I am always reading books and articles on sport psychology.  Some are pretty technical and scientific and others are just good, fun, and informative.  A book I’m reading now is one that I would recommend to parents.  It’s not about cheerleading and as a matter of fact, cheerleading is not mentioned once in the whole book but it is still worth your time. 

The book is called – “Whose game is it, anyway?” and it is written by 2 of my colleagues at Harvard Medical School – Richard Ginsburg and Stephen Durant and Amy Baltzell, a professor at Boston University. 

The authors describe it as “a guide to helping your child get the most from sports, organized by age and stage.”  The book provides detailed information, based on child development research, about what skill sets you can expect from your child depending on the age of the child.  

The first section is called, “Knowing your child athlete” and  looks at child development and sports participation  from the Early Years (Ages 1 – 5) through Young Adulthood (Ages 19 and up).  

Part Two is entitled, “Pitfalls and Possibilities in Sports” and deals with such topics as “Should we push our children? How Much?” and “Quitting, Burning Out, and Moving On.” 

The book is easy and fun to read and provides many valuable insights for parents.  I recommend it!

By the way, if you are on Facebook (and who isn’t!) please join my Confident Cheerleading Center page. If you do, you can get lots of free stuff – questionnaires, worksheets, all designed to help you become a better coach and athlete!

Elissa Stein has written a fun book called: Cheerleader – Ready? Okay?

It’s an attractive book filled with colorful illustrations and photos of cheerleaders over the years. The book contains sections on the History of Cheerleading, Cheerleading Fashion, What it Takes, and Beyond Pom-poms. 

In the section on the history of cheerleading, Stein reminds us that in the beginning, cheerleading “belonged to the boys” who wore white slacks and coordinated sweaters. Princeton created the country’s first cheer in the 1860’s at a football game (“Hooray, hooray, hooray! Tiger, sis, boom, aah…Princeton!”).  Princeton grad, Thomas Peebles, brought the cheer concept to the University of Minnesota.  

The “girls” joined the “boys” in the 1920’s and were eventually fully integrated into the cheerleading scene. The Ohio State coach was quoted as saying, “…they are fine looking, bobbed-haired, rhythmic, well-formed individuals who are just outstanding girls.” 

This book would make a fine present for your favorite cheerleader or cheer coach. The photos on cheerleading fashion is a fascinating peek at the evolution of a wonderful American sport.

Kate Torgovnick’s book – Cheer! –  reads like a novel.  I found myself really caring about what happened to the various characters and became invested in their successes.  I felt my heart pounding in anticipation as she recounted the details of each competition and was crushed when things go wrong.   (I won’t reveal what went wrong where….read the book!)

Whether you’re a cheerleader, a cheer coach, or a fan, you will find something to like about this book.