Youth Sports Library: skill development drills

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Does Madden NFL 2012 Put Parents in Bad Mood?

In terms of teaching the game, the Madden NFL 2012 might be the best way ever to independently learn football players, rules, plays and strategies.

But it's a video game. And according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, not only do video games replace physical fitness opportunities, researchers found children who exceeded the 2 hours per day of screen time (TV or Video Games) were 1.5 to 2 times more likely to be above average in attention problems.

Playing football is more fun than playing video football.

So, while the Madden NFL games are great fun and socially interactive, parents must effectively manage the amount of time kids stay connected to video games and TV for the child's health and cognitive development.

See both sides of the issue.

You need a good reason to request "a stop" to video game play. Tell them your reason. Without a good reason, kids figure the request is arbitrary and "Dad is in a bad mood."

As youth football camp coaches, we want kids to be physically active--every day! And, we want your child to learn and appreciate the game of football.

Learn more. Check out the links below. Get your facts straight about the joy of the game and the health related issues. You can find a balance that will work to everyone's benefit.

MADDEN NFL 2012 REVIEW

AAP: VIDEO GAMES LINKED TO ATTENTION PROBLEMS

KEVINMD: VIDEO GAMES LINKED TO ATTENTION PROBLEMS

Hopefully this helps your parent-child communication.

Tom Finks

Pro Sports Experience, LLC

Pro Sports Experience is the official management company of Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers, New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles Youth Football Camps.

Monday, August 29, 2011

“I Won’t Cheat!” --A Little League Life Skill Campaign that Scores.

Bears Youth Camp running back

Our youth football camp coaches constantly state, “Don’t cheat yourself!” We say it before camp, during camp and at the final whistle.

What do they mean?

*Come mentally and physically prepared to get the most out of the camp day.

*Get enough sleep before the day.

*Eat a proper breakfast.

*Think about what you want to accomplish.
*Leave your problems behind and enjoy the moment.

*Run out every play and give a 100% effort.

*Do things the right way.

Talk about a simple sports lesson that translates to true life skills! Consider NCAA football team violations, baseball players using steroids, golfer Tiger Woods, skater Tonya Harding and sprinter Ben Johnson. Then consider any coworkers, friends and family members that cheat their way through life. They take shortcuts, sandbag and use smoke and mirrors. But everyone knows the difference.

It makes me think everyone should be required to play team sports while growing up. It’s the best platform for learning how to compete with integrity. Note: I said “team sports” as I believe the environment is much more conducive to competitive integrity than most individual sports (golf excluded).

While many more cheat without getting caught, I suspect that every perpetrator big and small has significant regrets and would do things much differently if given the chance. We all make mistakes and fall to temptations of easy success and quick adoration. Nobody is completely innocent.

Pro Sports Experience tips its cap to Little League Baseball and their “I Won’t Cheat” jersey patch campaign. It’s a sharp message that is a more valuable takeaway than football skills or baseball skills.