusiastic leader. Even in the face of defeat your sportsmanship and attitude should be one that is admired by parents and players

If you want to keep your team invested in the season, have a game plan. Construct engaging practice sessions, have a strategy for games, and organize the team administrative duties. In practice, I wanted to maximize a player’s opportunity to “touch” the ball which drastically improved individual skill level. I found that when I set up practice stations and divided the players into small groups, it intensified their learning. As the player’s show proficiency, increase difficulty by combining drills until match pace is achieved. Game strategy will also require forethought but use what you know about game etiquette as well as the player’s statistics collected to formulate a blueprint for fun and success. Whether organizing practice or an effective game plan, you will need to have the team administrative duties, such as rosters, team pictures and parties, plus the always important snack schedule, arranged. As overwhelming as this might all sound, I have found that when I get help from the parents it reduced my stress level and theirs. As I have asserted, coaching is far more than winning or losing. A coach is an essential cog in shaping qualities such as sportsmanship, competitiveness, self discipline, and work ethic. A quality coach can build a player up while a bad coach can tear them down. My goal as a coach was to always leave the player striving to be the best they could be. A good coach