Dad Talk

Mon. 09/14/09 02:20 PM

Sportsmanship

Larry, I couldn't agree with you more that good sportsmanship must start at home. I have two little girls, ages 3 and 5, and they are among the most competitive people I have ever met! It is hard enough to teach them the aspects of good sportsmanship because they are so emotionally heated in their competitions with each other, and who wins/loses means so much more than it should to them. My husband watches sports at times but tends to keep his comments to himself, so my girls' behavior does not appear to be modeled in that way. Despite this, as I said before, they are highly focused on who wins/loses. I can only imagine how much harder it would be to teach them the traits of good sportsmanship in the presence of a parent who is lost in their own negativity or false pride about a game!

Tammy, South Lyon, MI

No question about it, negative modeling would only reinforce the sibling rivalry they sound to be having.

Larry

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