More than 45 million children play youth sports in the United States each year, and most are coached by parent volunteers with good intentions but little training. This lack of training and an overemphasis on winning often results in stress and frustration for coaches and players alike, which can discourage young athletes so much that they walk away from sports altogether. With this new guide for amateur parent coaches, Jennifer Etnier, author of Bring Your 'A' Game, aims to change that. Etnier offers a system of positive coaching that can be applied to any sport, from the beginner level to high school athletics, and explains that good coaching requires working with young athletes at their developmental level and providing feedback designed to keep children engaged and having fun. Etnier gives easy-to-understand guidance on important aspects of successful coaching—including information on the development of children's motor skills, communication with a young athlete's parents, and nurturing a growth-oriented mind-set—making this a critical resource for youth coaches of all experience levels.

"Why is she crying?" Many times a coach has looked down the bench in the heat of a game and asked that question. This book is the answer to that question. It helps coaches understand and respect how females process and respond to information. Vanessa Sullivan, a Southern Connecticut State University graduate with a degree in Psychology, has played and coached enough to know what so many coaches don't, namely, that girls are different. Not weaker, just different. The stories in this book will provide examples of how females process the feedback a coach gives, while advising the adjustment needed to effectively communicate with your athletes.

How to Coach Girls provides the most comprehensive guide available to the many issues associated with coaching girls, teams across the spectrum of sports. Volunteer parents and experienced coaches alike will find invaluable advice on the process of making a successful team, encouraging girls to stay in sports beyond the middle school years

This guide to coaching female athletes of all ages shows how to build a team and provides invaluable advice on the differences between coaching males and females. The authors include exercises that foster teamwork and develop essential skills. They also answer parents' most common questions, such as how to tell if the coach is doing a good job and what to do if a child wants to quit. Filled with stories about the Olympic and World Cup championship teams, this useful handbook is infused throughout with DiCicco's philosophy that at every level playing soccer (or any sport) is about "playing hard, playing fair, playing to win, and having fun."

This is what your coaches would have said to you if you were a boy, told through the story of a small-college soccer team that won more games than it ever had a right to win. It’s an inspiring and straightforward look at the qualities that define the most competitive females, and what separates the ones who get it from the ones who don't. Everything Your Coach Never Told You is the instruction manual for female athletes who want to do more than just play. It's for those girls who want to win, win big, and never apologize for it. It's the call-to-arms for competitive female athletes who dare to color outside of the lines. Not recommended for readers under the age of 13.

The Strong Female Athlete is an evidence-based and experience-based text with a fresh, novel approach for youth female athletes to improve speed, reduce injury, and increase strength. In this exuberant body of work, Erica Suter gives a deep understanding of female athlete growth and maturation, anatomy and physiology, nutritional needs, menstrual cycle considerations, and performance training progressions. She presents the science, but in a way that is readable and fun for coaches, parents, and young girls. This is way easier to read than a scientific study! The final chapters discuss mental training and how female athletes can improve confidence, and overcome challenges from sports and life.

Published in partnership with SHAPE America, Reach Every Athlete: A Guide to Coaching Players with Hidden Disabilities and Conditions guides coaches in working with athletes with disabilities that are not apparent based on physical features and athletic capabilities. Referred to as hidden disabilities or conditions (HDCs), there are athletes with a Specific Learning Disability (e.g. dyslexia), Autism Spectrum Disorder, and Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), as well sensory and physical impairments that may not be obvious, yet still impact performance. Reach Every Athlete is ideal for coaches at all levels who may knowingly, or unknowingly, have an athlete on their team with an HDC. It helps clarify the core symptoms and impact, as well as provides coaching tips and best practices. This guide is also useful to others invested in maximizing the sport experience for athletes, including parents and caregivers, athletic administrators, coach educators, and sport psych