We were lucky to catch up with Erin Early recently and have shared our conversation below.
Erin , appreciate you joining us today. So, let’s start with a hypothetical – what would you change about the educational system?
Education is key to having a fulfilling life! As a physical education teacher and coach, I am very much in tune with the importance of exercise and how important it is for our bodies AND our brains. Exercise creates new neurons in our brains which assists in learning, memory, and affect. I would change the educational system starting with our youngest learners to be sure their most rigorous core subject area is taught immediately after physical education. This will best set them up for the most educational success. I would also love to see physical education incorporated into the lives of all of our students on a daily basis. It’s my job to expose students to as many sports and activities as possible because you never know what student never had the chance to ski, ride a bike, shoot a basketball, or dribble a soccer ball. These sports can inspire and motivate students to get more involved in their community, too! When students learn how to be life-long movers, they understand that living an active and healthy lifestyle helps improve mood, productivity, goal-setting and innovation. These skills directly translate into the workforce and it’s fulfilling to be active!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I have been teaching for the Steamboat Springs School District for the past 15 years. My first 5 years was dedicated to being a middle school special education teacher and it was during this time that I quickly got involved in coaching for the Steamboat Soccer Club. I fell in love with coaching! I loved teaching the game, learning the game, and establishing a culture within my teams that emphasize character and being the best version of yourself. I believe exercise and team sports are an incredible platform to teach so many life skills to our students and players. This experience led me to getting a Master’s in Physical Education with an emphasis in Coaching. From there, a physical education position opened up 10 years ago at Soda Creek Elementary School in Steamboat and I was fortunate enough to be offered the job. I haven’t looked back since. In the spring and fall, I coach high school aged boys and girls for the Steamboat Soccer Club and in the summer I run my own business, Steamboat Shorty’s, to offer soccer to our youngest community members; our toddlers. I am most proud of being involved with various ages of Steamboat’s youth! I get to have an opportunity to teach and coach ages 3-19! How lucky am I?!?!
Any advice for managing a team?
One of my first lessons I learned when I started coaching is that winning goes beyond the scoreboard. When you set goals for your team that are within their control and attainable, we can start to celebrate the little things that continue to aid in our development as people and players. One of my favorite things to do as a coach and as a teacher is to provide an opportunity for teammates and classmates to give “shout-outs” to one another based off of our core values that we have in class or as a club. We do this at water breaks, half-times, and sometimes even my students and players remind ME to save time for shout outs. I have seen our culture grow into a team that really does put the “we” before “me.” And lastly, you, as a coach need to stay genuine and positive. Set this standard for yourself and state it in front of your team. If you feel there is ever a day where you didn’t uphold the standard you have set for yourself be real with your team and tell them. Let them see you are human and let them see what true ownership and resilience looks like.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
My undergraduate degree was in special education. I wasn’t fully done with my masters program when the Physical Education position opened up. There were a lot of people in the education world that didn’t feel I was best fit for the job, that I knew too little, that I didn’t belong. Regardless, when I was offered the position, I knew I had a lot to prove. I invested time into learning from some of my mentors in the Physical Education field. I shadowed them, interviewed them, and they were (and still are!) some of the best and most supportive teammates I have ever had. Being a teacher and a coach is one of the best jobs in the world, because you have so many people you can learn from and be inspired by! Never give up because you never know who you are impacting and influencing along the way!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://sites.google.com/view/steamboatshortys/home
- Instagram: @steamboatshortys
- Youtube: https://youtu.be/cBM8eMRFzeA