Parents Involvement in Sports

Listened to an intriguing podcast on how to improve Youth Sports.  In a different order for the sake of this post...

1) Change the age breakdown.  For volleyball.. the cut off for your age group is end of June.  So someone born in July (of this year) will be 11 months older than someone born in June (of the following year).  For boys, especially during those awkward teenage, puberty years... that makes a world of a difference.  And if kids that bloom late... and is 11 years younger... they will always be smaller, shorter, slower, weaker.  Solution: Create two leagues by cutting the league into two age groups. 

2) Don't play by collegiate rules.  Why run it full in hoops? Why have to run a 110 yard pitch? Yes - you learn all the rules at a young age... but it's simply not fun.  Make the fields/courts shorter/smaller so it's more manageable for kids... but allow them to have fun while developing their skills.

3) Play multiple sports. The idea that physically and mentally, you exercise different muscles in your body and mind that will actually help you be a better athlete.  This isn't anything ground breaking when people think of hitting the weights, doing yoga in support of <fill in the blank.>  But that's not what he's saying... 

And lastly, most relevant to this post.

4) Limit parent involvement.  Coaches and Refs don't make a lot of money.  They don't need parents who are high school has-been's yelling at them, screaming for their kids' playtimes.  Overbearing parents who try to run their kids' lives straight into a scholarship or professional career may be damaging. And worst yet... parents (aka me) who try and coach, ridicule, judge, and/or rebuke your child's hardwork.. how does that help a child like the game???

Today... I tried and tried to fix NN's serve and swing.  She kept arguing and arguing.  Saying her coach tells her to do this and do that.  And how the other girls are doing it wrong... and she's right.  I just wasn't getting through to her and I finally said, "Guess what, your teammate is starting and you're on the bench."  

She didn't have a comeback.  That's cuz she started crying.