Silent Sideline Weekend 26th & 27th September 2015 Very often in kid’s sports adults, parents and coaches become overly vocal in their approach to working with young athletes. However well intentioned some of them may be, the results are not always positive. With a Silent Sideline Weekend, the coaches, parents and spectators are asked to keep talking to a bare minimum on the sidelines. One coach from each team will be given the task to instruct (not during the game), whilst everyone else watches on in SILENCE. Supporters are allowed to clap to show their enthusiasm but the adults are restricted from coaching their kids from the sideline. This is a weekend when kids can make decisions for themselves, without having adults shout 5/6 different instructions at them. We now know that when adults scream from the sidelines they're not just invading the children's play time, they're preventing children from learning the game in a natural manner. With the sidelines quiet, players have the chance to concentrate, make their own split-second decisions and learn by them. Instead of being distracted by the stream of noise that usually exists, the kids on the pitch get the opportunity to communicate with one another, deciding who will take the throw ins, the goal-kicks, free-kicks and/or the corner kicks in the game. This also gives them time to think and focus on what they are about to do. The teeny tiny kids may need a little direction but you must try and let them figure it out for themselves before stepping in. Remember it's only one game over one weekend. Why? The focus of the weekend is not to take the atmosphere out of the kids' game but instead try and encourage less coaching from the line. It’s about educating adults that screaming at children whilst they play sport is wrong. The aim is to eventually get every youth club in Ireland and around the world in every team sport to conform to the 'Silent sideline weekend.’ Initially not everyone is going to agree with the idea, but one thing is for sure the kids absolutely loved the last one and they weren't the only ones!! The referees always appreciated the chance to be able to concentrate on the game instead of the sideline.