Is there a good way to teach your child to be more aggressive in sports?

1. STAFF

   Paul Edmondsonposted 11 years ago

   Is there a good way to teach your child to be more aggressive in sports?
   
   I'm curious if there are coaching techniques to teach kids how to be more aggressive when playing sports.

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2. 69

   crazymom3posted 11 years ago

   If by more aggressive you mean to be tougher and not quit when they get hurt I agree, and will give you my answer, but if you mean to just be outright aggressive I don't know if that's a good thing. If you mean teach them to be tough without being  a bully then ok.  So in my case my four-year old quit playing soft ball because he got hurt with the ball.  He also got mad and stopped playing basketball because a ball fell on his head. I have talked to him and explained that sports can be rough and that sometimes you get hurt, but that is just part of playing a sport.  I have told him that if he is not willing to take the risk and get tough and deal with a little hurt then sports may not be for him until he is ready to deal with a little pain.  I think practicing the sport with them and showing  them how to appropriately be more aggressive without hurting others and within the rules is a good thing.  Also you should teach them to  have a positive attitude if someone else is aggressive with them in return, since it is just part of the game and not take it personally.

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3. 87

   ecogginsposted 11 years ago

   I think all children should be encouraged to participate in an activity that is team oriented. However, it does not have to be athletic in nature. It could be drama or dance or something else like that. If a child is not inclined towards athletics I would not force them to be.
   
   (I say this as one who played every type of team sport in my life and enjoy athletics very much. Yet, only one of my five children inherited the ability and desire to play sports. And, this is fine with me.)
   
   In an athletic event, I think a child can be taught to be more aggressive in two general manners. One is the bad way and the other is the best way. The bad way to is to yell and scream at them, which is the normal way but creates a whole bunch of adverse psychological, emotional, and relational effects. The best way is to let them mature into the sport. The better the coaching and the more they play, the more experience they will gain and the more comfortable they will become. When they become comfortable they will do more right actions and then they will more success. When they experience more and more success in the sport then they will become even more aggressive because they will be more confident.

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4. 51

   tbHistorianposted 11 years ago

   The best way to instill aggressiveness in your child is to ensure they have learned the proper skills to be aggressive.  This is not an easy feat because while aggression is a vital part in most physical sports, it must never become hazardous.  Therefore, the proper approach to aggression comes from advanced skill training in any sport requiring aggression. 
   The better the skills, the more aggressive action will occur.  This in fact is simply an increased perception of aggression, but when a child is properly skilled, they then overcome the fear of an aggressive encounter.  And when the child finds themselves challenged by another skilled opponent, they soon begin to utilize the advancement of skilled experience to overcome any hesitation to engage in the proper aggressive action necessary to challenge such an opponent.
   Many coaches incorrectly teach the child as they yell at players that do not appear to be aggressive.  This is due to the coach misunderstanding that aggression is not merely a mental attitude about play, but the combination of skill training, competition experience, and positive game coaching. 
   When speaking with your child or a young player about aggression, you must seek to identify those areas of physical play that confuse or scare the youngster.  You must seek to find what is motivating the child or young player to hold back.  As you entertain the discussion with the child or young player, you will then capture the essence of their needs for better skills, physical understanding, and motivation for the sport.
   Breaking it down into understandable parts is often the toughest part when coaching your child or a young athlete.  However, with frequent discussion the player soon finds that you are not trying to make them something they believe they cannot be, but attempting to improve them through skills, experience, and self-employed motivation.  Enabling the youngster through their own respective achievements becomes easier as the skills improve, the competition advances, and the experience is elevated to knowledge gained in the sport.
   Most young athletes lack an understanding of the aggressive play required in any sport until they have had time to dissect the need for it.  Through education in the rules of the game, skill drills, and proper competition, the young athlete will advance positively when provided positive feedback concerning the adjustment of their game activities.
   Even pro athletes advance better through positive enforcement

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