Stage Presence

Archive for November, 2010

Most people don’t understand or aren’t really able to fully appreciate the impact that sports can have in an educational setting. Sports is a wonderful teaching tool, if it is used in the right way and under the right circumstances for a child who is challenged in any area and may need a little motivation to help them along.

Sports of all kinds can be used as a teaching motivator and can be incorporated into any program as a great resource. For instance, in the game of football, there is a lot of reasoning skills that are called upon when teams are strategizing their plays and which way to go. It can require a lot of work in reasoning to deduce that “if the team does X, then Z will happen; but if the team decides to give the ball to M, then we can send N to the left side and O to the right side.” Although it may sound basic and elementary, the problem can be as sophisticated or as simple as you want it to be.

Some great lessons to be learned from sports include discipline, teamwork and working together, strategizing, organizing, motivating, patience, and learning to respect authority. Many of these lessons are educationally-related traits while others are character traits to be used as lessons in life. Whichever category they fit into, they are all opportunities for learning and helping to develop young minds.

Sports teaching tools can include the resources used within the sports that it is related to and may or may not include other things that assist it. For instance, the sport of Tae Kwon Do may use punching bags for learning self-defense and timing, but may not require anything additional when learning how to balance the body. Whatever methods are used must simply relate to the sport in order to be effective.

Yes, some people would whole-heartedly agree that organized sports are very good. They are good for the community, for the team, for the individual and for teaching life’s little lessons that can only be discovered through this type of venue.

No one would argue that organized sports are also a great way for individuals and teams to develop a healthy approach to constructive competitive sports and learn how to rally and root for their favorite team. However, just as there are proponents of organized sports, there are also those who feel that organized sports are also a negative idea and shouldn’t be discouraged. Here are some of the disadvantages of organized sports:

- Everybody on the team doesn’t always get to play; therefore self-confidence can plummet because the player may not feel that he’s “one of the team.” This is espeically true for large teams or multi-position players on teams. Determining the player’s action time is where the challenge lies.

- It can often be very political. It’s all in who you like and who likes you that determines if a player gets playing time. Precious playing and practicing time can often be tied up in attempting to rectify such a situation.

- Skill levels and abilities aren’t always matched evenly. This can be a problem again as it can lead to the imbalance in playing time and exposure for the players. Finding that common ground can also be difficult since the burden likely falls to the coach and his staff.

Although these disadvantages do exist and are a very real challenge for many organized sport teams, taking the time to specifically address each issue can result in a peaceful resolution. Settling for the results and being comfortable with the outcome does not have to be the way for the sports team to continue in their future as an organized body.

Group sports certainly has its advantages because it teaches teamwork, promotes camaraderie and allows players to learn to work together cohesively. Most sports are team sports, and in many large sports groups the teams are very successful because of the collective efforts of the entire group.

Team sports have multiple benefits and definitely make for good entertainment overall, but there are also other types of sports that don’t involve teams or large groups. The success of these sports may depend solely on one person. Independent sports are those types of activities, and participation in them can have lots of advantages and benefits as well.

Independent sports can include things like karate, track and field, cycling or swimming. Although these sports can and are sometimes performed in teams, they are frequently done independently without teams with the individual player competing with other independent players for best times, first place, etc.

One huge benefit of independent sports is that it encourages the player to perform his best at all times. Whether he’s competing against his own best time, or attempting to unseat the high ranking person in the current first place, he depends on his lone skills and abilities to achieve this goal.

Independent sports also encourages the sportsman to work harder and stay focused since he often depends on his own abilities for success. Solid determination and higher goal-setting are also a couple of the characteristics that the independent sportsman relies on in order to do well.

There is often a lot of attention given to the independent sportsman since he or she acts alone. Their skills and abilities shine brightly when they win or unseat other champions. It is also quite impressive when they awarded best in their class or the top-ranking individual in their sport. This often encourages other individuals to try their hand at independent sports and achieve their own personal goals.