NASA Academy Girls
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NASA Academy Girls |
| We'll kick-off the 2012-2013 soccer year with our summer Academy Camps for our U10, U11 and U12 girls groups: |
Quick links:
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If your daughter has a schedule conflict with her home park's Academy camp, she can attend the Academy camp at the other park instead.
Here's the daily schedule:
Registration and fee: As long as your daughter's Academy registration is in order, you don't need to fill out any camp paperwork or pay a separate camp fee.
| Weather
info:
Academy Camp is normally a "rain or shine" event. If we get lightning or driving rain during the day, we'll take shelter until the storm passes. If we have one of those days where it's storming in the morning and the forecast calls for more of the same throughout the day, check your age group's Academy hot-line for any updates. |
Healthy kids are happy kids, and happy kids will enjoy camp! Please be sure to take advantage of the following tips and advice to help ensure that your daughter stays in peak condition and has a great camp experience.
Clothes: We recommend light-colored loose clothing. Tight fitting shirts are OK if they are made of moisture-wicking technical fabrics, but tight cotton shirts aren't a good choice.
Practice jerseys: Many of our new players won't have received their practice jerseys yet. If you have a NASA practice jersey, you're welcome to wear it, but it isn't required during camp.
Soccer shoes: See Foot care for notes about new shoes.
Turf shoes: We recommend "turf" shoes for camp. The girls will be on their feet several hours a day. Turf shoes tend to be gentler on the feet than regular soccer cleats, so we recommend them for the camp environment. Links: basic info about soccer shoes; detailed info about soccer shoes
Soccer ball: We use a size 4 ball at these age levels. If your daughter doesn't have a size 4, she can bring a size 3 or smaller ball. We don't recommend size 5 balls for our age levels.
Shin guards: Shin guards are required for all practices and games. See Foot care for notes about stirrup-style shin guards.
Socks: Girls should wear regular soccer socks over their shin guards. (Depending on shin guard style, players may also want to wear a thin pair of socks under their shin guards.) Girls should bring an extra clean, dry pair of soccer socks for the afternoon session. Link: Foot care
Shorts: Girls should wear regular soccer shorts (no jean shorts or cheerleading shorts).
Sunscreen: Store this in a zip-lock bag to avoid leaking onto other stuff.
Hair: Girls with longer hair should wear a headband or “scrunchy” or something to keep hair out of their faces. Pre-wrap works well for this.
Sandals: Bring a pair of sandals, flip-flops or crocs for lunch-time and after camp. Link: Foot care
Water jug: Bring a large insulated water jug (minimum half-gallon, labeled with your daughter's name or initials and uniform number), filled with ice and water or sports drink (link: Fluids). We'll have water refills available at the fields.
Bottled water not recommended: This may be convenient, but it's not practical for the camp environment. The water won't stay cold, so girls won't want to drink it.
Snack: Bring a mid-morning snack: fruit, veggies, crackers or something low in fat.
Lunch: Bring a cooler with lunch, or money for lunch from the concession stand. (Update from July 6: the MNP and UQP concession stands will be open during Academy Camp; they'll offer a $5 lunch combo: sandwich, chips or cookie, drink.)
No-nos: Leave jewelry at home. Gum and electronic devices should stay in players' bags except for lunch time or after camp.
Drink plenty of fluids: There are two important benefits to proper fluid intake:
Hydration guidelines:
Fluid choices: Good fluid choices include water or "sports drinks" that contain sodium and carbohydrates such as Gatorade and PowerAde. Fruit juice and milk aren't good morning choices, but are fine for the evening hours. Avoid carbonated drinks such as sodas.
A few days before camp: Start increasing fluid intake 2-3 days before camp begins; if you wait until Monday, you'll be fighting an uphill battle.
Each morning: Drink a pint (16 ounces) each morning before coming to camp.
Bring to camp: Bring a large insulated water jug (minimum half-gallon, labeled with your daughter's name or initials and uniform number), filled with ice and water or sports drink. We'll have water refills available at the fields.
Bottled water not recommended: This may be convenient, but it's not practical for the camp environment. The water won't stay cold, so girls won't want to drink it.
During camp: Drink 4-8 ounces every 15 to 20 minutes during camp (a big gulp is about an ounce). We'll provide frequent water breaks to give the girls a chance to keep up their fluid intake throughout the day.
After camp: Drink 24 ounces in the first 1-2 hours after camp ends each day.
Using weight loss as a guide: If you have a scale at home, weigh your daughter before and after camp each day. If your daughter loses weight, have her drink 16 ounces of fluid for each pound of weight loss.
Foot care: A few recommendations to avoid blisters and other foot problems:
"Turf" shoes recommended: We recommend turf shoes for camp. They are gentler on the feet than cleats. The girls will be on their feet several hours a day, several days in a row, so turfs will help their feet survive the week. Many young players are able to wear turfs full-time (camp, plus fall practices and games). If your daughter needs new shoes, start with turfs and hold off on buying cleats until she gets a chance to experience turf shoes.
New shoes: If your daughter has new shoes, she should break them in before wearing them to camp. She can accomplish this by wearing them around the house for a few days, and also wearing them for a few 15-30 minute soccer sessions in the yard or park.
Stirrup style shin guards: If your daughter has "stirrup" style shin guards, she should wear a thin pair of socks underneath them to prevent the stirrup straps from directly rubbing her feet or ankles. Moisture-wicking sock liners (like those worn by hikers and skiers) work well for this purpose.
| Created: 06/16/01 Revised: 01/17/12 |
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