I received my Time magazine in the mail today and started to read it right away. I always find it very helpful in keeping up with world news. To my surprise I came upon an article about how eighth graders are being recruited for colleges. You read right. Eighth graders, who have not taken SATs and don’t even know what they want to study, are being contacted by coaches to let them know they count on them. Of course, that will be four years from now.

Apparently, competition is driving teams to search for young possible prospects. According to Scout.com the number of high school juniors committing early to big-college-football schools is up 430% (61 committed in 2003, 323 this year). Men’s ice hockey coaches have recruited ninth-graders, and women’s volleyball coaches are scouting younger and younger girls. Scout.com provides rankings, videos and history of kids who are prospects for professional sports league.

Even if kids are good there are some people that just want to benefit of the great deals and contracts. There are sites that rank kids as young as in sixth grade! Some coaches want the best for their kids, but others… the best for their pockets.

Kids (as well as adults) have many special talents but I think it is important to give them exposure to different things before making decisions. My son loves to swim and he has his mind set on competing for some college. I think that’s great, but if suddenly his shoulder dislocated he won’t be able to keep swimming. That is why I’m trying to let him know that it is important to have options. A career gives you options and stability. Although I think it is important to motivate a child, it is also important to let them know that not everyone will be able to play and become a great sport star. A touch of reality can do wonders for a child’s developing personality.

I’m my son’s biggest fan and I’ll be there to support his decisions. It is my job to give him exposure to different scenarios and to provide a realistic approach to things. But in the end, all we can give our kids are experiences and memories… they will have to make their own decisions regardless of what we think.

Posted by momcrazyforkids.