Andy's Challenge Research Paper

Competitive sports in some cases are becoming very unhealthy for children. Most children would rather play on a losing team than sit on the bench of a winning team. Youth sports are a great idea to get children up and active, as well as improve their social skills. Just like every other thing in life it is important to practice and work hard to achieve success. However it is unhealthy to push for results over the needs or wants of the child. Aside from the mental stress that young athletes may experience from intense training and physical play long lasting injures is now a growing concern. Fact is competitive sports is a double edge sword if done right it is the greatest thing world, but if done wrong it can be very unhealthy for a child.

Steve Almond’s story “You Knock my Brains out This Sunday and I Knock Your Brains out the Next Time we Meet” speaks to the underlying truth about America’s Sunday pastime and how concussions can be prevented not only by the industry, but by its viewers as well. Football is well known after having been brought to the public’s eye as study after study was released proving that there was a link from football to head injuries. Although in our modern society we have already subconsciously made the connection between football and concussions. The fact that this problem is not decreasing, could be surprising, as the lack of understanding about who has control and the ability to influence change. We hear that football helmets and pads, are getting better, but that does not stop concussions. We do not hear how helmets make players feel and change their play style based on the feeling of invincibility that people feel while wearing a helmet. Pads and helmets do help protect the players but false senses of security due to lack of knowledge on what

Also it is important that children have the opportunities to experience risk and challenge play as this is important for children's and young people's play and learning. It is important that children and young people are given the opportunities for risk and challenge play as it will help give children a better understanding of what is safe and unsafe such as if they was to touch something hot they will know not to do it again because they will know they will burn them self. Some parents do not let their children take risk and challenges as they think its to dangerous for the children. When practitioners provide opportunities for risk and challenge play it is important that it is taken place in a safe environment. Also when risk and challenge

Football is America’s most popular sport; however, recently controversy has been arising pertaining to the injuries and violence connected to football. Within the last five years the topic of allowing youth to play football has blown up. Though the injuries vary dramatically, what has really been the key subject is head related injuries, typically concussions. Parents around the country are debating whether or not their children should play the sport, specifically contact football. Although football and most sports in general have injury related risks attached with it, there are still arguments why kids around the country should be able to enjoy one of the most liked sports. Reasons such as building teamwork, physical activity and free will can lead to why many believe that there should not be a dispute regarding football.

But alas, Miss Sifferlin's goal wasn't to be logical or analytical. The goal of her paper is to appeal to parents and coaches about the ramifications of letting kids “play through pain”. Sadness wells up for the amount of children affected by concussions, worry for their safety, and hope that more precautions will be taken. It's not the most delicate of subjects to talk about, but it is one that she broaches with the same type of seriousness and finesse that most will find refreshing.

Looking at trends associated within fitness and wellness I ran across a very interesting article entitled "Pushing Too Hard Too Young" written by Jacqueline Stenson for MSNBC (see link below). This article presents the idea that children at an early age, sometimes as early as three, are being pushed too hard to play in sports. The claim in this article is that these children are sustaining unnecessary injuries, and enduring psychological pressure at a higher level than their skill lever for their age. For these kids training is to the extent, they are required to maintain intense training schedules and practice year-round or on multiple different leagues in an attempt to develop them for future fame.

Thesis: Youth and High School football teams are not adequately protected from the danger of concussions and head trauma.

“The only thought in my mind was getting back in the game” said Boothby. Despite her injury she kept playing. “I thought I had to be tough. I thought I had to go back in because we were losing and I needed to support my team.” That night she began to feel nauseous, and losing her memory. She had sustained a serious concussion that left its mark on her brain. It took 10 months of physical therapy just to stand without falling. Because of her injury her school work was slacking off and was diagnosed with ADHD. “My GPA dropped so much that I’m really anxious about college,” she said. A study was surveyed in which 3,000 athletes, coaches and parents found that 42% of kids downplay or hide injuries so they could keep playing. 53% of coaches said that they feel pressure to put the injured players in the game. Almost 1/3 of kids who surveyed said it’s normal to play rough in a game to send a message to the opposing

Every wondered how dangerous a simple sport like Football can be ? I’m sure you’ve seen it at least once on your Television. I’m sure you once thought to yourself how awesome it is to have a career where you can be paid millions to chase around a ball in front of a camera. I’m sure you believe that those football players are living the life, But do you really know the true price they’re paying ? Imagine your son/daughter asks you to allow them to join their school’s football team, Who wouldn’t want a star athlete kid right ! Wrong. I’m positive you believe that the thick armor and helmets they wear are enough to protect them from any serious internal and external injuries right ? You’re wrong again. Wanna know a secret ? Those helmets don’t protect your child against any Concussions at all. According to David Camarillo’s TED Talk titled

There’s no doubt that concussions in football has become a major problem, not just for the professional athletes, but for kids of all ages from age 8 to 19. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has shown that concussion have doubled in the last decade and The American Academy of Pediatrics says that, “emergency room visits for concussions in children ages 8 to 13 years old has doubled, and concussions have risen 200 percent among teens ages 14 to 19 in the last decade” (Keith Dunlap, The Oakland Press). This shows that the seriousness of concussions is not just an issue at a pro level but an issue throughout all levels of play. The risk is definitely present when you play football but it shouldn’t stop parents from letting their children participate in the sport. Playing organized sports such as football isn’t just a place to get injured, it’s a place where your children can learn the importance of teamwork, sportsmanship, toughness, competitiveness, they learn succeed, and also they learn about failure. The parents who don’t allow their children to play sports don’t let their kids learn about these important lessons of organized sports. Football is also a way for kids to take their anger and struggles out in the game and help them express themselves. It can also be a way for kids in bad situations to get a way out, to try and reach the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

As a level 3 practitioner it is important to take a balanced approach to risk management so that children are able to learn and develop. Practitioners need to be aware of the risks, however “if the activity is well planned and organised, with thought given to possible risks, the likelihood of an accident or injury should be minimal” (Tassoni et al, 2010, p144). Practitioners working with children have a duty of care towards the children and must make sure that they are safe at all times. They should plan the play environment and activity which is safe for the child, but there also needs to be a balance between the risks a child is able take. Children should be allowed to take risk they think they are able to achieve with adult support but not too much intervention, If they are not allowed to take risk they will not be able to develop the skills required to deal with risks and make judgement about their own strengths and skills which may affect their development, self-esteem and confidence. Avoiding risks and challenges may result in a very timid adult lacking in every day skills and abilities. Children can take risks in all different areas by following the seven areas of development which was introduced by the foundation phase, these areas are as follow:-

Although he accepts the green knight's challenge, Gawain fears he will fail his challenge. Have you ever experienced a significant challenge that you thought you would not accomplish?

Football is a rough sport. Many fans of the game watch it for the hard hits. These hard hits and the potential for injury is part of what makes the game so exciting. Some people say that football is too brutal and should be banned. Parents all over the United States don’t allow their children to play because of the risk of head injuries. Others allow their sons, and every now and then their daughters, to play and risk injury for a chance to earn a college scholarship and for a small percentage of players, the chance to play in the National Football League (NFL).

Youth sports is a common thing for kids to be apart of growing up, parents sign their kids up in hope of creating lifelong friendships, encouraging physical activity, and most of all to have fun. Youth sports was also created to introduce all different types of sports to children and have it open their eyes to different activities. Calvin H. Chang is the author of Handbook of Sports Psychology. Cheng explains how stress is caused at such a young age and most likely because of the pressure of their parents. Cheng mentioned “behavioral indicators of state anxiety include insomnia, losing one’s appetite, nervous laughter and being jittery. Physiological changes include increased heart rate, respiration, galvanic skin responses, and palmar sweating. Psychological measures include state anxiety and other in-depth measurements of negative thoughts and feelings” (Cheng 172). The stress from youth sports is taking a toll on children and causing their body more harm than good. Parents want what is best for their children, but they are pushing them harder than what they can handle. Jane E. Brody is the Personal Health columnist for The New York Times. She joined The Times as a

As children grow they continue to need physical activity. One of the methods of exercise that is popular with children in the middle childhood age is rough and tumble play or ‘play fighting’ (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010). Unfortunately, this sort of play is often discouraged by schools because of the possibility that someone may become injured. (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010). Teachers must find the balance between protecting children from getting hurt and allowing them to run and jump to release the copious amounts of energy that they have to burn (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010).