Feature Articles

Field of Dreams – Your Child’s Coach

Playing sports has an added layer of issues for children with learning differences. There is more to the game than just athletic ability; this is where working closely with your child’s coach becomes an intricate dance. While the coach knows how to do his job, you know how best to teach your child. Diplomacy and clear language become your best skills when helping the coach get the most from your child on the court or the field.

You need to realize that you are your child’s first coach. There is a great deal you can do behind the scenes, before he takes the field, which will help him tremendously. The discussion of what aspects of his learning differences, whether it is distractibility or processing deficiencies, may interfere with playing the sport needs to occur before lacing up the cleats. Just as you would talk honestly and openly about struggles in the classroom, strategize with your child about how he can think ahead and come up with coping mechanisms.

Working with the coach may prove to be the trickier dilemma. Coaches, as a general rule, do not like to be told how to coach. It is important in your discussions with the coach that you recognize his expertise and that you only want to make his job smoother when it comes to your child. The following are excellent points to remember from “Coaching Kids with LD and ADHD in Sports” by Steven Richfield, 2009, for www.greatschools.net and www.ldonline.org.

Define your child’s specific problem rather than giving a broad label that is open to misinterpretation.
Suggest approaches that are easy to implement, not embarrassing, and linked to home-based strategies.
Tactfully stress the value of positive reinforcement, close supervision, and appropriate boundaries and consequences.
Ensure your child is aware of the discussion and prepared to receive the coach’s signals.
Express appreciation.

Kids Enabled presents “It’s How You Play the Game” by Jennifer Betts, MEd.

It’s How You Play the Game
Sports and Kids with Learning Differences

By Jennifer Betts, M. Ed.

Athletic competition can have a powerful and positive impact on social skills and self-esteem. On the playing field, athletes with learning differences are fi nding success sometimes unavailable in the classroom.

The experts speak
Neuropsychologist Jason R. Freedman believes the nature of sports provides an alternative to classroom struggles while providing opportunities for the growth of self-esteem and skill mastery. He asserts that finding creative ways of dealing with the complexities of learning differences is critical to improving cognitive skills and emotional maturity. Sports offer rich opportunities to successfully tackle learning challenges such as problems with sustained attention, organizational deficiencies and lack of self-regulation. In the Journal of Leisure Research, educational psychology researchers concluded that participation in recreational activities can result in positive behavioral change and skill learning, direct visual memory, information or factual learning, concept learning, and attitude and value learning. Direct instruction of skills, the identification and use of short-term and long-term goals, and the “hands-on” context for sports often work well for children with disabilities. Research also indicates that interaction between children with and without learning disabilities benefits both and leads to a more positive attitude toward and understanding of children who struggle with disabilities.

“You are never really playing an opponent. You are playing yourself, your own highest standards, and when you reach your limit, that is real joy.”

- Arthur Ashe

The sports community
When students play sports, they participate in a complex social community among players, coaches, parents and officials. They encounter a diverse array of ethics and attitudes towards authority, player personalities and talents, and the boundaries of rules. They compete against all skill levels. Flexible thinking skills are necessary to shift actions or attitudes on behalf of the team (passing the ball or giving up playing time), which can be a less threatening and better reinforced way to meet expectations than in the classroom. The reinforcement is often immediate and powerfully motivating: a high-five from a teammate, an encouraging word from the coach or a cheer from the crowd. Coping with setbacks, too, becomes part of the fabric. When a baseball player is called out in a slide to home plate, part of his training is to shake off the call and move on.

Successful Athletes with Learning Differences

• Michael Phelps, Olympic swimmer, ADHD
• Bruce Jenner, Olympic decathlon, dyslexia
• Terry Bradshaw, NFL quarterback, ADHD
• Greg Louganis, Olympic diver, dyslexia
• Magic Johnson, NBA, ADD
• Molly Sullivan Sliney, Olympic fencer, dyslexia
• Jackie Stewart, Grand Prix Hall of Fame, ADD
• Jim Shea, Jr., Olympic bobsled, dyslexia
• Scott Eyre, MLB pitcher, ADHD
• John E. Morgan, PGA champion, epilepsy/dyslexia

www.schwablearning.org
www.disabilityresources.com

“[My] learning disability doesn’t matter. It just goes away when I play.”

- Student Athlete, The Howard School

Physical Benefits
Overall fitness, stress relief, fine-motor development and healthy habits can all result from participation in sports. Athletes often have a better understanding of how their bodies work and a better self-image than non-athlete peers. Research about the benefits of sports for girls has been particularly positive.Girls who participate in sports have more positive body images and healthy habits than girls who do not. The same is true for students who struggle with physical limitations or difficulties. For these children, the focus on mastering specific physical tasks, such as balance, coordination or muscle strength, has direct impact on the quality of their lives outside of the game. Learning through one’s senses, including kinesthetic learning, takes on distinct importance in the physical arena. According to Howard Gardner in Multiple Intelligence, for children who have bodily-kinesthetic intelligence or “body smarts,” such activity meets a need and hooks into an area of strength. For children with proprioceptive reception issues, the sensory input of sports can provide input in a meaningful and enjoyable way.

“You can’t put a limit on anything. The more you dream, the farther you get.”

- Michael Phelps

What could go wrong?
There are somepotential pitfalls to competitive sports. A student whose self-esteem is entirely wrapped up in athleticism to the detriment of other activities may have problems. Likewise, a talented athlete with anexaggerated ego may have trouble cooperating with teammates.Unfortunately, sports can sometimes provide children with models of inappropriate behaviors. Coaches or parents who yell at a referee or scandalous behavior by professional athletes, for example, can mar the experience. Parents can help athletes cope with some of these behaviors by discussing ways to show good sportsmanship. Athletes benefit when expectations about behavior are clearly stated and are a visible part of the activity. When it comes to other negative behaviors, such as bullying, adult intervention is important. Athletes should be encouraged to talk to their coaches about any uncomfortable situations. If that is not enough, parents should get involved by helping to clarify what is happening and how the situation will be handled. Bullying, hazing and other such behaviors are never excused as being acceptable in competitive sports.

“Setting a goal is not the main thing. It’s deciding how you will go about achieving it and staying with that plan.”

- Tom Landry

A health concept of competition
Athletes learn that hard work doesn’t always guarantee success. The emphasis for the athlete should be on playing well, not winning or losing. A program’s (or a zealous adult’s) overemphasis on winning can create an overwhelmingly stressful environment for a child. It is important for concept of competition that protects athletes from unrealistic expectations about their performance on the court or field. Doing one’s best, rather than winning, is one key to a well balanced sports program. It is the job of parents, coaches, and school or program officials to enhance the benefits and minimize the problems of sports for children.

Which sport is best for my child?
It is important to work with your child’s personality and interests in finding a sport or physical activity. What does your child do for fun? Does he like playing with others or spending time with just one friend? Is he a natural leader?
Team sports with a faster pace (soccer, basketball, lacrosse)

Children who like group projects and working with others
Assertive and energetic children may enjoy the close contact with other children
Children who can sustain energy for longer periods of time
Children who enjoy running
Children who don’t do well with too much down time

Individual Sports (martial arts, cross-country running, fencing, tennis)

Children who are motivated to make individual goals
Children who are comfortable working alone
Less assertive children who need more space and independence
Children who are nervous about performing “on demand”
Children who like moving at a slower pace (golf)
Children who have short bursts of energy (diving or football)
Children who have difficulty running (volleyball instead of soccer)

Winning is fun and makes athletes feel successful. This is no different for kids with learning differences. But winning for these young athletes is not measured only by the score at the end of the game. Success comes in increased skills, a challenge met, a behavior modified and new friends made on the field. These successes benefit a child no matter what the score is. Remember, it’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you play the game.

Try It, You’ll Like It

Not all students are interested in playing sports. However, just as students learn to read and understand math, they can also learn athletic skills and enjoy the benefits. Below are some time-tested tips to get things started.
“Playing” together as a family can create positive feelings about being active. Form teams made up of family and friends and hold some “backyard Olympics.”
Substitute competitive sports for a less pressurized version. Examples: Putt-Putt for golf or kickball for soccer.
Starting a new sport with a buddy on the team can help with motivation and lessen fear.
Think outside the locker room. Don’t rule out activities like kayaking, rock climbing, skateboarding, BMX, yoga, bowling or archery. These alternative sports are characterized by individualism and the escape from the pressures and demands of team sports.
Sometimes students need to stick with a sport to learn enough skills to feel comfortable and successful. As the parent, you know best whether your child is working through a learning curve, or truly unhappy.

Jennifer Betts is athletic director and lower school principal at The Howard School (jbetts@howardschool.org). She has been a middle and high school teacher and coach in public and private schools in New York and Georgia. Jennifer has consulted in the areas of pedagogy, collaborative learning, new teacher preparation, curriculum development and critical thinking skills. She can be reached at 404-377-7436.