Should kids get a trophy just for playing

[TheLonelySquire]

And then let's take the kids home and beat them because they didn't win.

Actually saw this happen as a kid... there's no reason for everyone not to get something for being involved. It's not the MLB or the NFL. It's little league.

I haven't heard one person suggest they get beaten for a poor performance.

One of the main things I'll teach as coach and as a parent is this: You have an obligation to yourself and to your teammates to always try your best, win or lose. Otherwise, you should not be on the team. However, no victory is worth cheating for and always remember to treat your opponents with respect.

 

[Alpha_Geek]

How about a "ceritficate of participation" for all, and a trophy for the winners?

If there is no reward for excelling, then all will settle for mediocrity.

A trophy is an award, not an entitlement.

 

[Ruaidhri]

The local soccer league I participated in when I was a kid handed out the participation trophy along with individual and team photographs to each child.

I don't have a problem with the small participation trophies. ANd receiving that trophy at the end of the season didn't dull any of my competetive fire. I would sit at the awards ceremony and drool over the absolutely enormous trophies that the best teams kids got.

Give a kid a taste of the recognition that can be gleaned from sports and it can fuel their desire to play. These are given to kids--who get an experience whose memory can be triggered by a what is a cheap token knick-knack--not 30 year olds in some rec league. Rare was the kid from my youth who didn't have a shelf to proudly display their participation trophies.

 

[Marc]

Participation trophies make the adults feel good because they think they are building self-esteem in the kids. The kids know they are getting the booby prize and could care less about it.

If your league is part of AYSL wait until you see the idiot rules you'll have to contend with - no score keeping until age 8, no goalies until age 10 (that includes any defensive player standing in the goal box, they can only run through it) were my two favorites. My wife and I were both FIFA trained and were the bane of the youth soccer overlords existence.

They were even more upset when our team (selected by blind draft) went undefeated and un-scored on during the season. We were told our team wasn't being fair to the others.

When I played soccer as a 7 and 8 year old, we had keepers and we had goals, winners and loosers.

When I played Aussie rules as a 9 years we won, we lost, I even got my name in the paper as one of the best for my but again just a particpation thing.

Then for Cricket, I think my team lost just about every game.

Now these were all school sports teams and there's never been the sort of competition at the school level that seems to permeate say in the U.S

 

[iguana_tonante]

I say participation certificates are good. It's good to have a memento of the event/season. Giving "awards" for participation, however, is just silly. Awards and trophies are for winning, not for participating. I disagree with TLS that everything in life is about competition: but sport definitively is.

 

[Kestra]

I agree with having a participation certificate or something, and then a bigger award for the winner. Yes, we want the kids to be motivated and to excel and yes, rewarding winners can be an effective way of doing this. But some people are just mediocre at things and while mediocrity doesn't need to be celebrated, there's no harm in encouraging kids a bit while they're young.

As someone stated earlier upthread, they should be encouraged to keep trying things until they find something that they're good at.

 

[FordSVT]

A minor token for participation, a substantial trophy or reward for winning. It's nice to have something to hold on to and look back on when you're older, even if you lost.

And you know what? Participation in something like a sports team or club should be encouraged most heartily, people should be rewarded in however minor a way for participating in voluntary events. Happy kids want to play, healthy leagues need happy kids who want to come. As someone else said, it's not like the kids who just get a certificate don't realize they're coming in behind the kid with the three foot tall trophy or the golden platter or the $1000 scholarship. It's not rewarding failure, and there isn't anything wrong with rewarding participation.

 

[Amaris]

A minor token for participation, a substantial trophy or reward for winning. It's nice to have something to hold on to and look back on when you're older, even if you lost.

And you know what? Participation in something like a sports team or club should be encouraged most heartily, people should be rewarded in however minor a way for participating in voluntary events. Happy kids want to play, healthy leagues need happy kids who want to come. As someone else said, it's not like the kids who just get a certificate don't realize they're coming in behind the kid with the three foot tall trophy or the golden platter or the $1000 scholarship. It's not rewarding failure, and there isn't anything wrong with rewarding participation.

Exactly.


J.

 

[ancientone51]

Another vote for certificates or pins.Or a "stripe" on a letter jacket sort of thing.

I teach high school and am very tired of kiddos who think they should get a pass or grade for showing up and breathing because they have all along.

But by 7th or 8th grade...you earn 'em or you don't get 'em on anything substantial. And ANY "Trophy" is substantial.

 

[Alexander]

If the parents are paying, give them all 'team' trophies. They are paying, after all. Then give bigger trophies to highlight the achievements of the truly talented ones. Also, take into account that some of the kids are very young. Young children need encouragement, and you might do some serious damage to an 8 year old's confidence by giving trophies to his teammates and not one to him.

Others have mentioned participation rewards, and I would like to echo the sentiment. It's not a sport, but I've grown up doing pageants, and always with the little girls, there are 'princess' awards, that is, a very small tiara given to all participants and runners-up, and then a large crown given to the winner. This practice eventually dies out when the girls are older and can understand, but when the girls are young, they are all rewarded for their work and effort. The kids on your teams should also be rewarded for their work, but there can also be additional awards given to those who excel beyond the others.

 

[ST-One]

There's nothing wrong with having a participation trophy. It's something you can always have.

Actually, there is.

That would be like throwing a graduation-prom just for passing from one grade to the next.

 

[Marc]

There's nothing wrong with having a participation trophy. It's something you can always have.

Actually, there is.

That would be like throwing a graduation-prom just for passing from one grade to the next.

Bullshit.

It's a little small plastic trophy - not something like they'd win at Wimbledon.

 

[Commander Rabbit]

A participation certificate for the losers, trophies for the top three teams.

Usually there's a gathering at the end of the year for everyone. Isn't that enough? Aren't the thanks from teammates and coaches enough? They NEED to get a certificate too?

No, they don't need certificates. There are way too many meaningless certificates floating around the world these days. A team photo would be nice.

 

[RoJoHen]

. A team photo would be nice.

Ooh, I really like this idea! They're not being awarded, but it shows that they were a part of something.

 

[May 20]

A team photo or a certificate of participation is a nice thing, but (echoing others here) a trophy is a big award and should be reserved for a big reason. Kids need to learn that sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. That's life.

 

[Starbreaker]

Well... I have little cheap participation trophies, and I'm not scarred for life or anything. I always wanted to get the bigger trophies.

Are bigger trophies still ok with you guys? Or should there just be one per team?

 

[Trekker4747]

I'm going to coach youth sports this year. I'm not sure what the policy on this will be. We're talking about kids between 8-11. Should these kids all receive trophies at the end of the year or just the kids on the top few teams? I think if they all receive one it takes away from the meaning of winning.

All kids should get a trophy, yeah call me an elitist liberal head-in-the-clouds hippie, but I think teaching kids that they only get rewarded when they win and defeat others at all costs does society an injustice.

Sure, give the kids who win the bigger, prettier, trophy. But there's nothing wrong with all kids getting something.

 

[Gertch]

How about a "ceritficate of participation" for all, and a trophy for the winners?

That's sounds appropriate. You can frame a certificate and display it. Sort of like putting a good paper on the fridge.

 

[ST-One]

There's nothing wrong with having a participation trophy. It's something you can always have.

Actually, there is.

That would be like throwing a graduation-prom just for passing from one grade to the next.

Bullshit.

It's a little small plastic trophy - not something like they'd win at Wimbledon.

'Hey, even though you didn't accomplish much, at least you participated. Here have a trophy for that.'

No, competition is a good thing.
Merely being there isn't really worthy of recognition with a prize.

 

[PKTrekGirl]

Participation trophies make the adults feel good because they think they are building self-esteem in the kids. The kids know they are getting the booby prize and could care less about it.

If your league is part of AYSL wait until you see the idiot rules you'll have to contend with - no score keeping until age 8, no goalies until age 10 (that includes any defensive player standing in the goal box, they can only run through it) were my two favorites. My wife and I were both FIFA trained and were the bane of the youth soccer overlords existence.

They were even more upset when our team (selected by blind draft) went undefeated and un-scored on during the season. We were told our team wasn't being fair to the others.

This is just silly. Kids are not stupid. They know if they suck at something.

And they know that a participation trophy is not anything LIKE the 1st - 3rd place team trophies.

Sounds like you trained the kids and taught them that winning requires hard work.