When you signed your kid up for tee ball, the last thing you expected was to see kids playing really rough with each other. But according to a survey from i9 Sports, a national youth franchise, 16 percent of kids ages 8-14 say they or a teammate has purposely tried to hurt another player during a game. Here’s how to prevent your child from playing sports aggressively—and show good sportsmanship.
Watch your mouth.
You might not even realize it, but you could be the cause of your kid’s rough-and-tumble tactics on the field. So be mindful of what you say/shout/yell to your kid, his teammates, and the opposing team, too.
Focus on fun.
You enrolled your kid in a soccer travel team because he loved the sport. That’s why you need to make sure that your child is having fun while he’s playing. When playing sports becomes a burden or unpleasant, you might want to reconsider keeping him on the team or letting him take a few months off to avoid burnout.
Show him how to lose.
Kids can get so caught up in winning the game, scoring the goal, getting the touchdown that they forget that winning isn’t everything. It’s important for kids to learn that sometimes they’ll lose a match, and that’s okay. By reinforcing the good player that he is, you’ll teach your child that winning at all costs isn’t really winning at all.