Parents Child Development Education for Coaches? (Thoughts & Resources)

[ReluctantGymMom]

This is so necessary that I’m pretty sure I’d never move to another gym where the coaches weren’t parents, preferably of gymnasts. Our coaches GET the optional girls, the girls going through middle school and high school and all their problems. They get when there’s exams and send the juniors and seniors to the side to go study.

Our first gym, not a single one of those women had children and it showed because they talked to a 7 and a 17 year old the same way.

And it may be common sense not to treat little kids like mini adults but nearly everyone is missing common sense, I swear

 

[Aussie_coach]

I don’t think having a children makes one a better or a worse coach. Most of our coaches do not have children of their own, but they speak to kids as kids and understand where they are developmentally.

The only coaches we have ever had over the years, who have had difficulties understanding how to speak to children were actually ones who had children of their own. Of course, not saying it has anything to do with having children, just a coincidence. My point is just that some have this understanding and some don’t and it’s not related to whether they are a parent or not.

 

[SupportingHerDreams]

I’m sorry but someone shouldn’t need a study to know that. Techniques for sure but of course they are not little adults.

It's easy to say that yet on a daily basis I see adults expect more from young children than they themselves can live up to. How many times do you see an adult treat a service person dissrespectfully because their order was made incorrectly when they would expect their child to politely say "thank you" when they get something different than what they asked for?

 

[SupportingHerDreams]

I think this is a great idea! Heck, my daughter has had school teachers that don't seem to fully understand childhood development.