healthy you:
FAMILY MATTERS
U s e t h e l e s s o n s s p o r t s t e a c h t o g u i d e
y o u r k id s in t h e b i g g e s t c h a l l e n g e o f all.
BY
MYATT MURPHY
t’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you play
I
the game.” This is the great lesson of sports, but it’s
also valuable to parenting. For children to become
responsible adults, how you act after the game
determines whether your kids truly win or lose.
“Letting kids participate in sports gives them the
opportunity to learn many valuable lessons,” says Rick Wolff,
cofounder and chairman of the Center for Sports Parenting.
“However, it’s up to parents to help their children apply
what they learn from sports to other areas of their lives.”
Here are five important lessons sports offer, and how you
can reinforce them by becoming the best coach your kids will
ever have in the toughest sport of all—life.
1. T H E S T R E N G T H O F T E A M W O R K
“Sports provide an opportunity for kids to learn to take
turns, set goals as a team, and cooperate with other
children to achieve those goals,” says Sharon Bergen,
senior vice president of education and training at
KinderCare Learning Centers. “It’s this kind of emotional
and social development that can easily carry over to how
well your children work with their teachers, classmates,
relatives, and anyone else they may encounter in life.”
BRINGING IT HOME Look for ways to encourage teamwork
within everyday family life. “Many family tasks, from
cleaning the house, preparing the table for dinner, or even
getting ready for a trip in the car, can be done as a team,” says
Bergen. Rather than focus on your children’s individual tasks
(cleaning their room), focus on the main goal (a clean house),
then explain the part that each family member will play
toward reaching that goal.
2 . E V E R Y O N E H A S S O M E T H I N G T O O F F E R
In team sports, no single shining star can perform
every task. For example, one child may bat well, another
catch, another run the bases fast. Some kids may be more
developed cognitively and understand the sport’s strategy,
while others may be more adept socially and instinctively
know how to motivate other kids to play their best.
BRINGING IT HOME “The next time your child makes a
remark about someone’s differences or weaknesses,
immediately point out that person’s strengths,” says
Bergen. “Over time, it will teach your child how to
continuously look for and find positive qualities in every
person she meets.” If your child feels frustrated by her own
shortcomings, remind her of the skills that come more
naturally to her. Then find examples of the skills she had
trouble with in the past that are no longer an issue.
3 . P R A C T I C E M A K E S P E R F E C T
Through sports, kids can see the results that come from
repeating certain skills in order to perfect them. “They
develop a more positive self image through personal
achievement and learn that if they spend enough time on
a task, they will eventually become better at it,” says WTolff.
“With the right guidance, that valuable lesson can carry
over into almost everything they may want to achieve in
life, whether that’s studying an hour a night to get a
higher grade, practicing daily to learn how to play a
musical instrument, or simply excelling at anything they
set out to try.”
BRINGING IT HOME Great coaches have cultivated the
ability to link practice to a clear and specific goal. “The
key is to explain to a kid why he is practicing, what he’s
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JULY
2008
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