Coaching Kids: You Might find Some of this Useful

[greybeard]

Let me begin by saying that most every adult who gets involved in kids' sports is well meaning. Most also are woefully under educated, not simply on the skill sets and game themes that they propound, but also, more importantly, in their concepts about how kids learn and what they are capable of. While I am not a certified expert, I have studied with and observed many who are, and have quite a lot of experience in trying to help kids make progress in physical activities. I am also currently involved in a course of professional training about how people learn to improve how they move. Here are some perspectives that you might find of value.

1. No one learns a physical activity by receiving a litiny of "how to" instructions. No one, certainly not young kids 6-12. This is not an opinion. Some general information, meta information, is of course necessary. Demonstrations, emphasizing certain key points (it is helpful if you can add a little why or how come in terms kids can take in), but harping on technique will not produce results. Were it otherwise, we would all be scratch golfers.

2. Kids get bored receiving such instructions; those who can't approximate what the coach is asking for are discounted as "not getting it." This is a terrible label, and no matter how a "how-to" driven coach communicates with the kid, how many nice things such a coach might say, the kid gets the contrary message and probably will believe it. So might you. You all will be wrong.

3. When you hear a coach saying "good" after a kid does something, it usually means that the end result is what is being focused on--the ball went in the basket. Focusing on end-results stifles learning. Not an opinion.

a. Even supposing that there were aspects of what the child had just done that makes sense for the task at hand--in a two handed chest pass, the child stepped forward onto his strong foot, held the ball with his palms off the ball, allowed his elbows to hang down with little tension, and then allowed the momentum of his body to animate his arms to come forward and pronated his hands so his arms came together on the release, a perfect chest pass, btw--what is the child to learn from "good."

b. Suppose that the child came upon this expression of a chest pass through experiementation, what does "good" mean? Which of the things that he or she did was good? the kid is left confused, save for the coach likes it when the ball gets to where it is supposed to. Again, focusing on end results stifles learning. Not an opinion.

c. Better to call attention to the pass in a neutral way and what it felt like: "that was different, what did that feel like." The child will focus on those feelings in his body that were more pleasant, more fluid than the last tries, and make his own connections. Usually the focus will be on what was most pleasant, what was the smoothest, and that will be connected very intimately with something that he or she did that makes terrific mechanical sense. Then he or she will experiment some more.

c. Suppose that only some of the aspects of a well executed chest pass are present, a coach might note for example, "the ball had backspin and flew with a little arch, that is interesting. How did that feel" (again, the child is left to make the connection if he or she can between the spin, what felt easier about what he or she had just done, and then make a hypothesis of what needs to be done to create the spin. The child will test it out and move onto another hypothesis if the first one didn't work.

d. If a coach knows what he or she is doing, I mean really knows, giving hints to facilitate a connection is entirely appropriate (did you notice how your fingers pushed through and out (pronated) and the back of your arms came together and the spin on the ball. Well, those thngs are connected.") Caution: be sure you know what you are talking about.

4. Especially with young ones, do not assume information is common knowledge and break down multiple tasks into parts: For example, many coaches have kids dribble to the basket from a certain distance to take a layup from the appropriate spot.

a. most kids will not know why that spot has been chosen and that it is important in and of itself to get to that spot under control. that that alone is a wonderful accomplishment. The spot has been chosen because IT IS THE EASIEST PLACE ON THE FLOOR TO SHOOT FROM. IT IS THE EASIEST PLACE ON THE FLOOR TO SHOOT FROM BECAUSE YOU CAN HIT THE BACKBOARD FROM A RANGE OF TRAJECTORIES AND IN A RANGE OF SPOTS AND THE SHOT WILL GO IN, MORE SO THAN FROM ANY OTHER SPOT ON THE FLOOR.

1. if the layup is added to the end of the shot, dribbling with freedom and a purpose will be impaired because the kid will be worrying about how in the world he or she is going to catch it on the correct foot, take the appropriate number of steps, and then remember how to deliver the ball to shooting and where to aim etc. We have all seen the results.

a. You take the layup out of the "drill," and make getting to the spot the aim, and you will be surprised how well everyone does. Then, once they get there and are under control, tell em to "shoot the thing." Again you might be surprised at those results.

b. the difference between the two is huge. In the first, every single member of the team will in the course of layup lines make judgments about who can play and who can't, judgments which are so premature and so disfunctional as to be laughable, if they weren't so sad. And, oh, that would include the coach as well, which is worse than sad.

If you are a coach, what then are you to do? First, be humble. Second, know that your judgments about a kid's capablities, or should I say lack of them, are WRONG. The inadequacy 99.9 percent of the time is with the coach. Seek help, keep it fun, and leave your ego at the door, and, when it crops up as it does with all of us, leave it there again. Choose drills that keep as many kids active at one time as possible. If you are not yourself a good model of how things are done, and many volunteer coaches fit that mold, bring a book along that has lots of pictures. Focus on whether kids who are performing a task are in balance and have some rhythm and whether their momentum is moving in an appropriate direction. Those things are easy to communicate about and will be quite helpful to kids' making progress.

If you are a parent and find your kid being shunted aside by adults in kid's sports it is difficult not to get angry. I think that the trick is to find some people who are particularly good at working with kids and helping them to discover for themselves how things work. Finding such people can be extremely valuable. There are plenty of them around. I also suggest that you join an organization known as the Positive Coaching Alliance. For a $25 fee, you will receive a book and get e-mail newsletters that are terrifically valuable. The book really is a jewel.