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esteem than their non participating peers. Being a memebr of a peer group that is dedicated to a common goal is one reason this is so. Kids will also tend to have a more positive view of themselves and their peers when they are engaged in a sporting activity they percieve as fun.(Pugh) While winning provides a short term boost to self esteem, it is not the most significant factor. The totality and quality of the experience and the fact that the kids are having fun contribute more to an enhanced feeiling of self worth. A child who feels as if they are contributing to a common goal and to their own success as well as the success of their peers experiences positive emotions. My 10 year old likes to play soccer because its "fun to play with my teamates" and feels good when she and her teammates "work together to try to score." Elementary through middle school kids are less likely to place a high emphasis on winning whereas high school aged athletes have a higher connection with winning and success. Even at the high school level, winning is not the most significant reason for participation: challenge and peer relationships come in higher than winning on this level too. (Tucker) Kids want to have fun, but they want to learn and acheive in their sport as well. A big reason for participation in a chosen sport is to be provided opportunitties to learn the skills neccessary to perform well in competition. (Pugh)

Self esteem is hard to nail down, but several studies have utilized questionaires for youth athletes that attempt to measure feelings of self worth and its relationship to youth sports participation. Kids have identified "challenge, learning the game, being with friends and performing well (NOT necessarily winning) in competition" (Pugh) as reasons they like their sport. High school "athletics supported academic objectives and were valuable due to their ability to aid in the development of self-respect, self-esteem, self-confidence, teamwork, and the competitive spirit."(Newman) While there were many other reasons children had positive feelings related to their sporting experience, those reasons contributed to higher levels of self worth across all age groups. It should also be noted that kids who had outside of school activities that "require a degree of dedication" (i.e.: music, drama, arts, scouting etc.) had higher levels of self esteem as well. (Din) One can conclude that enrichment activities that a child has an interest in, enjoys, and works at with dedication

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