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Sportsmanship.
Larry,
MSU is as fine a school as you will find in East Lansing and charitable too! Take for example how well they treated their recent guests from CMU! UM isn't nearly as gracious, at least until they play the Spartans! Sparty On!
Sportsmanship.
Larry,
MSU is as fine a school as you will find in East Lansing and charitable too! Take for example how well they treated their recent guests from CMU! UM isn't nearly as gracious, at least until they play the Spartans! Sparty On!
Sportsmanship.
Larry,
Great subject. As you may have noted the NCAA asked colleges and university teams last weekend to demonstrate good sportsmanship by a pre-game handshake or other appropriate gesture. Of the games I watched it was quite impressive. In fact, as a UM fan, I have to admit that the "Other school", OSU actually ran out of the tunnel with the opposition. Something that had never happened in Columbus before. It was avery fine gesture. I do believe that we as parents and coaches need to teach good sportsmanship by both word AND deed and you outlined some of the guiding principles for the development of sportsmanship. I also believe that good sportsmanship can allow for some age appropriate good natured "trash talk". Some times among friends this is more enjoyable than the actual game itself! (as you and I have been known to engage in occasionally) To be able to do this, however, one has to be respectful of each other to know where certain lines are that should not be crossed least someone gets offended and a friendly relationship suffers. Unfortunately, this skill has been a somewhat dying art, as we have seen exhibited in recent months among our elected officials.
I also think that in some ways we do our children a disservice in this area by "over supervising" them. I am old enough now to recall the many summer days, as well as fall and winter, playing various game, baseball, football, etc. for hours on end with not an adult in sight. Somehow everyone learned quickly how to resolve conflicts, decide on rules, avoid making the kid with the ball and/or bat too mad so that everyone could enjoy playing together. When we as adults are too involved in the structuring of every interaction that our children have we rob them of an opportunity to learn these very valuable skills. And after all, learning how to play nice together is at the very heart of good sportsmanship.
I take my hat off to the NCAA for encouraging Universities to model a difference and as well, to those schools that have stepped up to do so. But with all due respect, I can't see U. of M. and OSU running through a tunnel together, I have to believe Wolverine Nation draws a line on something like that!
You bring up some excellent points though. One is with regard to "good natured trash talk;" I agree that good sportsmanship allows for it but as you've also pointed out, it needs to occur in the framework of fun and respect to where lines are drawn before someone experiences it as offensive. That's why good modeling to our children is so important; learning where to draw lines in social interactions as well as so many other aspects of life is what they're still in the process of learning how to do and what we as parents have been in trusted to teach them.
I also agree that like most anything else, learning how to effectively interact with others comes through experience but we do, in fact, take opportunities for experience away, or at least significantly dilute it, when we over supervise or structure our children's time and interactions. You've done a great job in describing how. What do others think?
And P.S. to my good friend Robert in New Orleans, how did such a great Dad and intelligent individual as yourself slip up to have their otherwise beautiful and intelligent daughter end up attending college at MSU?!
Larry
Sportsmanship.
Larry,
Great subject. As you may have noted the NCAA asked colleges and university teams last weekend to demonstrate good sportsmanship by a pre-game handshake or other appropriate gesture. Of the games I watched it was quite impressive. In fact, as a UM fan, I have to admit that the "Other school", OSU actually ran out of the tunnel with the opposition. Something that had never happened in Columbus before. It was avery fine gesture. I do believe that we as parents and coaches need to teach good sportsmanship by both word AND deed and you outlined some of the guiding principles for the development of sportsmanship. I also believe that good sportsmanship can allow for some age appropriate good natured "trash talk". Some times among friends this is more enjoyable than the actual game itself! (as you and I have been known to engage in occasionally) To be able to do this, however, one has to be respectful of each other to know where certain lines are that should not be crossed least someone gets offended and a friendly relationship suffers. Unfortunately, this skill has been a somewhat dying art, as we have seen exhibited in recent months among our elected officials.
I also think that in some ways we do our children a disservice in this area by "over supervising" them. I am old enough now to recall the many summer days, as well as fall and winter, playing various game, baseball, football, etc. for hours on end with not an adult in sight. Somehow everyone learned quickly how to resolve conflicts, decide on rules, avoid making the kid with the ball and/or bat too mad so that everyone could enjoy playing together. When we as adults are too involved in the structuring of every interaction that our children have we rob them of an opportunity to learn these very valuable skills. And after all, learning how to play nice together is at the very heart of good sportsmanship.
Sportsmanship.
I really like this article. I recently have my girls in their first baseball games this past summer. The sports club the we belong to, feel that "it is just a game, and the children are there to have fun and learn". This is my feeling of there first time as well. I really would not have enjoyed the game, nor would my children if the coaches were in it just to win. The league was for children 6 - 12 years old and most of the coaching teams did not keep score, everyone was a winner. A good time was had by all. However, in the major leagues, of the same club, kids that were 13 - 16 where an umpier was used, that was a whole different ball game. Pareent were acting as if money was placed on the game. My children saw this behavior and were shock by what the hear and saw. We had to leave quickly. Over all, they had a really good time for there first experience at baseball, now we are off to soccer.
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