How To Motivate Players to be Leaders in the Classroom

Here at Dr. Dish basketball, we pride ourselves on being more than just a shooting machine. We believe that it's important to cover all aspects of basketball so that we can provide helpful insights to players, parents, and coaches.

High school players have much more than basketball going on in their lives and we feel it's necessary to address every aspect of their journey.

One area that stands out to us is behavior and success at school. Success in the classroom will take athletes to new heights in their lives and should be the main focus when school is in session. Unfortunately, many players struggle with this. 

Despite the importance, one of the hardest things for coaches to do is develop leaders in the classroom and school.  In this blog post, we'll go over a couple of ways to motivate your players to be leaders on the court but more importantly in the classroom!

MAKE IT COOL & SET GOALS

For most kids acting up in school is a way to get attention or a way to go against the grain. Add in incentives to players that succeed and make progress with their school work visible, in an effort to make something not so fun, fun again. For example, give out a Gatorade every week to a player that shows significant improvement in the classroom.

Coaches, it's important to acknowledge these achievements because it shows that basketball and school are equally important.

In a classroom, it's easy to point out the leaders (academically). Tell your players to take note of their actions. Challenge the kids on your team to sit in the front row during class. Challenge them to call out other teammates when they aren't acting right. You'll find that other kids will follow.

Make it cool to be "on point" and maintain a level of responsibility at school. Make it a baseline standard for your team, and loop it into practice expectations.

COMMUNICATE WITH TEACHERS

Another great way to keep your players motivated is by communicating with their teachers. Have conversations with teachers on how the players are behaving and also how they are doing in general at school. Make the teachers aware that you are placing value on school work, and that they can communicate to players what expectations you as a head coach has.

It's also a great idea to invite the teachers to games so they can see their students in action. If a player sees a teacher in a different light, it can lead to them respecting them in a different manner. Another tremendous way to bridge the gap between school and basketball. Once again the relationship aspect of it all is what really moves the dial and helps kids see school in a different way!

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Success in the classroom can help lead to successful players on the court. Coaches, be sure to go above and beyond when it comes to your player's responsibility in regards to education.

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