Youth Sports and Critical Parents

Today, I’d like to share with you something that falls under the category of parental common sense, that sadly, all too often has been overlooked. It you have a child or teen playing an organized sport you’ll want to listen carefully to what a group of researchers have reported in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. While the report tells us that enrolling kids in sports can benefit their development, parents need to avoid becoming overly critical of their kids and how they play the game. In addition, parents need to be a little less involved in the entire process. Listen to these words from the report: “Our findings suggest that excessive parental involvement can cause pressure on children who would prefer parental participation characterized by praise and understanding.” Parents, we need to teach our kids that play is meant to be fun. We need to teach our kids to use their play as an act of worship, and we need to remind ourselves of the same.