Player Safety: every coach should be certified in concussion management and there must be a “return to play” system for when a player suffers an apparent head injury. Ask questions and get specific. Full-contact practices should be limited in amount and duration. Players should be matched up against similar players of size and ability during practice drills.
Verbal/Physical Abuse: There is zero tolerance for youth sports coaches with outsized, inflated egos. Any sign of verbal or physical abuse must be stopped and reported up immediately. The days of grabbing kids’ face masks to get a point across are over.
Positive Experience: The good coaches know to praise publicly and to correct privately. Does the coach take five minutes at the end of each practice to teach lessons? Sports-parents should expect that some amount of time on the practice field is spent teaching life skills. It doesn’t really matter in the long run if the team goes winless or undefeated. What life skills are being learned?
Communication with Parents: It is the responsibility of the head coach to communicate the “how” and “when” to address any issues. Respect the coaches’ office hours. Also understand that most head coaches expect parents to discuss issues like playing time, positions, and other personnel decisions directly with the head coach. It is bad, bad form for sports-parents to blast away at volunteer assistant coaches regarding playing time. Avoid the “blacklist” and talk to the head coach and not assistants with any gripes. And remember to multiple the amount of time you complain to the head coach x the number of other sports-parents of the team. Respect the coach’s time.
Competent coaches also appreciate hearing from sports-parents before the season. Sports-parents who want the best for the team and understand the parent-athlete-coach roles are a huge asset to team development. Also, if there are special education needs or family dynamics to keep in make early contact with the head coach. Again, remember that the coach is tracking 20 + kids and their parents every season. Do your part and make it easier on the coach to understand how to help your child reach his or her potential.
More tips on parent-athlete-coach communication in Zero Offseason available @ www.amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/Zero-Offseason-Divorce-Sports-Parenting-ebook/dp/B00PLY51RW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1440590933&sr=8-1&keywords=zero+offseason
