Importance of choosing the right coach!

Physical upbringing is as important as educational for our children. It is vital not only for their physical health , but also will teach them to socialize, develop discipline, teamwork skills and empathy. Coach plays huge role in development of our children. So it is very important to choose the right coach.
Coach will be a person to whom children will look up to, watch him and develop moral values accordingly. Naturally it is very important to choose the right person for this job.
So, how do you determine if the coach is the right one for your child?

Ask around

This is obviously first thing that we all do when choosing anything. Asking around helps us narrow down our search drastically. It is important to know if other parents are satisfied with the coach’s approach to the children, are their children happy around him and if they enjoy it, do they have any improvement is the field they practice as well as in their life, did they make friends, are children getting injured too often.

So, after asking around you decided to take your child to a certain coach. But of course it doesn’t end here.

Information about the coach

It is important to know the qualification of the coach, which include his/her experience as a practitioner and as a coach and achievements. This information will show you if the coach is professional and capable of bestowing his knowledge to your child.

For every martial art there is some kind of indicator of experience that will show you the level of knowledge of the coach. Most of the martial arts have their own hierarchy of belts and black belt is usually one of the high ranks. If it is any other kind of sports coach, you should ask about their achievements in competitions. Most of the legitimate coaches won’t have any problem if you ask them the color of their belt and/or achievements in competitions, nevertheless don’t forget to ask politely.

Another delicate matter you should take in consideration is if the coach knows how to give first aid. Most of us don’t give a thought about it, but aside from winning, we want our children to be healthy. Of course, we shouldn’t expect from coach to do paramedics job, but he/she should know how to do CPR, how to act in case of broken bone or head injury etc. So don’t be shy and ask away.

Teaching ability is another important matter. Being able to practice certain sport and teaching it are two different things. One way to find this out is attending introductory classes.

Another indicator is more subjective. Teaching style depends on your personal preference. Some coaches are more nurturing and others more regimented.

In case if you want your child to compete, you might want to find out if the coach had participated in competitions, whether it is encouraged and supported at the academy/club, also what are the records of the students. Keep in mind, training with world champion doesn’t mean your child will become one. As we have mentioned above, there is no direct correlation between being a champion and being a good teacher.

Tbilisi coach

Ask your child’s opinion

Opinion of your child is very important overall and it will affect his/her progression in any kind of extracurricular activities. No matter what coaching style is implemented, coach should always keep friendly and family-like environment. Coach must manage to keep this rivalry healthy; children should be able to understand that by training together they are making each other stronger, so if they injure their teammate, they will actually damage their progress. In the end, happiness of your child is what matters the most, so their opinion matters a lot.

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