Do people normally teach their kids the rules of sports?

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5 Comments

Unfortunately for me, I was born with very poor vision that went undiagnosed for most of the first decade of my life. One of the things I seemed to completely miss out on was how to actually play ball sports. Honestly, I could really care less myself, except for the fact that PE/Gym is now a requirement for high school graduation. Lucky me, I graduated a year before they implemented this policy in my school. I would like to better understand why society thinks it's so damn important to learn sports that nobody ever even tried to teach me.

I'm still trying to figure out how people normally learn the rules of ball sports. When I was a kid and I told the adults I didn't understand how to play, they all would just say something simple like "just go throw the ball and have fun". Ok, sounds good, but that doesn't explain where to throw the ball, who to throw it to, or even what each different team member's different objectives are.

Apparently, because I wouldn't go out and play ball sports as a kid, people assumed that I was either lazy or uncoordinated, but I can ride the hell out of BMX flatland tricks, which makes these false assumptions completely null and void. Of course, that's a sport with only two main rules - do something really cool and DON'T FALL OFF THE BIKE!

Anyways, while everyone thought I was lazy or uncoordinated or whatever, they would offer instead for me to sit on the sidelines and keep score - OF SPORTS I DIDN'T EVEN VAGUELY UNDERSTAND! How in the hell can I possibly score something I don't even know the rules and lingo to?

So, what I'm wondering is if it's normal for everyone (including schools) to just expect their kids to know how to play something they've quite possibly never engaged in before, even so far as to require it for graduation, or does someone normally try to explain the basic rules once or twice before sending kids on an otherwise unknown mission to try to win a silly game?

This interests me mostly for sake of any children I might have someday, and basically applies to any ball sport. In all fairness, I've tried looking over official rules to various sports myself, and it's like trying to read a G-D encyclopedia! With so many details to all the rules and crap, I'd figure there should be some sort of verbal/written education somewhere along the way.

Voting Results
52% Normal
Based on 31 votes (16 yes)
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Comments ( 5 )
  • Crazydiamond
    14 years ago

    It's an interesting question, my parents are very unsporty and yet I know the rules (or at least the main rules) to a lot of games. I imagine it just comes naturally with actually playing them, that way you need to learn the rules in order to play it properly. For what it's worth, if i was a parent I would play games with my kids when they were young as I think they would be better at them when they were older, but as I wasn't taught them myself I shall be voting 'no'.

    The End.

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  • jean
    13 years ago

    No one thaught me in fact I 75% of the times we play any sport play a free for all style game. And I normally get suspended for fighting, so its fckin great!!

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  • Kat444
    14 years ago

    Yeah, I don't know how you're supposed to learn these things. My parents forced me to play soccer in 4th grade, and I hated it so much I cried at most practices. Everyone had to play at least a little at each game too, and I didn't know understand the rules, so I'd get yelled at for running into the wrong zones or whatnot.

    In middle school gym class, we played football and the only time I ever caught the ball, I ran and made a touchdown for the other team. My gym teacher actually wrote me up! I was so upset I was being punished for not understanding the rules, and a lot of the boys were really mean to me about it.

    What I'm trying to say is, I feel your pain, man.

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  • [Old Memory]
    14 years ago

    Yeah I had that experience. Started hockey not knowing what I was doing with a team that did, and always got left on the bench - it was all about winning. It was humiliating. Learned more with just playing with other kids where the aim was to just have fun, unlike in a league. Had better luck with baseball.

    It is true that you learn the intricacies of a lot of games by doing & experience. To try to memorize all beforehand is too much. But you have to be coached well, by a peer and/or adult who knows how.

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  • Anonymous Post Author
    14 years ago

    @ Crazydiamond

    Thank you for your insight, and I appreciate and respect your honest vote. This disappoints me about our education system though, for not understanding why some people might have problems engaging in sports. My problems weren't due to coordination obviously, but just due to a lack of basic experience, even verbal. It surprises me that our educational system doesn't seem to understand or even attempt to address things like that early on. In my case, they just assumed the worst and that it was impossible for me to learn those things.

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