4 - 6 Year Olds
As with most things, the best way to teach sportsmanship and to build character is to start early. For a 4-6 year old, the basic manners of sharing, paying attention, and dealing with a structured environment correspond directly with how your child grows in to a respectful, caring, and ethically- responsible young adult. Whether its on the playground or on the field, teaching the art of sharing means being patient, respecting boundaries, and becoming a role model for your child.
Sow the seeds of sharing with a few simple activities:
Make sharing fun by getting in the game. Kids never want to give up their toys when they know bad things can happen to them. Teach your child its OK to share, by treating their toys with respect when you handle them. When you play with your child, use that time to go out of your way to respect their property – teaching by example not only that its all right to let others use your toys, but how important it is to treat even inanimate objects with the utmost respect.
Be an example and encourage examples. The best way for your preschooler to learn generosity is to witness it. Share everything with your child from a bite of your tasty banana split to a bird’s eye view of your own day-to-day acts of teamwork at work, at home and in your community. In addition, by giving kids the chance to be part of their own teams or clubs, you can help foster ideals of sharing, trust, sportsmanship, and tolerance. The key is to learn to play well with others as soon as you can.
Call it! You may get angry when your child plays with your cherished things – the earrings your grandmother left you, a treasured antique, or your Mickey Mantle baseball card. So its not surprising that your child may feel protective of many of the things that they hold dear. So when your child’s friend doesn’t want to lend a certain action figure, or your own son or daughter gets particularly defensive at the idea of handing over a favorite stuffed animal, its important to help them understand and articulate the “real” situation. It could be that you don’t truly realize how important the toy is to the child or the context of that importance, and it may just be a simple matter of asking the child to “put their feelings into words.” It’s possible you could discover that the friend’s action figure was a prized gift from grandpa or that the stuffed animal you got you child after their first dental visit holds special significance. As a result, your child learns that talking out a situation has its own gratification and rewards.
Giving a turn doesn’t mean giving up!
Reassure your child that sharing isn't the same as giving away, and point out that if he shares his toys with friends, they'll be more inclined to share theirs with him. This may be easier to understand if the child is placed in situations where borrowed games, clothes or toys are the norm rather than the exception. While some may learn this by virtue of having siblings, another way to cultivate this familial culture of talking, sharing, and trusting is through the teamwork that sports can provide.
Coloring Sheets
Click on each coloring sheet and download below:
4- 6 Year Olds | 6 - 9 Year Olds | 10-13 Year Olds
Teenagers
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