Safety Zone on Playing Field

[sircedric4]

As the other mentor on 2992, and fellow mentor on the team my colleague mentioned that played in Rack and Roll the year we had our ramps climbed, I remember the incredible disappointment after fighting a fairly big powerhouse team to an exciting 5 games and losing to a bad ref call.

As mentors we do continue to promote gracious professionalism to our students, and we usually go out of the way to play the game within the spirit of the rules. After our own experience that one year, we also introduce our students to the fact that sometimes, in the heat of battle, in the adrenaline fueled competition of the game that sometimes, bad luck happens. Sometimes, the opponents may sneak in a questionable choice and get away with it. We are discussing a hypothetical rule situation in the calm of a discussion forum, where in a fast paced competition, high spirits are something that are very real.

We were burned by that high spirit type of decision in the past, so we usually look for similar situations in new games to try and defend against them if they happen again. Bringing it up early now, highlights the issue, and gives us documentation to fight that battle if we're faced with the situation again.

FIRST also introduces many chances to teach your students to deal with disappointment in a professional manner. Teaching our students how to look for flaws in a system is one way to prepare them for disappointment if it happens. Hope for the best, but prepare for the worse is a very good approach to most things in life.

That's 2 cents from the other half of the 2992 mentorship.