Got basketball? If you don’t, you might want to check out the Upward program.
Forming the pre-game prayer circle.
My nine year-old is a walking, talking, sports encyclopedia. The kid knows his stuff. Sometimes I think he’s just making up the facts and figures that fly out of his mouth. But no. He’s right on.
He played soccer in the fall and wanted to play organized tackle football too. His mother and I weren’t quite up to that. So, we told him to hang in there and we’d get signed up for Upward® basketball after the Holidays. We made a very good choice. It’s a great program and the kiddo loves it.
The Upward website put’s it right out there:
Upward is a first-class sports experience that emphasizes healthy competition, sportsmanship, skills building and fun versus the “win-at-all-costs” mentality found in many children sports leagues.
In addition to their basketball program, they offer teams for soccer, flag football and cheer leading. Boys and girls, ages kindergarten through sixth grade are eligible to participate. According to their website, over 500,000 kids participate in their leagues. That’s a lot of kids! Here’s more from their site:
Upward, the world’s largest Christian sports program for children, was created with a vision to provide the best sports experience possible for every child. Each year some 1 million people around the world play, coach, referee, or volunteer in Upward sports leagues and camps hosted by more than 2,600 churches. Anyone – children and volunteers of any faith or no faith – can participate in Upward sports. Specifically designed for children in K5- sixth grade, Upward aims to bring out “the winner” in every child – regardless of the game’s score.
We’ve been very impressed with the program so far. They stress having fun over making points. It’s about learning the fundamentals of basketball and having FUN. From what I’ve learned, the coaches have to go through some pretty intensive training before they can lead a team. And the leagues are sponsored by local churches. Upward, after all, is a sports ministry.
Check out their website for more info. Please comment if you have been involved with the Upward program. I’d like to get your thoughts. Thanks.
