Here's an important thing to consider when evaluating a travel team.
The Coach's demeanor
Do some scouting of your own to determine the coach's sideline behavior during games. Is he a yeller and a screamer? Does he vent his wrath on individual kids if they make a mistake? Does he offer lots of praise, or is he just critical? How does the coach interact with the umpires? Is he out of control with the officials, or does he exhibit good sportsmanship at all times?
Most top college and high school coaches follow the "5-to-1" ratio when it comes to motivating kids today. That means 5 parts praise to 1 part criticism. Kids today -- especially young athletes on travel teams -- need lots and lots of praise from the coach if they are going to perform well. Critical comments should be minimal, and should be couched in very non-threatening terms.
Unfortunately too many travel team coaches see themselves as disciples of the legendary pro football coach Vince Lombardi. The myths about Lombardi portray him as a hard-driving no-nonsense disciplinarian. Too many travel team coaches feel that's the best way to approach kids: be loud, be demanding, and don't be afraid to single a kid out during a game for making a mistake.
This is, as you might imagine, the absolute worst way to work with kids today. Kids don't want to be criticized, they don't want to be yelled at, and they don't want to be humiliated in front of their parents and teammates during a game. If the coach of your child's travel team has the reputation for being this way, again, you had better think twice as to whether your child is ready for this kind of "tough guy" approach. The truth is, most kids aren't.
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