GG Replay: The Most Important Email We've Sent
From the Good Game archives, a printable questionnaire for our youth athletes. Plus, some youth sports news you should know.
Soon after launching Good Game, we sent out an email that was arguably more impactful than any we’ve sent thus far. Inspired largely by a video from I Love to Watch You Play featuring an array of kids expressing their wants and not wants from parents while they play sports, we created a kid-friendly survey to be filled out be our own young athletes.
What do they like most about the sports they play? What would they change? What do they really want from parents while in the midst of action? The responses from my own kids were eye-opening, and I heard privately from many of you as well. Some of you got a surprising peek into the mindset of your kid; some of you were simply thankful your kids had an easy forum of expression.
We’ve had a mountain of new subscribers since we published this survey (thank you! thank you!), and I want to make sure it’s visible to all our readers. It’s possible your kid is traumatized by the return of school and refuses to write any more than they have to. But hopefully they fill it out and perhaps share one nugget that transforms the way you as a parent or coach guides them through the maze of youth sports. Or maybe they’ll simply offer you peace of mind. I plan to share it again with my own kids and see if anything has changed now that we’ve begun the fall sports season with its own unique cadence.
Here’s a PRINTABLE version, along with an image so you get the gist. (Please reach out if you have any trouble downloading.)
I encourage you to share it with any youth sports peeps you believe would find it useful. I hope it leads to some quality conversations.
For those in the been-there-done-that-don’t-want-to-do-it-again camp, I want to make today’s visit worth your while. So here are some recent youth sports news and columns that caught my eye.
Now an officially sanctioned high school sport in California, girls’ flag football is off to a strong start in Orange County.
Very cool video (and story) spotlighting how kids in a small village in China fell in love with soccer, and how the community made their dreams come true.
Another day, another coach arrested for attacking a referee. This time a girls youth basketball coach in Cincinnati. When will this madness stop?
Our planet just had its hottest July in 174 years, and many of our kids are training and competing in temperatures that are bordering on dangerous. Here are tips to keep them safe.
A Wichita, Kansas high school boys basketball team won a national tournament this summer, led by two female coaches. Always good to end with some girl power!
Another great piece Melissa - and just in time as we get ready to train 30 Fall coaches this Saturday - we'll include this, great fodder for discussion with their young athletes!