10-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 16, 2002
B
Kids
It’s Not Whether You Win Or Lose
LEESPORT (Berks Co.)
Many children who participate in
youth sports and their parents
have become obsessed with
winning at almost any cost. This
attitude can interfere with what
sports programs for kids should
be all about, warns Sue Giachero,
Penn State Cooperative Exten
sion family living agent in Berks
County. “Go to any sporting
event involving 6- to 12-year-olds
and you’re guaranteed to see an
out-of-control parent or coach,”
says Giachero. At this age, the
focus should be on teaching skills
and having fun, rather than cut
throat competition.”
Kids at those ages are trying to
get a sense of mastery, Giachero
explains. They’re learning specif
ic sports skills. They’re also
learning important life skills,
such as backing somebody up,
accepting responsibility and lead
ership.
“A vvin-at-all costs atmosphere
also results in less commitment to
values such as honesty and fair
play.” she adds. Sixty percent of
the boys and girls involved in
sports programs drop out by age
12, Giachero said.
When 12-year-olds were sur
veyed about the reasons they
dropped out, they listed in order
of frequency: loss of interest,
takes too much time, poor coach
ing and too much pressure.
Giachero suggests some guide
lines to keep in mind when shop
ping for or creating a quality
sports program for kids.
• Fair and equitable policies
that kids help create. These poli
cies should be age-appropriate
and applied consistently. No
players should get away with
anything simply because they
have the best ability.
• Orientation for staff,
coaches, parents and youth. Ev
eryone should know up front
what’s expected of them, includ
ing expectations about conduct,
fairness and honesty.
• Emotional control. Adults
should be expected to set positive
examples. Help for kids to learn
from their experiences. “Adults
should spend time after a game
talking about what the players
did well and what could use im
provement,” Sue Giachero says.
“Coaches should make use of
‘teachable moments,’ where
something significant has just
happened such as a nasty foul
or an accidental collision to
stop the game and ask the play
ers to think about how they could
have behaved differently.”
• Conduct follow-up activities.
A post-season meeting can be
scheduled to celebrate successes
and plan for future changes and
improvement. Maximize the so
cial side of sports by promoting
interactions among team mem
bers and between teams.
Above all, Giachero says,
sports programs should be fun.
“Watch kids play on their own,”
she says. “If one team’s ‘killing’
the other, th( ill ‘Switch!’ to
Korner
divide up the talent. If someone
makes a silly mistake, they yell
‘Do-over!’
Kids play sports for the action
and excitement,” she said.
“Games shouldn’t be organized
to determine a winner but to
promote a close and exciting
game even if it means modify
ing the rules.”
Finally, everyone should par
ticipate, regardless of skill level.
“Less than one percent of kids go
on to play professionally,” Gia
chero says. “Why focus on that
small number and miss a great
opportunity for the other 99 per
cent?”
Penn State Cooperative Exten
sion has developed a series of free
booklets, “Coaches Making
Youth Sports a Positive Experi
ence,” and “Parents Making
Youth Sports a Positive Experi
ence.”
Single and multiple copies are
available free of charge for Penn
sylvania residents from county
Penn State Cooperative Exten
sion offices. Out-of-state resi
dents can contact the College of
Agricultural Sciences Publica
tions Distribution Center or call
(814) 865-6713.
For more information about
these publications and other edu
cational programs about youth
development offered by Berks
County Cooperative Extension
office, call Giachero at (610)
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Pluralism
LANCASTER (Lancaster
Co.) Pluralism is a condi
tion in which minority groups
participate fully in dominant
society, while maintaining the
cultural differences that make
them unique. A pluralistic at
titude means diverse groups
share the responsibility and
joy of leadership, while enjoy
ing their right to maintain
their cultural heritage. It im
plies mutual respect.
Do you maintain a pluralis
tic attitude in your everyday
life? Here is a checklist to help
you evaluate where you stand
in your pluralistic practices:
1. I use language that does
not stereotype, generalize or
disrespect others.
2. I have sought out more
information to enhance my
own awareness and under
standing of racism and preju
dice by talking with others,
reading or listening.
3.1 do things with the point
of view of others in mind.
There has been a wide variety of families in the White House,
but what about the pets that have lived there 9
Today, “Socks,” the Clintons' cat, is the only pet that lives in
the White House Socks is the first cat to live there since Amy
Carter’s cat, “Misty Malarky YingYang”
Russell Harrison, President Benjamin
Harrison’s son, had a pet goat named Old Whiskers The
president had to chase him down Pennsylvania Avenue one
day when he ran away pulling a wagon full of Harrison’s
grandchildren
Zachary Taylor pastured his old army horse, Whitey, on the
White House lawn When people visited the White House,
they took home horse hairs as souvenirs.
President Franklin D Roosevelt’s dog was named Fala The
dog was a gift from the president’s cousin, and usually
wherever the president went, the dog went too.
Caroline Kennedy, daughter of John
F Kennedy, had a pony named
Macaroni A gift from Lyndon /tf* (V \
Johnson, Macaroni was allowed f '1 I/) /
to roam the White House V ' \ 's' /
grounds and received fan mail Caroline 1
also had a dog named Pushmka 1 \'/
“Millie” was President and Mrs George
Bush’s dog Millie had two big things happen in her life while
President Bush was in office She wrote a book, and she had
puppies
Just as pets may play a big role in your life, they do in
presidents' lives, too 1
v I
Checklist
4. I have re-evaluated my
use of terms or phrases that
may be perceived by others as
degrading and hurtful.
5. I find out facts rather
than acting on assumptions.
6. I have made a personal
decision to take a positive
stand on diversity.
7. I involve everyone when
gathering information, resolv
ing problems and making de
cisions.
8.1 value the options of oth
ers and respect cultural values
other than my own.
9. I tactfully call another’s
attention to their biased, prej
udiced or stereotypical lan
guage or behavior.
10. I give the others the op
portunity to teach me what I
don’t know or understand
about their culture.
If you answered yes to most
of these statements, you are
well on your way to promoting
a positive, pluralistic attitude
that builds understanding and
mutual respect among people.
FIRST
PETS
President Lyndon Johnson had three
dogs—two beagles named “Him” and
“Her” along with “Yuki ” Yuki and the
president used to sing in the Oval Office