Overview of fundamental motor skills
Softball is a game that is often suitable for both girls and boys. The child is responsible for making the choice of whether to play the game for recreational purposes or to play it for competitive sport. For either purpose, the best age to start participating in the game is the age of five. However, with the permission of the parents, for a child who might take up the sport for competitive purpose would be better placed to start the game at the age of four. From an early age, children are in a better position to learn because they are still developing. The development of the children is necessary in the physical, emotional, psychological, and social aspects (Logan et al. 310). The child will develop the different skills in the four aspects which will lead to changes in their lives. The changes are affected by the way they learn, the activities they like, their attitude towards competition, the variety of skills they possess, and their need for competition. Basically, the skills that the children develop at the early age will play the greater part in their future success or failure at the game.
For softball, just like any other game, the children will need to have and develop the fundamental motor skills that will govern their success in the game. The most important skills for a future professional softball player are based on the mentality of the child and the physical ability of that s/he has. The mental ability will govern the emotional, psychological, and emotional aspects of the child’s development. The mental skills necessary for a softball player include confidence, discipline, consistency and ability to follow the rules. A softball player is required to follow the rules of the game and those placed by the trainer of the institution in which s/he trains in. Confidence is necessary for both the throw and the hit. A good thrower will need the confidence while throwing the ball while a good hitter needs confidence in order to swing when a pitch is thrown. Consistency is required in order to get used to the routine that leads to success. A good thrower or hitter also needs to be disciplined whether in the field or during training. The development of the child in the four aspects will produce the above mental skills that are very important and necessary for the game.
Physical skills are also important for the consistency and progression in the game. A young child’s body is the best tool to develop in terms of strength and stature, (Logan et al. 308). Most of the problems associated with the game are mostly injuries. A body that is properly developed will be more resilient to injuries. The most fundamental skulls for the game include balance, grip, stance, throwing, cocking, turn and pull through, and stamina. The main objective of training at an early age is to develop a strong body that will be able to sustain the strains related with playing softball. The physical skills are attained through training and proper diet. Training is necessary for the attainment of the necessary physical strength and skills mentioned above. The skills will be fundamental to success and prevention of injury as well as quick recovery from unavoidable injury or strain.
Progress of Age Levels
An effective training program for young children is one that is developed according to the needs of the children and the expected outcome. A well-developed program will require the separation of the children based on their level of expertise, strength, age and interest. The first level of training is between the age of four and six. At this age, the child most probably will have no idea of what s/he wants to do with the game skills gained. At this stage, the most attractive part of the game is the fun. Therefore, the skills at this level are modified to ensure that the children will get the most out of the game and the practice in terms of fun and play time. The program will involve the activities that will enable the child to learn how to play. The steps involve gentle teaching of the rules and use of very light materials during practice. I will call this the fun stage. The next stage is the junior stage, age between six years and eight years. At this age, the children will require training in order to balance their body mass, (Siahkouhian et al. 1358). At this stage, most children will have learned the necessary and simple skills involved in the game. However, the children will still require learning in order to master the game skills and rules. At the junior level, the children will play the game for fun, only that it will involve more rules. This is the stage where the children should learn the fundamental skills and principles of the game. The children will also learn the basics in throwing and hitting. The programs that can be involved include a softball clinic, trial softball, pitch program, and a springboard session to the boys.
After learning the fundamental skills of the game and understanding the rules, the children will be in a better position to exercise. Their bodies will often be ready for training between the age of eight and the age of twelve, (Logan et al. 312). At this stage, which I will call the training/active stage, the children will be involved in a more active training and participation in softball. The children can continue the training programs at the junior stage, only that the programs will be more active softball programs. At the age of 12, the child is ready to choose whether they want to play softball for competitive purposes or for recreational purposes. The parents guidance will also be necessary at this fundamental decision-making stage. At this development stage, the children will start experiencing different aspects of the onset of their teenage lives and adolescence and will require different attention and training provisions. Therefore, they will train more separately in terms of sex. The boys will be more active in programs like the springboard while the girls may find new programs that are fundamental to their ability such as the skill camps. At this stage, the children can participate more in competitive softball depending on the country’s program and organization of the game.
Conclusion
Starting from the junior level, the children require the education on the rules of softball and the different positioning. They will need to learn the defensive and offensive plays, game signals for calling and plan, motivation and emotions, and most importantly, pitching and hitting skills and theories.at all the levels, the children will need to learn the fundamental plays and practices that will better their understanding, agility, and ability. This includes the rundowns, squeeze plays, double plays, base stealing and base tagging, pushes, sacrifice, bunts, slaps, and drags. They will also need to understand the single runners on and the extra base hits. The development of the child will depend on the competitiveness of the child and the ability of the coach to motivate the child to participate. However, the learning and motivation of each human being differ. This implies that the tutors will need to have experience and extensive knowledge in order to determine what motivates the child to participate or compete.
Work Cited:
Logan, S. W., et al. "Getting the fundamentals of movement: a meta‐analysis of the effectiveness of motor skill interventions in children." Child: care, health and development 38.3 (2012): 305-315.
Siahkouhian, Marefat, and Salehi M. MahmoodiH. "Relationship between fundamental movement skills and body mass index in 7-to-8 year-old children." World Applied Sciences Journal 15.9 (2011): 1354-1360.
