Quote:
Originally posted by fonzzy07
hooper I agree with you on those rules too. By speed of the game, i mean not only how fast things but also those rules, and what you call and what u let go. I mean if i do a 7th grade game I'm calling everything, but then going to third grade, I better not call everything.
|
Yea, it's a tough gig. I think that 3rd graders are often much harder than 7th or 8th graders because you're a coach on the floor as much as a ref. It's easy to forget to be in "official" mode when you're tying someone's shoe or telling kids where to go during a timeout or explaining over and over what a travel is.
If then, 15 minutes later you're working with 7th graders, it's a big shift.
When going from 3rd to 7th, I remind myself that I need to call EVERYTHING so I try to be quick with the whistle just to get myself into the older kid mode. (That usually puts me on track.) If you ask most coaches or youth league coordinators, they'll tell you that they'd rather that you call more fouls than fewer (expect for maybe at 3/4th and below).
Also, I keep a copy of the particular grade-level rules in my bag and read through it quickly before the next game - just to jog my memory.
Good luck!