PLAYS launches on October 2
Minnesota PLAYS(TM) (Parents Learning About Youth Sports), a program to help combat the potential downsides of youth sport, will launch on October 2 to Eagan parents of first- and second-grade students as part of a community collaboration among the University of Minnesota Youth Sport Research Consortium (MNYSRC), the Eagan Athletic Association (EAA), and School District 196. The MNYSRC is comprised of faculty and researchers across the University whose work deals with youth sports and Minnesota families and communities. Nicole LaVoi, associate director of the Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport, is a co-developer of the program.
Thousands of children enter youth sport each year through school and community-based programs. Youth sports can provide a positive and meaningful context for youth development and family engagement, but, according to LaVoi, the quality of youth sport experiences and child outcomes are determined by adults—the coaches, administrators, and parents who create, manage, and influence youth sports. The issues facing child-athletes and their families today as a result of sport participation include burnout, drop out, overuse injuries, cheating, violence, over-scheduling, inequalities, inadequately trained coaches, parental over/under involvement, and policy issues.
LaVoi describes Minnesota PLAYS as a one-hour interactive workshop based on the latest research from child development and sport psychology as well as data collected from children and Minnesota sport parents. “Parents play a critical role in youth sports,� says LaVoi, “but parents receive very little—if any—education on how to create a positive sport experience for their child-athlete. We hope PLAYS will start sport parents out on the right foot in terms of their child’s sport participation.�
"EAA has been working with the U of M for almost two years to develop and implement this program and we are excited to be able to bring it to our first group of parents this fall," says EAA President Dan Mott. "EAA is committed to improving the climate surrounding youth sports in our community.�
Mott adds, "We believe PLAYS will help parents better appreciate the significant role they play in their child's athletic experience and provide them with specific suggestions for fostering a more positive environment around youth sports in Eagan. Our objective is to make sure that our programs remain focused on the overall development of our children as people, not just as athletes." Mott’s sentiment is echoed by George Brewster, an EAA parent who was part of the PLAYS pilot. “PLAYS has challenged me see a kids'-eye view of sports and to let the youth sports experience belong to my kids . . . and not to me." Another EAA parent, Dave Unmacht, commented, "I wish we’d had PLAYS when my children were younger. Parents should not underestimate the important role they play on the sidelines in support of their children."
With the perception that the professionalization of youth sports is driving kids away from sports and the rising epidemic of youth obesity which largely stems from inactivity, keeping children involved in sports is also a community health issue. LaVoi states, “If Minnesota communities are committed to positive youth development and concerned about the trends they see in youth sports, then PLAYS is one local solution.� She believes that PLAYS will help Minnesota parents understand their role in creating healthy, family-friendly youth sport opportunities that not only benefit everyone in the community, but help ensure all children play, stay in, benefit from, and enjoy sports.
For more information about Minnesota PLAYS visit the MNYSRC Web site. To schedule PLAYS for your community, contact Nicole at 612-626-6055.