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Soccer Mom Hacks🦸🏼♀️
Soccer Mom Hacks🦸🏼♀️
Work in progress...😉 (aren't we all?!)
At NorWest, we use PowerUp for just about everything. It's where you created your login to register (and hopefully clicked "I Want to Help" - so we have Coaches!)
Registration,
Team making,
Scheduling,
Email communication,
Participant attendance,
Coach communication,
Referee assignments,
Maps & directions,
Office Hours,
Volunteering...
We maintain the Canada Soccer—Quality Soccer Program qualification. This means that we are a standards-based program and uphold the values and protocols of our governing bodies (Ontario Soccer and Canada Soccer). Not all local clubs do, so some of you will be accustomed to different experiences with team sizes, fields, rules, etc.
I like open communication (after week 2! LOL - Sometimes start-ups are messier than we like). If you're unhappy or confused, it's usually something one of us doesn't understand. I want to sort things out. The last thing I want is you sitting there wondering, "Why am I seeing what I am seeing"?
I will try and outline some points that have come up in the past below, but if I miss something, sixteen weeks is a long time to bite your tongue. Please email me for an appointment or flag me down at the field! I am a self-proclaimed professional soccer mom. I love to share & talk about youth soccer!
We promise SM Hacks will make your life easier! 🦸🏼♀️
We promise SM Hacks will make your life easier! 🦸🏼♀️
Soccer Mom Hack #1:
Soccer Mom Hack #1:
Please make friends with PowerUp! "There's an app for that". When you are logged in, it gives you up-to-date info (I've noticed that those of you who download your schedule to your family digital calendars miss cancellations or schedule/team changes),
Soccer Mom Hack #2:
Soccer Mom Hack #2:
Designate a Soccer Bag for your Player - and make your kiddo responsible for it! They can if you are patient... Yes, it means sometimes you will have to deal with the "I forgots" for a while. I recommend you leave 10m early so you can get in the car, close the doors and say,
"Before we leave, have you got your Soccer Bag? Does it have your water bottle? Shinpads? Soccer socks? shoes?"
Then, "Are you sure? Can you look, please?" so when they run back into the house to find a shinpad, you still have time.
I KNOW it's easier for everyone if an adult does it, and sure, sometimes they will have "last week's" soccer socks on (No one cares, lol), or the water bottle is actually empty (the refill station is at Field 4. You will walk past it on your way to our field every Thurs.) but by week four they will have it all (you will need to begin this again after Winter Break ;-).
It's how we build independence, which all soccer players and future leaders need, and we need future leaders!
If you don't have one, ask me for a "String Sack" next week!
Soccer Mom Hack #3:
Soccer Mom Hack #3:
Check your PowerUp app for their Field Name while waiting for them to return to the car with their missing shin pad. Because there are Games, the field (inside the field) name can change weekly. We have clues to help them independently find their team - IF they know the field # to go to before they get out of the car. It will look like Field 5 C or 6 A.
Soccer Mom Hack #4:
Soccer Mom Hack #4:
Pick a designated spot to meet them after the game. We are trying to get everyone out of the field, and having you come in to get your daughter will slow that process.
Soccer Mom Hack #5:
Soccer Mom Hack #5:
When they're done, greet them with a snack! Bananas & chocolate milk are great Recovery choices, but something to help them gas up will likely make for a happier kid by the time you get out of the car again at home
Soccer Mom Hack #6:
Soccer Mom Hack #6:
...to be continued.
It's a lot, I know.
Becoming a Good Soccer Mom just takes Practice - and for the stars to align now and again! ⭐
Yours in Soccer,
Soccer Mom
P.S. I welcome suggestions! Send your Soccer Mom Hacks to
soccer-mom@norwestsoccer.com
⏳Timing. It's important to Indoor programs:
Rushing out the door at the last minute, fighting with your player to simultaneously eat, find their shin pads from last week, and get in the car every week doesn't work. I know we all have Things, and I respect that (Honest! I raised kids via Sport, too. It's why I Know the toll it has on Family).
It does make it harder for us on the field, though. Sometimes they're too sad or mad to enjoy our time. I have also seen it make a kid hate Soccer because they associate it with the pain of getting there.
Trains happen during our Indoor season. Anyone coming from the North can be halted by up to 2 trains. I usually use the Adelaide bridge to go over the one closest to the BMO Centre, then hang the first left onto Little Simco St.
Please have them ready to run on time. Arriving in snowboots at start time uses up our warm-up, and they could get up to 100 touches on the ball or, worse, the feeling of inclusion—something sports science has now identified as one of the major values for girls in sport.
Like other humans, some of our staff excel at leadership but struggle with organization. Some are developing leadership skills & shrink when confronted by authority figures but are well organized. They are all eager to spend time with your girls & they are all humans. Please help me "Catch Them Being Good."
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