Why Do Young Athletes Need Recognition?

Participation trophies have been the subject of much debate for many years. The 2014 Reason-Rupe poll, found that 57% of Americans thought only winning players should get awards. Forty per cent supported giving children trophies for participating.

Do you think young athletes should receive awards for participating or only for winning? Keep reading to explore this topic further.

Strategies to Build Children’s Self-Confidence

Most people would agree that it's important to help children become self-confident adults. It’s also important to learn how to work with others and do your best. Here are some strategies to help reach these goals.

Praise Achievements

Be realistic with praise. Not everyone excels in all things. When a child fails or doesn’t demonstrate a specific talent, praise their effort.

Let them know it’s okay to not be the best. Yet, teach them fortitude by continuing to work toward self-improvement. You don’t have to be THE best, just be YOUR best.

Help the Child to Make Realistic Goals

When a child begins a new activity, they should not be expected to perform at an expert level. Teach them that everyone has to work to learn new skills. Praise accomplishments, no matter how small.

Set realistic goals that help them move along the path and help them see how far they've come.

Foster Resilience

Tell the child that no one succeeds all the time. There will always be setbacks and failures. Being told what did wrong gives them direction for improvement.

Encourage the child to continue practising and doing their best. Teach them to complete commitments before changing to a different activity.

Encourage physical activities and sports

Group and team activities help build confidence in young children. They learn that with practice, they can learn new skills and meet goals. Children learn about their strengths, their weaknesses, and how to cope with defeat.

They also learn how to overcome weaknesses and gain skills that were hard at first. Learning to overcome adversity instead of just quitting creates more confident and successful adults. Rewarding all of these successes aside from "winning", positively impacts a child's life.

Should Young Athletes Learn to Win or Go Home?

Winning is fun. Working toward winning as your goal teaches positive work ethics. The balance comes in shaping young lives versus winning at all costs.

Giving awards for participation encourages children to continue. They learn to work harder to achieve personal goals and further rewards.

Rewarding a child’s efforts shows them the value of joining in, hard work, and being a team player. They learn that it’s good to be a reliable person. Alfie Kohn, an educational theorist, said, “We’re left wondering why it would help to be brought down to Earth even before one had the chance to soar.”

Rewarding Your Team

Your team may be young athletes, a classroom full of students, or your workgroup. Good leaders who motivate their “team” realise a great turn on investment. Team members are more dedicated, empowered, and willing to give their all.

At Trophies Plus Medals, we offer a broad selection of trophies and awards. You have the option of custom engraving as well. Over 98% of our customer have their product within 24 hours of placing their order.

Check out our selection of trophies and other awards today.