Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion Too gifted in sports?

Isn't that the same case we're talking about?

Yeah, but I didn't read it I guess because Austin give a little more info for the other side. Just like anything else there is another side.


I see that, but if it were my child at bat I would probably encourage them to face that fear or perhaps my child would decide baseball isn't for them and that's fine.

On the other, other hand I've been told be a very well meaning board member, "How would you feel if your child knew they weren't in the "top ability group" in class?

Is that a valid reason to ban ability grouping?

Honestly, if my first grader was aware that the class was ability grouped and where they fit into the pecking order well enough to know they weren't in the top group, I'd be asking the teacher why they didn't understand that my child should be in the top ability group.

If you're too scared to face the fastest pitcher in the league, then maybe YOU should leave the league! I don't think you require the pitcher to leave.

40 mph is not that hard to hit - it takes practice for kids, but batting cages and pitching machines are available where you can raise your game. My 10 yr old nephew was hitting them pretty easily after a few trips to the cages.

I was moved to JV football as a Freshman. I was fast and quick enough, but it was not fun getting hit by someone > 200 lbs. That convinced me to quit.

OTOH, I hung on in my abstract math classes, learned how to study, and eventually outperformed the Eastern European wunderkids.

Edit - I think there is another issue here - the normalization of mediocrity - of under performance - sports on one hand enforce compliance, but they also force one to raise one's game.

I do think that there is much more going on in this situation than is being reported.

However, in our local soccer leagues, children play up a year or so when they have the skills and there aren't enough older kids to complete the roster. If the next year, there are enough older kids to play, the younger gets to play back down in the other age group. Some special exceptions have been made for truly exceptional players to always play up.

Another solution to me would have been to build the child's skills by letting him pitch a few innings and then move him to another position. Yes, he appears to have talent for pitching but who knows, with practice he might be an even better short stop. I know in soccer, none of the children have set positions. They keep moving every few minutes to a new position.

As far as redshirting and not competing at your acheived ranks. I firmly disagree. DH, DS and I also hold black belts in Tae Kwon Do and I would never have allowed DS to compete at a lower rank just to maybe do better. However, there were a few competitions that limited him to competing at a lower rank due to his age. In those events, he had a handicap put on him to even the competition. I preferred that to him trying to spar against competitors 4 years older than he was.

But in my opinion, that handicap was valid since he had a higher skill level and had earned a higher rank. This baseball situation does not seem that black and white. As reported, there do not seem to be any rules for pitching speed that would prevent him from playing in that bracket.

Agreed, elh - or work on some other pitches. He'll need more than a fast ball. I might add that looking at the photo that I didn't see on my blackberry when I first read the article, that this is an urban New Haven league, not a suburban league. The pitcher is standing in a sandpit for a pitcher's mound. No wonder the mother is upset. As she said in the article, baseball is an outlet for her son to keep him away from the kids on the street corners. I hope someone steps up and gives the boy an opportunity to play elsewhere - I expect that is what will/should happen with all the publicity. The article was picked up and carried nationally.