Coaches Forum

The Region Board has taken on the challenge of creating a forum for the discussion of topics that will be beneficial to the entire coaching community.  The aim is to increase awareness among our coaches.

Topics are listed below.  I encourage ANYONE to write or email me in response to the topics.  Responses will be dated and posted with each associated topic.  The more responses the better.  The board also encourages   coaches to submit additional topics.  Come on you writers, let me know what you think about any of the subjects!!  Email me at  gilgym@aol.com

Topic: Teaching you Kids to Bounce Back (For parents and coaches)

June 20, 2000

Teaching you Kids to Bounce Back (For parents and coaches)

Trying to make a child feel better about a disappointment by saying "It doesn’t matter" rarely helps because it does not teach a child how to cope with bad news. Coping may be one of the most important skills that you can teach your child. Studies show that resilience – the ability to bounce back when bad things happen – is what separates the kids who flourish from those who flounder in stressful situations; whether it’s dealing with a bad performance or something more serious, such as death or divorce.

"There are many things that a parent and coach can do to foster resilience in a child," says Ann Masten, a professor of child psychology at the University of Minnesota. Here are some suggestions or points from experts;

1) Remind Children That Bad stuff Doesn’t Last - It may sound simple, but the message is crucial. Children often don’t know that when something bad happens it’s not the end of the world. They think that their negative feelings will last forever or that one failure will ruin everything. Unfortunately, that kind of thinking deflates motivation. If a child believes that the cause of his distress is permanent, or that nothing he does will make a difference, it lessons his ability to keep on trying. Anytime that your can show a child that results can be changed, situations are temporary or one opinion does not reflect reality, you give him reason to hope and persevere.

2) Promote Problem-Solving – Research on resilience points to the importance of problem-solving skills. The reason is simple: action is the best antidote to feeling helpless. Youngsters develop a can-do attitude mainly through hands-on practice. Whenever possible, encourage a child to figure out his on solution. Most parents want to protect their children from sadness and stress. So when a problem emerges, they jump in and try to solve it without giving the child a chance to discover that he has tit in his power to make a difference.

3) Know When To Intervene – Not all troubles are so easily resolved. In some cases you may have to offer more guidance. The best way to develop a rapport with your child is to be supportive when your child asks questions. Very often a simple show of support is all that it takes to jump-start a child’s will to succeed.

4) Set Reasonable Boundaries – How you discipline your child also has an impact. Research shows that children with parents who set fair rules, give clear reasons for their rules and consistently enforce them end up with higher motivation, better social skills and greater self-reliance that children with parents who are either too lax about rules or too authoritarian. If parents are too authoritative, the child does not learn to think for themselves in a stressful situation.

5) Accent Achievement – Around my house we call this the "Smell of Success." Successful children tent to get lots of praise, which encourages such resilient thoughts as "I didn’t get any individual awards, but I helped my team win the trophy." All children can learn to think like that if they are given the opportunity to discover their hidden talents. Through their pursuits. children must learn to link success with hard work. He must learn that even though he can’t do something, if he keeps trying and practicing, he may succeed.

Topic: Ways to teach your child to be better sports (for parents and coaches)

June 20, 2000

Ways to teach your child to be better sports

1) Make sure that your child understands that win or lose, you love him.

2) Be realistic about your child’s physical ability.

3) Help your child set realistic goals.

4) Don’t relive your own athletic past though your child.

5) Control your emotions at during competition.

6) Be a cheerleader for your child and all of his teammates.

7) Respect your child’s coaches. Communicate with them in a positive manner.

8) Be a positive role model for your child.

Topic: How do I increase the numbers in my boys gymnastic program?

August 10, 2000

Roland Rangel, Team Wheels Cartwheels Gymnastics Club

Have a boys day. We promote this day through the program and with a couple of weeks of ads in the local paper. The activity is 2 hrs on a Sat. and free. We have a brief warmup and the a few contests such as, handstand-headstand contest, flexibility contest, gymnastics relay races and stick contests. Then the guys go through a giant obstacle. A lot of the guys have not been in gymnastics so we try not to teach a lot, but let the guys get on the equipment in simple but fun ways. They get in the spotting belt on tramp do sky high and even try back flips. The activity ends with a review on what they just did and we even have some guys show us what they learned, even though we don't try to teach a lot. Remember keep it moving and be safe.
We also have a boys only hour. Parents and boys appreciate this hour. Believe it or not we are a competitive boys program and a non competitive girls program. This is our second year and we are our boys program is growing.

Topic: More about creating a strong boys' program.

August 10, 2000

Roland Rangel Team Wheels Cartwheels Gymnastics Club

When I started gymnastics the gym was full of guys. Now the gym is full of girls and the guys a put in a corner. Last year a local gym got rid of all their boys classes and their boys equipment. That was the last straw. We started a boys program and have a non competitive girls program and it is working. I am not saying get rid of girls gymnastics. It takes a bit more work but you can have a strong boys program. We need to treat the boys programs just like any other sport. Don't make compromises to work gymnastics around baseball, football, basketball or any other sport. Make our sport is just a important as the other sport. Educate your dads on the sport.

Another point. When I was at the national meeting in Austin after the Nationals there was a lot of talk about the problem with guys wearing long shorts. The issue is not long shorts but the lack of choice for what guys want to wear. Look in a catalog and you will see just two types of shorts: short and shorter. The guys see what other sports wear and like the cool hip look. Simply, we need more choices. If the marketers don't hear our concerns we will just have one or two choices. Fellow coaches if we are not heard we will not improve and stay in the corner of our gym or be pushed out.

Topic: How are your summer workouts different than the workouts during the school year.

Topic: How many hours does your Class 6 & 7 team(s) workout? And why?

Topic: How do you go about constructing Class 4 routines?

Topic: How do you juggle Future Star gymnasts with the regular gymnasts in your workouts?

Topic: Young kids are doing more each year.  How do you avoid (reduce) repetitive stress injuries in your gymnasts/  (Knees, Wrists, back & ankles)

Topic: How do you prepare a new child to move him onto your team?

Topic: What are the biggest gripes FROM the judging community?

Topic: How do you prepare and run a first class meet?

Topic: When should you advance or not advance a gymnasts to the next class?

Topic: How can a young coach (or old coach) gain respect with your gymnast's parents?

Topic: What kinds of discipline do you use with your younger gymnasts?

Topic: How does a young coach gain respect with his/her peers?

GOT ANY OTHER TOPICS??  LET ME KNOW!!!