Sportsmanship is very important. Deborah Czupek, a clinical psychologist at Hope Children's Hospital in Oak Lawn, believes a coach has the potential to be a positive influence in the development of a child. But it's important that a coach does not focus on just the outcome of a game. Winning and losing is part of athletics, but it's more than just who won the game. It's important for a coach to focus on the positives, even if his or her team lost, and tell the children what they did right.
Individual effort is more important than the outcome.
It's helpful for children to have positive adult role models and a coach can be that. A child can learn about self esteem, motivation, commitment and teamwork. These are all very important to a child's development. And so is making the game fun. If the youth sports experience is dull and boring, a child more than likely will quit.