High school can be intense, but being a student athlete
can intensify expectations.
As the start of spring sports approaches, the
stakes are even higher for your student to maintain
the success they had fi rst semester. There are practices,
matches and conference fi nals that have to fi t in
with exams and semester-long projects. Being a standout
in the classroom and on the fi eld requires expertlevel
planning and execution.
That’s where parents play a huge role in helping
their teen athletes keep it all in balance. Here are four
easy tips to help you ensure that your teen is ready for
a great season, on and off the fi eld.
Food: Allison Maurer - a sports dietitian and Gatorade
consultant who has worked with high school
and collegiate athletes - says, “The important thing to
remember is that food is fuel. It gives athletes the energy
they need to perform and also helps them recover.
When planning your athletes’ meals, look for whole
food sources that provide high-quality fats, lean proteins
and complex carbohydrates. Talk to your athlete
about his or her fuel strategy before, during and after
practices and games, and offer support by providing
healthy, energy rich snacks.”
Hydration: When exercising hard, the body cools
COURIER L 44 IFE, OCTOBER 25-31, 2019
itself through sweat. If body mass is reduced by about 2
percent, which would be 3 pounds of water weight loss
in a 150-pound athlete, it can negatively affect performance,
according to the National Athletic Trainers’
Association’s (NATA) Position Statement on Fluid Replacement
for Athletes.
“Athletes lose more than water in sweat, so it’s important
that they take their hydration seriously since
it can impact performance,” Maurer says.
Rest: Although teens may seem to bounce back
easily from a night with too little rest, the truth is
that good sleep helps both learning and athletic performance.
Sleep helps athletes recover, especially after
they’ve pushed their limits in an intense workout.
Being rested can also improve reaction time, as well
as speed and accuracy. In addition, teens with earlier
bedtimes had better grades than those who stayed up
later and slept less, according to a study of 3,000 subjects
cited by the National Sleep Foundation.
Talk about these benefi ts with your athlete, and encourage
them to go to bed and rise at the same time
each day. Also, the glowing light of electronic devices
can also interfere with sleep. So, help your teen come
up with a strategy to power down an hour or so before
bedtime in order to prepare their minds for a night of
restorative sleep.
Planning: Schedules have a way of colliding, and
this especially happens when a huge test and a game
are scheduled for the same day. Each week, sit down
with your student athlete and walk through that week’s
schedule. Look at practices, games, homework assignments
and tests, and create a calendar. That way, if a
midterm and a game take place on the same day, he or
she can plan accordingly. This will help avoid a latenight,
stress-fi lled cram session that will steal from
their performance in the classroom and on the fi eld.
Life as a student athlete means keeping everything
in balance. By focusing on the body - from nutrition to
time management - athletes can focus on giving their
best performance this upcoming season.
— BPT
EDUCATION
Even though many Americans
understand the importance
of STEM education,
children in the U.S. continue to
lose interest in science, technology,
engineering and math subjects
at young ages.
Not surprisingly, 44 percent
of U.S. adults say they felt more
excited about science when
they were kids, reports the
State of Science Index, a global
study commissioned by 3M examining
the general population’s
attitudes toward science.
Maintaining students’ interest
in science during the middle
school years is crucial to increasing
the likelihood they’ll
pursue STEM careers. That’s
important, since studies show
our nation will need to produce
an additional one million
STEM workers between 2012
and 2022 alone.
That said, we’re still not on
track to meet demand, partly
because students continue to
lose interest.
What’s the answer? Creating
a rich culture of STEM education
in schools requires professional
development, suggests
Cindy Moss, vice president of
global STEM initiatives for
curriculum developer Discovery
Education. She points to research
showing teachers need
80 hours of cumulative targeted
professional development before
effectively teaching STEMpromoting
classes.
“Many educators in our
country believe we need to accelerate
our approach to STEM
education,” Moss says.
What can parents and educators
do to foster more interest?
Consider the following:
Find role models: If a child
doesn’t know anyone working
in STEM, he or she may be unable
to imagine a career in such
roles. Introduce him or her to
people actively working in such
fi elds, then encourage discussion
and/or job shadowing.
Teachers might bring in speakers
who can answer candid
questions about the rewards
and challenges in their fi elds -
including signifi cant demand
and attractive pay scales.
Seek achievement opportunities:
Introducing children
to engaging events like the annual
Discovery Education 3M
Young Scientist Challenge may
spark their sense of competition
and passion for STEM.
The annual contest, which is
accepting submissions until
April 19, invites innovators in
grades fi ve through eight to develop
one- to two-minute videos
describing their ideas for
creative solutions to tackle everyday
problems. The top 10 fi -
nalists receive a summer mentorship
with a 3M scientist, and
the winner will receive $25,000.
Last year’s winner, Gitanjali
Rao, developed a device that
measures lead levels in drinking
water.
Keep participating: Reducing
involvement in your
child’s daily academics once he
or she enters middle school may
backfi re. One study shows middle
schoolers maintain a more
positive attitude toward science
when their parents continue to
display interest. The Rao family,
for example, frequently visits
museums and holds game
nights focusing on problem
solving. “We encourage our
children to communicate their
ideas clearly and concisely and
understand real-world issues,”
notes Bharathi Rao, Gitanjali’s
mother.
Discourage snap decisions:
During adolescence,
Moss notes, kids struggling
to fi gure out who they are can
easily form inaccurate perceptions
of their academic weaknesses.
Reassure your child
one challenging assignment or
bad grade need not rule out a future
career. “Kids often make
up their minds by sixth grade
whether they’re capable of doing
science and math,” says
Moss. “We have defi nitive evidence
that by age 6, girls have
already started to internalize
negative stereotypes that
science and math are not for
girls.” In reality, she notes, understanding
science and math
simply requires more thinking
for some people than others; it’s
not a skill based on gender.
According to State of Science
Index fi ndings, 96 percent
of U.S. parents want their kids
to know more about science. It’s
critical for us to maintain interest
during the middle school
years, and according to Moss
it’s our responsibility to help
children see the possibilities.
“Kids in fi fth through
eighth grade have a whole lot of
empathy and really do want to
make the world a better place,”
she says. “They have the power,
but we need to instill confi -
dence and give them the tools
and encouragement to pursue
STEM.”
— BPT
How to keep your
teen athlete fueled
How to encourage STEM in your middle schooler