Grades and travel ball

[slugger]

Too many TB coaches focus on getting kids into the best school possible, rather than the school where they belong.

This is a fantastic statement that every young travel ball parent should read.

 

[grcsftbll]

I do know for my DS that his sports gave him more discipline and need for accountability than he had elsewhere. He was someone who had been smart enough to get by in elementary school and middle school without any good habits, but that bit him in the butt in high school.

I honestly thought that pulling him from rowing would be the strong parenting maneuver. Fortunately, talks with coaches as well as a psychologist let me see that rowing was providing the discipline. A lot of what made his grades go up was wanting to get into a college with a great D-III rowing program.

And yes, there were times I worried that he spent too much time rowing and that hurt his grade in college. But then I saw what his life was like with his college team. His coach was fantastic, and put together a program nobody wanted to leave. His jr and sr years he shared an apartment close to the boathouse and the college with two other rowers with the same major. They practiced together, studied together, and even did an award-winning senior project together.

I honestly believe his college team gave him the structure he needed to survive 4 years of college without going nuts.

I feel like we were raised in a certain way that wasn't always the greatest. Pulling a child from something she loves to punish her for not being awesome at something she doesn't love is a very old-school parenting response. It's feels natural because it's what our parents would have done. But we know better and we can do better. JMO.

 

[MNDad]

Really now....what are you basing that on....and you're positive of that guess. Not the tennis players, golf, basketball, football players [as examples] but, softball players are at the top academically.

Not sure off the top of my head which is #1, but I know it's not football or basketball!

 

[rdbass]

Not sure off the top of my head which is #1, but I know it's not football or basketball!

I'll give you that.... Concussions may be to blame for football not being up there.....

 

[masterblaster22]

If you DD does get to play in college, what do you think that will be like. What do you think HS is like for some players in honors classes. Some how your DD needs to figure out how to handle studying, travel,school,practicing, and social activities. All I can speak of is DIII. With academic scholarship monies your DD will have to maintain a certain GPA or possible lose those monies.

Shes already taking multiple honors classes, I get the sense that time management is the biggest hurdle with playing the two sports. She wanted to show that she could manage it, but was obviously struggling.

 

[masterblaster22]

DD was signed up for summer school today taking the 2 courses that caused her GPA to drop in the 2nd semester one an honors class. She'll still be able to play locally, just no Colorado IDT trip which she seems content with. At least for now anyhow.

Thanks for all the comments and advice.

 

[masterblaster22]

For us it is anything below a B ends ball until the next semester ends. Below an A in some subjects. She also understands her grades will have a huge impact on her school choices. I use the example dream school out of state with average grades. If she rolls in with zero academic money but got a 50% softball scholarship (easy math) I would be on the hook for about $19,000 a year. Add in great grades and it becomes a different story. It will be as affordable as an instate school for us.

If she isn't making the grades her mom and I will limit her choices quickly to instate schools or JUCO's to help the financial burden on us.

Yep the A- to C+ in one of the classes, and B to C in the other is what triggered the whole thing.

 

[masterblaster22]

Basing it on what kids post in their travel profiles

I knew that was coming.

 

[CoachChristine]

I think you buried the lead in this story.

The social media and being on her phone is probably a bigger issue then the sports she plays. If you don't take the cross country trip to the showcase, will that change the time she spends on her phone? My dd played 3 HS sports, traveled for softball and played in the band in HS. For those who don't know, band includes not only playing at football games, pep rallies, concerts, after school practice, weekly summer practices at the school and a week long camp. Time wise It may as well be another sport.

Its not the sports that are keeping your dd from focusing on her school work. You (she) needs to decide whats more important, being socially connected and honing her snapchat filter skills or school. Its not softball.

edit to ad: a student with a 3.5 for 7 semesters and a 2.8 for one, will lower her gpa to 3.4ish. Its not the end of the world to have one mediocre semester. But you can't let it continue if GPA is important to you.

This!!

As a teacher and a parent, I see how much time kids waste on their phones. It’s truly an addiction for some people. They work for five minutes then play on their phones for 30. If I want my kids to focus on anything like homework or cleaning, I take the phone away until it’s done to my satisfaction.


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[55dad]

Yes! I get so frustrated when I hear parents on our 14u team talking about kids that commited to a mid major D1 and putting them down for their choices! I hear "They are good enough to go SEC/ACC, so why settle for XYZ college?" Because every kid is different, has different career goals, wants to actually PLAY in college vs. worrying about being on TV enough or bragging that they are going to the big SEC school. My DD's top three schools are one Sunbelt mid-major D1, one SEC school, and one ACC school. They all have a program that she thinks she wants to major in and one really likes to recruit from her organization. We have been pushed to go out to California and Oklahoma for the past two years, but our HC/DH is putting it off until at least second year 14u.

She should go to school where she wants to go to school. Coaches change, teammates change, and a lot in life can change. Choose your school because you want to be there and things like playing time, who the coach is, and teammate drama don't mean nearly as much because you are not there only for softball.