6 ways to find a balance between school and sports

By Janis Meredith | Posted 11/6/2017

As your kids come home with backpacks full of homework and flyers about upcoming school events, does your athlete feel overwhelmed with everything on their plate?

How can parents and young athletes maintain a balance that will allow them to enjoy sports without hurting their academics?

Is it possible to give a 100% effort for academics and sports, and not have either one suffer?

If you remember S.P.O.R.T.S. you will have a plan for finding a school/sports balance in your home.

 Scrutinize

Make an assessment of all the activities you and your child have planned throughout the year; working as far ahead as you can. If you only know what the first month holds, you can come back and fill in the rest of the calendar later. As you put them on the calendar, scrutinize them to see if there are any that, while they may be fun or somewhat important, really are not necessary.

Prioritize

It’s important to plan your week and not let your week plan you. If there are conflicts on the calendar, decide right then which one must come first, so your child knows ahead of time. If there are no scheduling conflicts, then prioritize the things that must be done. When are projects due? Tests? Tryouts? Practices and games?

Each day, your child should look at the calendar and ask themselves, what must I get done today? What must I get done by the end of the week?

Making those a priority will help your child make better use of their time.

Remember priorities don't have to be work or school related. Sometimes family time, play time, or downtime is a must; be sure to allow space for those as well.

When life feels too rushed, it may be time for your child to cut out activities. Maybe they can’t make it to a birthday party.  It’s good for your child to learn that it’s okay not to do everything.

Organize

Being unorganized costs very valuable time. How much time does your child spend looking for uniforms, shoes, homework, or backpacks? Add it all up throughout the week and it can take up a good chunk of time. Here are a few tips to help them be better organized and manage their time:

Get organized. Use a big desk calendar for school and sports. Write down all due dates for schoolwork, projects, and papers. Write down all sport's practices and games. Every week revisit your calendar and make corrections.

Manage your time. Put your known time schedule—school, games, practices, travel, and other events. By blocking this known time on your calendar, you can determine your actual homework time and study time.

Plan your week; don’t let your week plan you. Look at your calendar and note when you have projects due, tests scheduled, and practices and games scheduled. Plan how and when you will study.

Recognize

It’s important that you recognize your child’s need to just be a kid. If they have no free time, no downtime, and not much friend time, then the sports/school balance has gone out of whack.

Please recognize that your kids need to be kids.

Temporize

One meaning of the word temporize is to temporarily adopt a particular course in order to conform to the circumstances. In other words, be flexible. Learning to adapt to circumstances is an extremely valuable life skill. Whether it’s a last minute homework assignment given by a teacher or an unscheduled practice announced by the coach, the ability to flex and not get uptight will keep your child from feeling stressed.

Show your child that temporizing will help them deal with change much better. Rigidity or not flexing with circumstances will only make you and your child uptight, and as a result, not so fun to be around.

Stabilize

A stable child is one who has a strong foundation, knows they are loved and accepted no matter what.

You can stabilize your child by making your home a safe place, free from judgment and harsh criticism.

You can stabilize your child by giving them a moral compass, to guide them.

You can stabilize your child by taking time to bond as a family. If evenings are busy, look for time on the weekends or even in the mornings before school. School and sports should not eradicate family time.

A stable child is a confident child, and a confident child is one who can better handle the challenges of balancing sports and school.

 

Janis B. Meredith is a life coach for sports parents. She provides resources to help parents give their children a positive and growing youth sports experience. Learn more about good sports parenting habits in her book 11 Habits for Happy & Positive Sports Parents, available on Amazon.

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