[grunewar]

Carsongamer - my $.02. First, welcome to the Forum and officiating!

As has been stated: read the rules and cases if you can get them, watch other games and officials and learn from them - good and bad, slow down, be confident and in charge, and have fun.

Now, that being said, don't get ahead of yourself. At these younger levels I have found if you start at and know the basics: specific league rules (press allowed?, mercy rule? zone defense allowed?), travel, double dribble, foul, jump ball, and 3-seconds you are off to a good start as these are where most of your calls are at this level. Also, work on where to stand and good mechanics and avoid bad habits.

Then, as you gain more experience worry about some of these tougher calls - blarge, jump stop, intentional foul, double fouls, etc.

As I always tell younger or inexperienced officials - blow the whistle loud, make the call with confidence, and put the ball in play. By doing this, the coaches and fans don't have time to think, question, protest, yap, etc. about the play they "think" you missed or got wrong. If you act with authority and look like you know what you're doing (dress for success helps), this can be a major step in winning the battle!

The Forum is certainly a great place to pickup good advice and guidance - welcome aboard and good luck!