What could be easier or more fun than coaching youth sports? How complicated could it be—it’s all fun and games, right? Unfortunately, coaching kids isn’t that simple. If you’ve ever watched a youth league game, you know that all sorts of pressures, worries, concerns, and emotions come into play when your kid is out on the field. In fact, it’s not unusual to witness at least one ugly incident at a game where a coach or parent has gotten out of control. The good news is, as a coach, you can guarantee that kids have fun, get the physical and psychological boost they need, and want to play on your team next year. And now this book shows you how.

Written by a nationally recognized sports-parenting expert, coach, and author who is also a former professional baseball player, Coaching Kids For Dummies shows you step by step how to make sports a positive experience for kids of all ages. Packed with practical advice for coaches and parents, it shows you how to:

Help kids select the best sports for them

Communicate effectively with your young athletes

Deal with losses and wins

Provide encouragement without pushing too hard

Motivate kids and boost performance

Foster good sportsmanship

Prevent sports burnout

Handle irate parents

Evaluate travel teams

No matter what your prior experience with youth league sports—even if you weren’t in one yourself as a kid—Coaching Kids For Dummies coaches you in all the essentials. Topics you’ll explore include:

What every parent should know about youth sports, including the right age to get them started, how leagues work, and what your kid and you can expect

Basic coaching tasks and responsibilities, such as pregame preparation, practice sessions, team meetings with kids and parents, and more

Communication and motivational skills every coach needs to develop

Coaching challenges, including scheduling, hostile parents, dealing with injuries, and coaching your own kids

Loaded with tested-in-the-trenches strategies for helping kids get the most out of sports, Coaching Kids For Dummies is every youth league coach’s survival guide.