Although about chess, the best youth sports movie ever is “Searching for Bobby Fisher.” It has every issue confronting youth athletes and their families.
After seeing “Young at Heart,” a documentary about a chorus (median age
80) and Bob Cilman, their director, I think it may be the best coaching movie ever.
I was surprised by those Cilman chose for lead roles, as some were not the strongest singers. Then I realized he was picking people who would benefit from learning a difficult role.
I was puzzled by his song selection (e.g., “Schizophrenia” by Sonic Youth). The singers liked opera and classical music but he assigned them punk songs! Then I realized that he was giving them a “just-right challenge” that would stretch them if they were going to be able to perform them.
Watch this film with an eye to coaching and see a master coach at work.
__________________________________________________
Want to learn even more? Jim Thompson, Founder and Executive Director of the PCA,
has written several books on the topic:
_________________________________________________________
Positive Coaching Workshops
Bring Positive Coaching to your school or youth sports organization
through a partnership with Positive Coaching Alliance centered on live
group workshops for your organization's leaders, coaches, parents and
athletes. Since PCA's founding at Stanford University in 1998, more
than 1,100 schools and youth sports organizations throughout the
country have used our research-based techniques to:
- Prepare youth athletes from pre-school through high school for success in life on and off the playing fields
- Emphasize character-education and life lessons through sports
- Become
outstanding educational-athletic programs, using our Roadmap to
Excellence to create a shared vision among organizational leaders,
coaches, parents and athletes.
Visit our Workshop page to register and learn more!
______________________________________________________________________________
The
mission of the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) is to transform youth
sports so sports can transform youth. Through partnerships with more
than 1,100 youth sports organizations, leagues, schools and cities
nationwide, PCA has conducted 5,000-plus workshops for youth sports
coaches, parents, organizational leaders and athletes. Since Executive
Director Jim Thompson founded PCA as a non-profit within the Stanford
University Athletic Department in 1998, PCA has helped create a
positive, character-building youth sports environment for more than 3
million youth athletes.