For Coaches

Effective Motivation Techniques and Life Skills

• Winning is always a goal, but a more important second goal is teaching life lessons through sports. This is a great resource created by Positive Coaching Alliance for coaches to learn how to achieve the latter. Double-Goal Coach is a registered trademark of Positive Coaching Alliance. https://devzone.positivecoach.org/resource/article/double-goal-coach-job-description
• It’s imperative that parents and coaches focus on effective and positive ways to support kids in youth sports to keep them in the game. This Ted Talk by John O’Sullivan, author of Changing The Game details what has gone wrong in youth sports and what parents and coaches can do to turn it around. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXw0XGOVQvw&t=18s
• We love the How To Coach Kids site, co-created by the U.S. Olympic Committee and Nike and inspired by The Aspen Institute Project Play. It has tons of free resources and courses on how to coach kids of different ages, genders, abilities, and sports in an effective and positive manner. https://howtocoachkids.org/
• A vitally important life skill we are focused on at All Kids Play is racial awareness. We believe racial awareness requires an understanding of perspective-taking. This video produced by the RISE organization is a great resource for athletes, parents, and coaches. https://youtu.be/tqz7UcCgbLA
• Time management is an absolute essential life skill for busy student-athletes. Check out Positive Coaching Alliance’s Development Zone for time-management tips for student-athletes – https://devzone.positivecoach.org/resource/article/time-management-student-athletes

Health and Nutrition Education

• Safekids Worldwide has some great resources for sports safety. Check out this Safety Checklist for Coaches. https://www.safekids.org/sites/default/files/documents/sports_safety_checklist_for_coaches.pdf
• When in doubt, sit them out. This guide, created by SafeKids Worldwide and the CDC, is a great way to recognize, prevent, and prepare for concussions. https://www.safekids.org/sites/default/files/documents/concussion_guide_for_coaches.pdf
• Get trained in Concussion Safety for Youth Sports! The CDC provides a free training course for coaches as part of their Heads Up program. https://www.cdc.gov/headsup/youthsports/training/index.html
• Get trained in Concussion Safety for High School Sports! The CDC teamed up with the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) to provide a free training course for high school coaches. https://nfhslearn.com/courses/concussion-in-sports-2
• The American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine has created an extremely informative website called Stop Sports Injuries that provides a plethora of information by sport, injury, and role to help educate coaches, parents and athletes on keeping kids safe and healthy. https://www.stopsportsinjuries.org/STOP/Prevent/STOP/Prevent_Injuries/preventinjuries.aspx?hkey=605a1398-5a54-49ab-924e-7f55965d8409
• Specializing in one sport too early can cause overuse injuries, burnout, and quitting at an early age. The American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine has created a thoughtful tip on the benefits of multi-sport play and the risks of early specialization on its Stop Sports Injuries site. https://www.sportsmed.org/aossmimis/STOP/Prevent_Injuries/Revised/Sports/Sports%20Specialization.pdf
• It’s important that coaches encourage kids to try different sports and play multiple sports, especially at young ages, to keep them healthy and engaged. This Ted Talk given by Dr. Nikhil Verma, Director of Sports Medicine at Midwest Orthopedics at Rush University Hospital details the dangers of early sports specialization. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_Slxq7qajs
• Good nutrition is critical to a student-athlete performing their best in school and in sports. TrueSport’s TrueFood nutrition resources are a great offering to fuel the mind and body of student-athletes. https://truesport.org/true-food/
• Team sports participation is essential for good mental health. This study, published in Jama Pediatrics in 2019, showed that, among those with adverse childhood experiences, team sports participation during adolescence was significantly associated with better adult mental health outcomes, especially for males, including lower likelihood of having ever received a diagnosis of depression or anxiety and having current depressive symptoms. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2734743

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For Parents

Effective Motivation Techniques and Life Skills

• Positive parenting support in youth sports is a big factor in kids having a quality experience. Positive Coaching Alliance has developed Ten Tips for First Time Sports Parents that provide some great advice on how to best support your athlete.https://devzone.positivecoach.org/resource/article/10-tips-first-time-sports-parents
• This resource developed by Positive Coaching Alliance reminds parents to see the big picture and focus on what their athlete is learning from youth sports. Second Goal Parent is a registered trademark of Positive Coaching Alliance.https://devzone.positivecoach.org/resource/article/second-goal-parent
• This Positive Coaching Alliance resource helps parents develop positive relationships with coaches. https://devzone.positivecoach.org/resource/article/tips-positive-parentcoach-partnership
• It’s imperative that parents and coaches focus on effective and positive ways to support kids in youth sports to keep them in the game. This Ted Talk by John O’Sullivan, author of Changing The Game details what has gone wrong in youth sports and what parents and coaches can do to turn it around. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXw0XGOVQvw&t=18s
• A vitally important life skill we are focused on at All Kids Play is racial awareness. We believe racial awareness requires an understanding of perspective-taking. This video produced by the RISE organization is a great resource for athletes, parents and coaches. https://youtu.be/tqz7UcCgbLA
• Time management is an absolute essential life skill for busy student-athletes. Check out Positive Coaching Alliance’s Development Zone for time-management tips for student-athletes. https://devzone.positivecoach.org/resource/article/time-management-student-athletes

Health and Nutrition Education

• Safekids Worldwide has some great resources for sports safety. Check out this Safety Checklist for Parents. https://www.safekids.org/sites/default/files/documents/sports_safety_checklist_for_parents_2014.pdf
• When in doubt, sit them out. This guide, created by SafeKids Worldwide and the CDC, is a great way for parents to recognize, prevent, and prepare for concussions. https://www.safekids.org/sites/default/files/documents/concussion_guide_for_parents.pdf
• It is important for parents to understand how to protect youth athletes from sexual abuse. This resource developed by Positive Coaching Alliance has some great guidance for parents to follow.https://devzone.positivecoach.org/resource/article/protect-athletes-sexual-abuse-key-actions-parents-coaches
• Overuse injuries can cause down time and long term damage. Safekids Worldwide has some simple tips parents can take to keep their athletes healthy and in the game. https://www.safekids.org/sites/default/files/documents/sports_overuse_injury_tip_sheet_2015_skw_jnj_0.pdf
• The American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine has created an extremely informative website called Stop Sports Injuries that provides a plethora of information by sport, injury, and role to help educate coaches, parents and athletes on keeping kids safe and healthy. https://www.stopsportsinjuries.org/STOP/Prevent/STOP/Prevent_Injuries/preventinjuries.aspx?hkey=605a1398-5a54-49ab-924e-7f55965d8409
• Specializing in one sport too early can cause overuse injuries, burnout, and quitting at an early age. The American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine has created a thoughtful tip on the benefits of multi-sport play and the risks of early specialization on its Stop Sports Injuries site. https://www.sportsmed.org/aossmimis/STOP/Prevent_Injuries/Revised/Sports/Sports%20Specialization.pdf
• It is important that parents encourage kids to try different sports and play multiple sports, especially at young ages, to keep them healthy and engaged. This Ted Talk given by Dr. Nikhil Verma, Director of Sports Medicine at Midwest Orthopedics at Rush University Hospital details the dangers of early sports specialization. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_Slxq7qajs
• Good nutrition is critical to a student-athlete performing their best in school and in sports. TrueSport’s TrueFood nutrition resources are a great offering to fuel the mind and body of student-athletes. https://truesport.org/true-food/
• Team sports participation is essential for good mental health. This study, published in Jama Pediatrics in 2019, showed that, among those with adverse childhood experiences, team sports participation during adolescence was significantly associated with better adult mental health outcomes, especially for males, including lower likelihood of having ever received a diagnosis of depression or anxiety and having current depressive symptoms. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2734743

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For Athletes

Effective Motivation Techniques and Life Skills

• Check out this overview of the Positive Coaching Alliance’s Triple Impact Competitor program, which focuses on making better athletes and better people through self, teammates and the game. Triple Impact Competitor is a registered trademark of Positive Coaching Alliance. https://devzone.positivecoach.org/resource/worksheet/take-triple-impact-competitor%C2%AE-pledge
• A vitally important life skill we are focused on at All Kids Play is racial awareness. We believe racial awareness requires an understanding of perspective-taking. This video produced by the RISE organization is a great resource for athletes, parents and coaches. https://youtu.be/tqz7UcCgbLA
• Time management is an absolute essential life skill for busy student-athletes. Check out Positive Coaching Alliance’s Development Zone for time-management tips for student-athletes. https://devzone.positivecoach.org/resource/article/time-management-student-athletes

Health and Nutrition Education

• Safekids Worldwide has some great resources for sports safety. Check out this Safety Checklist for Athletes. https://www.safekids.org/sites/default/files/documents/sports_safety_checklist_for_athletes_2014.pdf
• Overuse injuries can cause down time and long term damage. The American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine’s Stop Sports Injuries site provides some informative ways to recognize when you’re at risk for an overuse injury and how to prevent them. https://www.sportsmed.org/aossmimis/STOP/Prevent_Injuries/Revised/Athletes_Play%20Too%20Much.pdf
• Specializing in one sport too early can cause overuse injuries, burnout, and quitting at an early age. The American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine has created a thoughtful tip on the benefits of multi-sport play and the risks of early specialization on its Stop Sports Injuries site. https://www.sportsmed.org/aossmimis/STOP/Prevent_Injuries/Revised/Sports/Sports%20Specialization.pdf
• Good nutrition is critical to a student-athlete performing their best in school and in sports. TrueSport’s TrueFood nutrition resources are a great offering to fuel the mind and body of student-athletes. https://truesport.org/true-food/