Participation trophies in kids sports are a good thing, amirite?

Didn't motivate me as a kid. Wouldn't motivate me now as an an adult.

by Btillman 1 week ago

A trophy just for being there wouldn't motivate. Kids aren't stupid enough not to know whether or not they deserved one

by Mental-Internal 1 week ago

I don't know about that. I use to play baseball in elementary school and I always looked forward to team pictures at the start of the season and a trophy at the end.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

You did? As a kid I hated trophy day… we have to wait for everyone to get up and take a stupid trophy before the coach gave a speech then we could eat. I remember begging not to go or to be late so I didn't have to sit around and be given a trophy for nothing

by Anonymous 1 week ago

I coached youth football, basketball, and soccer (all boys). Kids are smart; they know who among them is good, who sucks, whose parents are forcing them to play, etc. Sometimes the unathletic kids are just happy to be part of a team, to luck into making a good play, etc. Camaraderie, positive interactions with coaches, and maybe a commemorative plastic trophy are all that's needed for a person to be able to look back on a positive experience for the rest of his/her life. Sports go from fun to deadly serious in a hurry, and it starts younger and younger.

by National_Shower 1 week ago

No they are not. I do see where your logic helps you feel the way you do. However rewarding a child for doing something that helps them grow is defeating in the end. My experience, now that I am old, has been those getting such things as participation awards turned out to have the absolute worst work ethic or social skills. Then it gets followed up with all the medications for depression, anxiety (absolutely those are real) but I have yet to meet someone below 30 who does not openly admit they have those issues and demand others excuse them and their behavior.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

They have made younger kids' sports into.... not sports. They make mercy rules. That is not what these kids need. There are plenty of other rules that coddle kids and turn these "sports" into something that it is not. I think that has a lot to do with it, too.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Sports should be fun, first and foremost, especially for kids. That's... literally the point of them. Participation trophies are usually given to younger kids because it often makes them feel happy about the effort they put in. Nobody's really giving participation trophies to teenagers.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Exactly

by rubie51 1 week ago

They should separate "fun" leagues from the competitive leagues, then.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Anybody who doesn't think this is just a conservative loser taking out their anger at themselves on children

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Participate trophies aren't bad if the kids are young or are in park district leagues. Maybe when middle school starts, start having less and less participation trophies. By high school, you should be gunning for podium prizes or just winning it all.

by IndividualCollar7670 1 week ago

Disagree. As a kid there was a random castle building competition at the beach I was in and my team won. Yet everyone got the same sticker and candy despite us actually coming in first place. I was around 10 when this happened and was pissed cause I put a bunch of work into it.

by Anonymous 1 week ago

See kids just show up and get a reward. Don't actually have to do anything to earn it

by Anonymous 1 week ago

When I was in little league only the first three ranked teams got trophies, but everyone got an oversized coin with a ball on it. I think it was a good system.

by ggreen 1 week ago

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 then why keep score?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

I mean we still give first place trophies, right? We're still giving recognition to the winners.

by rubie51 1 week ago

Spot on. Kids need to play for real, not just gaming.

by bogisicharjun 1 week ago

Why can't they just play for fun? Why does every sport need to be super competitive?

by Anonymous 1 week ago

Sorry, I wasn't clear. Playing for fun is exactly what I was referring to. Independent free play, ideally without any adult involvement, is best for developing crucial social skills. Parents mean well with organized sports, but they can get to be too stressful for everyone, especially the kids.

by bogisicharjun 1 week ago