“6 Cool Christmas Games for Kids” plus 1 more

Posted: 25 Dec 2010 07:30 AM PST

Track Santa

How can your kids see what Santa is up to? North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the U.S.-Canadian military organization responsible for aerospace and maritime defense, tracks his journey in real-time every Christmas Eve. It's done so since 1955, after a Colorado Springs-based Sears Roebuck & Co. advertisement for children to call Santa misprinted the telephone number and inadvertently connected them to the then-commander in chief's operations hotline.

Since then, NORAD employees, who in a rather fortuitous turn of events actually do have access to the technology that could locate Old Saint Nick, have volunteered their time to personally respond to phone calls and e-mails from children around the world.

Kids can also track Santa over the Internet via NORAD's Santa Cam network, a live video feed. Visit the organization's Santa-centric website to check out additional features.

Photo Credit: search-engine-land

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Games that are different are exciting to kids

Posted: 26 Dec 2010 06:29 AM PST

Published: Sunday, December 26, 2010, 9:16 AM

Kids love playing in games at the youth level. For most kids, there's an innocent excitement about playing games. So much is still so new to them.

But there's another level to that innocent excitement - games that are different. What I mean by that is any game that is just a step out of the ordinary, such as a tournament, jamboree or game out of the area.

Kids love these environments. Everything is new. They're playing at a different place against a different team. If it's a tournament or jamboree there are a bunch of different teams.

The catch here, however, is that doing something different takes some extra effort by the head coach. It's one thing for a coach to be given a game schedule from a league – it's another to step outside that league and search for something else. That requires leg work, coordinating, and maybe even some money.

But it's all worth it.

I coach in two sports where there are no official leagues: field hockey and track. We aren't given a schedule. We have to make our own.

In field hockey, for a few years we played the local teams multiple times each season. This year we played all the local teams, but not as often. I wanted to up the ante. I lined up games against prep schools. We also played some games on turf, which makes all the difference in field hockey. The girls thought it was a big treat. I'm working on an overnight trip to Cape Cod for next year. The players are already excited about it.

For track, two years ago we had a meet at Ludlow High School, which looked like an Olympic venue to our gang, with a nice rubber track, matching hurdles and big bleachers. Last year we had a tri-meet at Longmeadow with Ludlow. There were a ton of kids in every event. The kids loved it.

When I coached competitive baseball I always made sure we played in three postseason tournaments. No question, this is where the team improved the most. We played top competition, which included many teams we had never played. It was all exciting.

We twice played in Cooperstown at week-long tournaments, with our town team going head-to-head with teams from throughout the country. We got pounded a few times but that isn't what the kids remember. They remember playing on nice fields, staying in the barracks with their teammates, trading pins, and going to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

I've heard similar things from hockey families who have played in tournaments in Canada, where hockey even at the youth level is worshiped. Kids get to play against teams from throughout Canada and the United States at nice facilities, and hockey apparel is sold in just about every store. It's a hockey paradise.

I don't coach basketball, but if I did I would be looking into playing on the court at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and some local high schools. I'd definitely be playing at the 2011 Junior Hoophall Classic, which is held at Springfield College in January at the same time as the Spalding Hoophall Classic, a big-time tournament with high school teams from throughout the country.

I'd also be scheduling at least one game against an inner-city team. It's important for the basketball players from the suburbs and hilltowns to see a different style and level of basketball. And if I coached an inner-city team, I'd be lining up a game against a team from Hartford or Worcester.

Lax and soccer? That's easy. I'd be finding some turf. Kids love turf and it makes for a cleaner game.

With Google, it's pretty easy to locate other leagues and teams. Town recreation departments are always a good place to start.

Remember, anything new is exciting for youth athletes, and exciting is always good.

Kids Games

Sunday, December 26, 2010