My Pickup Games suggestion
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Anonymous
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Let’s begin a local, and nationwide, set of afternoon events for kids 4-17.
Pickup sports. No start and end time. Generally after school hours. Fields and days organized by sport, weight class, skill level range. I’d suggest one or two sports offered per day (depending on court or field or baseball diamond availability). You arrive and get a number (in a queue). Good refs, friendly play. Some practice areas on the side. Your number is called, you get time to play with those in your weight class and skill range. You can go home whenever you want. Ends at some point. Families can drop in for an hour during this 3-8 pm timeframe. Social. Movement. Outdoors. Weather cancellation when necessary. Kids can decide what they want to do “today,” instead of committing to something 3 months in the future that takes 6 hours per week and doesn’t allow flexibility for families. |
Anonymous
| This is OP. Come at me. Tell me why this does not work. I have an answer for everything you throw at me. |
Anonymous
| field permits |
Anonymous
Is this an issue? Explain |
Anonymous
NP but this is an issue because any field you’d want to use is reserved with permits spoken for 1 season up to years in advance depending on where you live. Some places do permits by lottery, but others grandfather organizations in and your chances of getting in are slim. Also, the moment it becomes even slightly organized and isn’t a true pickup game you are responsible for insurance. Someone gets hurt, that’s on you. You also can’t get a permit in most parks systems or at private schools unless you have insurance. It was a nice idea, though. Point taken. |
Anonymous
| Who is paying for the fields and umps? Who is there managing which kids go to which group, and managing the parents who have different expectations about groupings? |
Anonymous
How will you get the kids all/away from their devices/screen, etc? |
Anonymous
I believe you are in the right practical mindset, but these are all obstacles that can be overcome by local govt setting this up in the first place. They can book/apply for the same permits. They can provide the liability. My locality (and thru the city of county directly) has plenty of dance, rock climbing, tumbling, martial arts, the list goes on. |
Anonymous
Maybe more demand and focus on field competition (and facilities) will get us some nicely built facilities with bathrooms and parking all over the region. |
Anonymous
The answer is Local govt. Whoever decides to take this on. I think non-residents would not be approved. That’s the only difference I see in the programs they offer for other sports and interests. Rules re: groupings. First come, first play at arrival, assigned a safety pin jersey number. Weight class and skill levels would be organized at a table when you arrive (can use some of the previous week’s play time for assessing your skill assignment). So you show up, you know your class is assigned to play at this field (Online info), get your number. Coaches call in a set of 6 for each time, etc etc. play for X minutes, rotate in the next group. |
Anonymous
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Our youth and our country would be transformed by every day experiences out playing sports.
Committed players have their choice of commitment. But that represents say 10% of youth. I thin you could get 40 %pts higher participation at least if it’s low commitment and readily available. |
Anonymous
It's called rec league - soccer, ball, basketball, etc It already exists |
Anonymous
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There aren't enough fields and courts. Public Schools are off limits bc they're in use by the school or a private club/rec league using it (with applicable fees).
A lot of counties don't have THAT many open fields b/c, you know, open spaces are snatched up by home abdcretail developers which generate a ton of money (way more than any loosey-goosey drop in game). Where are you posting from Op? Ffx Co has 1.4 million people abd I'm sure the surrounding counties and MD and DC have similar dense populations. I could maybe (abd a big "maybe" at that) see your plan working if you lived in Mayberry |
Anonymous
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My invented case studies of youth changed by this:
-Sarah plays soccer 2-3x per week, year round or at least 2/3 of the year. She is 12 and has played for years. She loves soccer, but she wants more time to try a few other sports. -3rd grade Tariq has tried a few sports so far. When he tried soccer, he wasn’t as good as anybody else on the team. He’s trying to progress and, he is! He got “most improved” by a landslide last season. Playing with kids at a little lower skill level for a while, and coaches assisting at that level, would boost his confidence. Doing this, he will quickly advance to the next group by 4th grade. Maybe then he gets back into league play. -7th grader is fairly inactive. His parents couldn’t afford lessons and sports when he was little. He wants to exercise but doesn’t want to “gym” or workout. He and his parents see value in playing some pickup basketball, or a variety of sports. Whatever he wants when he can fit in the time after Robotics. Elect me. Lol. Or elect anybody who sets this up. |
Anonymous
See my case studies for possible answers to this. |