What Makes a Great Teammate?
Great teammates aren’t always the fastest, strongest, or highest-scoring players. They’re the kids who make their team better by how they treat others.
A great teammate:
- Encourages others when things aren’t going well.
- Shows up and gives their best effort, regardless of the outcome.
- Stays humble, celebrating team success over individual recognition.
- Includes others and helps everyone feel like they belong.
These skills don’t just help on the field. They help kids become better friends, classmates, leaders, and community members.
Teams Can Become Places of Belonging
One of the greatest gifts sports can offer is conexión.
A positive team can give kids a place where they’re known, valued, and supported. They learn how to celebrate someone else’s success, encourage a teammate who’s struggling, and work through challenges together.
Those experiences help build meaningful friendships and a sense of belonging that’s especially important as children grow older.
Sports also expand a child’s circle of support. Coaches can become trusted adults who encourage growth, build confidence, and help kids see what’s possible for themselves.
How Parents Can Support the Teammate Mindset
Children learn a lot about teamwork from the adults around them. Here are a few simple ways to reinforce positive habits both on and off the field.
Ask Different Questions After Games
- Instead of leading with “Did you win?” or “How many points did you score?”
- Intente preguntar: How did you help your team today?
Praise Character, Not Just Performance
- When you notice kindness, encouragement, or leadership, make sure your child knows you noticed.
- Intenta decir: I was proud of how you supported your teammate today.”
Model Respect from the Sidelines
- Children pay close attention to how adults respond to coaches, officials, teammates, and opponents.
- Intenta decir: Let’s focus on what we can control and support the team.
Focus on Team Responsibility
- Help children understand that success and setbacks belong to the entire team.
- Intente preguntar: What can the team learn from today?
Mas que un juego
At the YMCA, we believe youth sports are about much more than athletic development. They’re an opportunity for kids to build confidence, resilience, friendships, and character.
Como parte de nuestro compromiso con Desarrollo positivo de la juventud (DPJ), we’re working to expand opportunities for more young people to experience the benefits of caring relationships, positive role models, skill-building, and a strong sense of belonging. Through sports and other youth programs, we help kids discover their strengths, build healthy connections, and develop the skills they need to thrive.
Because long after the season ends, the lessons children carry with them won’t be the final score. They’ll remember the teammates who encouraged them, the coaches who believed in them, and the character they built along the way.
Ready to Get in the Game?
The YMCA’s Youth Sports programs provide a supportive environment where kids can grow as athletes, teammates, and leaders. Through positive coaching, healthy competition, and meaningful connections, we help children build skills that last far beyond the playing field.
Because the greatest advantage a child can gain from sports isn’t winning a game. It’s learning how to be a great teammate for life.
Haga clic aquí for more information on youth sports at the YMCA of San Diego County.
Autores:
Kristina Halmai-Gillan, LMFT, Director of Service Innovation at YMCA of San Diego County and Scott Schimmel, President & Chief Guide a the YouSchool.
ENCUENTRA SU DEPORTE
There are plenty of ways to get in the game at the Y. Explore sports to learn more and find programs near you!
