Cheering the Right Way
From our Parent Course, this article will discuss how to cheer on your athlete from the sidelines using a technique we call "No-Directions Cheering."
It’s disconcerting for athletes to have parents yell out instructions.
Avoid giving your child advice on the sidelines by committing to No-Directions Cheering. Eliminate verbs in your cheering because you can’t give advice without verbs. For example, “Pass the ball to Sarah” is a no-no because it uses the word “pass” as a verb to give directions. On the other hand, “Great pass, Sarah!” gives no directions. You’re just commenting (appreciatively) on what you see Sarah doing.
Here are some examples of No-Directions Cheering:
- “Great effort!”
- “Good hustle!”
- “Way to play defense!”
- “Nice hit!”
- “Terrific play!”
- “Way to go!”
No-Directions Cheering is important because your child will do better if it’s his game. So provide encouragement without direction – or even enjoy the game in silence. The more space you leave him to be the actor – a proactive player rather than a puppet on a string – the better.
To download the article on No-Directions Cheering, click below.