What options do high school kids have if they aren't good enough to make it onto a high school team?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, but it’s not hard to find other activities for your child to participate in!

I just don't understand why sports have to be more selective than other activites

I don't understand your comment at all. What do you mean "I don't understand why sports have to be more selective than other activities"? Sports are literally "competitive" by nature, and there are only so many teams and spots on teams for the most popular sports. What part of needing to choose who is on teams surprises you or feels bizarre given the competitive nature of sports?

Robotics and debate are generally more accessible than sports, so I don't see why sports have to be super selective when schools should be about academics.

Well, those activities operate a little different.

Robotics typically has a “varsity” team that is actually on the floor driving the robot and allowed into the pit area to make repairs/tweaks between matches, and then there are lots of kids cheering in the stands and doing competitive analysis. The team captain will give those kids things to do during build season, though usually targeted small jobs.

This would be the equivalent of a coach saying everyone can come to practice, but only X kids can actually suit up for the game and the rest of the team should be watching film and providing statistical analysis and cheering.

Not sure how many kids would be happy with “making the team” but only ever serving in those support roles.

Then what extracurriculars in high school are accessible for all students?

Charity clubs like Red Cross and Key Club, Scouting, mental health clubs like Our Minds Matter, Fanquest/Buddies clubs, purely social stuff like anime clubs and the like…

Clubs have been a reasonable way for my non-sporty kid to get more involved, but there are limits to that as well. At our school, the late bus runs only once a week and clubs are held on non-late bus days. So that means kids have to find a way on their own. For non-driving kids with parents who aren't able to get them at 4pm, club participation is probably limited.

[Anonymous]

This is another problem that arises from having such huge HS.
This wasn’t an issue where I grew up because the HS are smaller.
It sucks

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Then why do colleges expect kids to do extracurriculars when most kids can't?

Can’t? There are lots of things to do as ECs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You forgot the other thing that happens in football - they make the team because rosters are huge and never play in games. My son and many friends stopped playing after 9th grade because of this. They didn’t pick up another sport. They still went to the gym and lifted a lot in the spring and in 10th grade. By 11th grade some were really into going to the gym, others got into working and found part time jobs. They keep busy and interests change.

+1

Making the roster as a freshman is really just the first hurdle. A lot of kids drop off between freshman year and junior year or so. Little or no playing time so they don’t try out again next season, cuts at the JV level and varsity levels, other interests take over (driving, dating, PT jobs, other activities). A lot of the time, kids kind of “see the writing on the wall”, realize they probably aren’t going to be good enough to ever make varsity and actually see playing time, and quit/basically cut themselves.

My DS made JV in his main sport as a freshman, didn’t ever play, and looking around at the competition, realized he realistically didn’t have a path forward so didn’t try out as a soph. Switched to a no cut sport that had more opportunities and also got a PT job. Works out at the gym on his own or with friends.

Sports seemed like a much bigger focus when the kids were freshmen, but by junior year or so a lot of kids aren’t playing school sports anymore and have found other things to do.

I agree with the comment that sports seems all-important coming from 8th and then by 11th, many kids realize there is more to HS and gravitate to other activities.

Could also be a factor of HS culture…at my kid’s HS there isn’t really a Friday night lights culture…only like 20% of the school follows the sports teams and even that is slanted towards basketball (our football team is awful).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Then why do colleges expect kids to do extracurriculars when most kids can't?

Is what you mean that most kids can’t do their first choice for an EC? Because really most Kids can’t do ECs. Just maybe not their first choice.

I’ve seen lots of kids go into “manager” roles on the teams when they don’t make the team. For some kids it’s a very satisfying way to participate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, but it’s not hard to find other activities for your child to participate in!

I just don't understand why sports have to be more selective than other activites

I don't understand your comment at all. What do you mean "I don't understand why sports have to be more selective than other activities"? Sports are literally "competitive" by nature, and there are only so many teams and spots on teams for the most popular sports. What part of needing to choose who is on teams surprises you or feels bizarre given the competitive nature of sports?

Robotics and debate are generally more accessible than sports, so I don't see why sports have to be super selective when schools should be about academics.

There are reasons why a lot of varsity/JV sports have to be selective. Limits on field/gym time, practicality of having a huge roster in some sports, lack of availability of qualified coaches, cost. Sports like basketball and volleyball only have 5 and 6 people competing at a time. 12-15 kids is really the upper limit to how many you can have on a team and have meaningful practices. Imagine trying to run a basketball practice that is focused on building a competitive team with 30 or 40 kids in the gym.

At my DD's school, the two sports that a lot of kids end up in that don't make a varsity team are crew and ultimate frisbee. They are club sports and take pretty much everyone who wants to be on the team. Both are quite competitive and there are many kids from the crew team that go on to row in college so it's not just an EC for the sake of a college application.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I love how people throw XC out as a great option for kids who don’t make xyz team. Cross country is hard, and you have to like running 5ks—or at least tolerate it. DS loves sports but would rather put a pencil through his eye before signing on for the XC team. Unfortunately that puts the make the team stakes higher for the fall but it is what it is. Kid needs to chase a ball…

This. My kid loved baseball. Probably won’t make the team at his private. He’s a good travel player, but not recruited. He hates running and has no interest in running for hours a day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where did you go to high school and how big was our school? Were there really activities that literally the entire school could show up to want to participate in in the same semester, and they could accomodate everyone? Most US public schools - whether giant or moderately-sized - have limits to how many kids can do any 1 thing in any one semester, because there are staffing and space issues. So not sure how many extracurriculars are accessible for ALL students, but there are plenty in most schools that can accomodate all the students who show up wanting to do it. But when you can only have a limited # of players on a field in a competition at any given time, it's never been "accessible for all students". Not even when you were in school, wherever you were, although maybe games were less structured and there could be endless rotation of players so everyone played?

+1 If you want accessible to all, pay 40K$ for some private school that is small and lets everyone participate. Public schools are bigger and more resource challenged, so there's more competition.

>=40K private schools also have MANY cut-sports. As a matter of fact, there is even more competition in private than in public schools for sports that kids actually want to participate in. Many of these kids have been trained at a very young age. There are no-cut sports at private schools, but many kids do not want them.

[Anonymous]

This is school dependent. Most private schools require everyone to play a sport, so they have plenty of no cut options.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where did you go to high school and how big was our school? Were there really activities that literally the entire school could show up to want to participate in in the same semester, and they could accomodate everyone? Most US public schools - whether giant or moderately-sized - have limits to how many kids can do any 1 thing in any one semester, because there are staffing and space issues. So not sure how many extracurriculars are accessible for ALL students, but there are plenty in most schools that can accomodate all the students who show up wanting to do it. But when you can only have a limited # of players on a field in a competition at any given time, it's never been "accessible for all students". Not even when you were in school, wherever you were, although maybe games were less structured and there could be endless rotation of players so everyone played?

+1 If you want accessible to all, pay 40K$ for some private school that is small and lets everyone participate. Public schools are bigger and more resource challenged, so there's more competition.

>=40K private schools also have MANY cut-sports. As a matter of fact, there is even more competition in private than in public schools for sports that kids actually want to participate in. Many of these kids have been trained at a very young age. There are no-cut sports at private schools, but many kids do not want them.

Again, that depends on the school. You can absolutely find a rigorous high school that lets all kids play most if not all sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where did you go to high school and how big was our school? Were there really activities that literally the entire school could show up to want to participate in in the same semester, and they could accomodate everyone? Most US public schools - whether giant or moderately-sized - have limits to how many kids can do any 1 thing in any one semester, because there are staffing and space issues. So not sure how many extracurriculars are accessible for ALL students, but there are plenty in most schools that can accomodate all the students who show up wanting to do it. But when you can only have a limited # of players on a field in a competition at any given time, it's never been "accessible for all students". Not even when you were in school, wherever you were, although maybe games were less structured and there could be endless rotation of players so everyone played?

+1 If you want accessible to all, pay 40K$ for some private school that is small and lets everyone participate. Public schools are bigger and more resource challenged, so there's more competition.

>=40K private schools also have MANY cut-sports. As a matter of fact, there is even more competition in private than in public schools for sports that kids actually want to participate in. Many of these kids have been trained at a very young age. There are no-cut sports at private schools, but many kids do not want them.

Then I guess they’re SOL.

[Anonymous]

My kid stopped her sport after 10th and just started going to the gym. Her social group wasn’t tied to her sport, so it didn’t cause an upheaval.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You forgot the other thing that happens in football - they make the team because rosters are huge and never play in games. My son and many friends stopped playing after 9th grade because of this. They didn’t pick up another sport. They still went to the gym and lifted a lot in the spring and in 10th grade. By 11th grade some were really into going to the gym, others got into working and found part time jobs. They keep busy and interests change.

+1

Making the roster as a freshman is really just the first hurdle. A lot of kids drop off between freshman year and junior year or so. Little or no playing time so they don’t try out again next season, cuts at the JV level and varsity levels, other interests take over (driving, dating, PT jobs, other activities). A lot of the time, kids kind of “see the writing on the wall”, realize they probably aren’t going to be good enough to ever make varsity and actually see playing time, and quit/basically cut themselves.

My DS made JV in his main sport as a freshman, didn’t ever play, and looking around at the competition, realized he realistically didn’t have a path forward so didn’t try out as a soph. Switched to a no cut sport that had more opportunities and also got a PT job. Works out at the gym on his own or with friends.

Sports seemed like a much bigger focus when the kids were freshmen, but by junior year or so a lot of kids aren’t playing school sports anymore and have found other things to do.

I agree with the comment that sports seems all-important coming from 8th and then by 11th, many kids realize there is more to HS and gravitate to other activities.

Could also be a factor of HS culture…at my kid’s HS there isn’t really a Friday night lights culture…only like 20% of the school follows the sports teams and even that is slanted towards basketball (our football team is awful).

NP. Similar experience at my kid school. Older kids move on to other activities

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where did you go to high school and how big was our school? Were there really activities that literally the entire school could show up to want to participate in in the same semester, and they could accomodate everyone? Most US public schools - whether giant or moderately-sized - have limits to how many kids can do any 1 thing in any one semester, because there are staffing and space issues. So not sure how many extracurriculars are accessible for ALL students, but there are plenty in most schools that can accomodate all the students who show up wanting to do it. But when you can only have a limited # of players on a field in a competition at any given time, it's never been "accessible for all students". Not even when you were in school, wherever you were, although maybe games were less structured and there could be endless rotation of players so everyone played?

+1 If you want accessible to all, pay 40K$ for some private school that is small and lets everyone participate. Public schools are bigger and more resource challenged, so there's more competition.

>=40K private schools also have MANY cut-sports. As a matter of fact, there is even more competition in private than in public schools for sports that kids actually want to participate in. Many of these kids have been trained at a very young age. There are no-cut sports at private schools, but many kids do not want them.

Again, that depends on the school. You can absolutely find a rigorous high school that lets all kids play most if not all sports.

Sidwell and Potomac require sport(s) participation. Mine DCs tried out and got cut from both golf in the fall and tennis in the spring. Ended up in cross-country.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, but it’s not hard to find other activities for your child to participate in!

I just don't understand why sports have to be more selective than other activites

I don't understand your comment at all. What do you mean "I don't understand why sports have to be more selective than other activities"? Sports are literally "competitive" by nature, and there are only so many teams and spots on teams for the most popular sports. What part of needing to choose who is on teams surprises you or feels bizarre given the competitive nature of sports?

Robotics and debate are generally more accessible than sports, so I don't see why sports have to be super selective when schools should be about academics.

There are reasons why a lot of varsity/JV sports have to be selective. Limits on field/gym time, practicality of having a huge roster in some sports, lack of availability of qualified coaches, cost. Sports like basketball and volleyball only have 5 and 6 people competing at a time. 12-15 kids is really the upper limit to how many you can have on a team and have meaningful practices. Imagine trying to run a basketball practice that is focused on building a competitive team with 30 or 40 kids in the gym.

At my DD's school, the two sports that a lot of kids end up in that don't make a varsity team are crew and ultimate frisbee. They are club sports and take pretty much everyone who wants to be on the team. Both are quite competitive and there are many kids from the crew team that go on to row in college so it's not just an EC for the sake of a college application.

FCPS made boys volleyball a varsity sport this year and parents got upset that it took away gym time from girl sports...