NAVIGATION TOOL | Home Page  E-mail Friend   |    Print Version PARENT'S CORNER... Seven Hint's for Soccer Parents!!! Readiness is an important issue for both the beginning soccer player and parent. It is vital that a child have an interest is being part of a social environment that relies on interaction and cooperation. It is just as vital that a parent realizes that their child’s play is exactly that, child’s play. It is not a reflection of the parent. It is not a valid prediction of future ability. The true value of playing any organized sport is to have fun. A good experience will help to promote all of those other issues that are frequently stated such as self-confidence, teamwork, physical development and a healthy lifestyle. A bad experience can turn off a child and as a result cause the child to miss out on the opportunity to participate in a sport and enjoy its benefits. It is natural for anyone to want to continue to participate in a given activity when they are having fun. Here are seven hints that can help the beginning player have a positive experience: 1. The win-loss record of a team is not an accurate assessment of the coach. All that a win-loss record indicates is the comparative ability of groups of players on given dates. A better way to assess a coach is by how many players want to continue to play the next season. 2. Being a great player does not ensure that someone will be a great coach. The younger a player is, the more important it is for a coach to understand children. Playing experience is always helpful, but knowledge of developmental stages is the best way to select activities that are appropriate to the age of the players. 3. The outcome of a game is not the best way to evaluate the quality of your child’s experience. For a lot of young players, practices are more fun than games. This is especially true when the coach is utilizing activities that are age appropriate. Practices provide greater opportunities to use age appropriate activities than games. 4. An outstanding novice player does not have the inside track on becoming a great player in the future. The statistics indicate that less than one out of four outstanding novice players maintain that distinction ten years later. This means that the lesser player locked into that designation either. There is no true way to know what type of player a child will become. 5. Yelling directions to your child during a game does not really help. The truth is that is causes more confusion than anything else. When processing information, it is harder to make good decisions when there are a lot of people giving directions. The younger a child is the more confusion it causes. 6. Your child does not need to be psyched-up on the way to the game. Anticipation is strong enough in young children, adding to it can cause too high a level of arousal and result in making it more difficult to play well. 7. Your child does not need a game analysis on the way home from the game. Any conversation about the game should initiated by your child. Keep in mind that anything you say will most likely be repeated. Be careful not to make strong negative comments about your child’s teammates. Negative comments can drive a wedge between teammates. The same thing is true about the coach. If it is really important, talk to the coach directly. Don’t put your child in the middle. The best advice is to enjoy watching your child and the other children playing. Cheer for good things that happen. Have a good chuckle at the mistakes that occur (and they will occur). This can make for a great experience for both you and your child. The parent’s role is vital to a player’s success and enjoyment....

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