2+2=5 Team*WORKS

Many people think of youth sports as the perfect opportunity for children to learn about the importance of teamwork. Do you agree? I think that in theory, youth sports should have the effect of embedding team skills in children but does that really happen?

Are children so focused on being the fastest or the  best scorer? What are our coaches teaching our kids about teamwork? And even worse, what are parents teaching their kids about teamwork as they scream from the sidelines for their kids to be quicker, to be better, to score. If a kid’s parents aren’t the bloodthirsty “I want my son to be the best” then they are the passive, “well all that matters is that you had fun,” type.

But how many parents are really taking the time before and after a game to reinforce the fact that we win and lose as a team and that its next to impossible to win without teamwork? Parents and coaches have a perfect opportunity to leverage in game experiences to emphasize the importance of teamwork but it almost always comes secondary- or not at all.

This is why kids abosolutely need a figure/role model in their lives that will hammer home the idea of the importance of teamwork. This can’t be learned through discussion alone. Kids have to have the opportunity to validate the importance of teamwork in real life experiences. That is where youth sports can pay off- if the child has someone in their life that will help them peice that important concept together.

I’d like to know what you  think. Are youth sports helping children learn about teamwork or are we missing the point? Or in fact, are the sports driving children even further from the idea of teamwork? How does what children see on tv through watching sports influence a child’s idea of teamwork and what does watching Lebron James score 55 points in a game do for a child’s idea of teamwork? Here is an article about youth sports and teamwork. What do you think?

http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/building-teamwork-in-kids-through-sport-755016.html