The Future is Theirs

My daughter graduated 5th grade today and I was really blown away by what some of these kids have planned for the future. Brain surgeons, authors, athletes, aid workers and more. The ceremony was terrific and despite me having very bittersweet feelings about seeing my daughter graduate, it was a really good day.

Earlier this year, I taught a Junior Achievement class to my daughter's 5th grade class. It was my 4th time doing this sort of volunteerism, and I continue to really love the experience. As with most volunteer activities, I started out thinking this would be a great way to give something back. In the end though, it's me that gets the most out of the time I think.

This year's class wrote me notes after our sessions ended. While it's always nice to get a thank you, these notes really went over the top. I feel so lucky to have had the chance to show some of these kids more about business and to get them excited about their own futures.

Stephen wrote "It was cool to see how much of a difference unit production and mass production worked. Thank you so much for talking with us about business."

James wrote "I learned that you can find ads almost anywhere."

Anthony wrote "I never knew there were different typs of advertising. I just thought advertising was advertising!"

Jen wrote "When I grow up I want to be a sole proprietor and open a nail salon called Jen's Tens."

Alison wrote "I really enjoyed the toy store lesson because it showed me how a business really needs a lot of different people and equipment. I found the advertising lesson interesting because now when I see a commerical on TV I try and figure out what type of ad it is."

Not only do I think Junior Achievement has a great model, I think it's a super way to bring real world expertise and really rich extra content into the classroom. I can't wait until next year...

Wow, I Love Being a Coach

I'm excited beyond reason because it's softball season again... and once again, I'm coaching! I want to coach kids full time someday. I love it that much. I think sometimes I was actually born to be a camp counselor.

In any case, I usually send out an e-mail to parents with some guidelines every season to help orient parents to my coaching vibe and style. This is part of the email I just sent.

Also, it's worth mentioning that the girls will get a chance to play most positions this year except for 1B and Pitcher. We have to be careful about who plays 1B to avoid injuries. As for pitching, if your girl wants to pitch and hasn't before, please talk to one of us. First time pitchers are going to have to earn their way onto the mound by practicing at home and before games. If they want to pitch, they are going to have to earn it!

While we do keep score in this league, please do remember that it is mostly instructional and not competitive. Yes, we'll try to win, but that's not the focus. My personal goal each year is to help the girls get to understand the game and to want to come back and play next season.

Finally, please do not address the umpires for making bad calls during the season. If you feel that there was a bad call, come talk to one of the coaches quietly. The umps do a terrific job and the best they can - again, it's not a competitive league, so there should be no reason for harassing them at any point.

Please do enjoy seeing your girls grow as ball players, it should be a fun year!

Opening day is this Saturday, sweet!