-McKenna Montgomery- Are you considering bringing NASP to your school? Let me tell you some of the reasons you should say, YES!
First off, there may be many kids in your school district that are looking for something to be involved with, and archery might be it. NASP® provides students many opportunities to learn new skills that will help them in things outside of archery such as: patience, focus, perseverance, attention to detail, and self discipline. It also gives them the chance to find something they can work hard at and set goals for themselves, while also being a part of a team.
NASP® is great because it is open for anyone. Student athletes ranging from 4th grade to 12th grade are eligible to participate in this program. The older, more experienced archers then have an opportunity to be role models to the younger archers who are just getting started. It’s cool to go to a tournament and you never know who you’ll shoot next to.
I have shot next to a 6’4” senior when I was a short 4th grader; I have also shot next to a visually impaired archer and another time by an archer with a prosthetic leg. It is neat to see all different kinds of people participating in this sport.
NASP® is such a positive environment for students to be in. As students are setting new goals for themselves, their teammates and their coaches are there encouraging them. Working as a team can bring you closer to your teammates and create bonds with them. My team has worked together to do well in tournaments by helping each other in practice.
Participating in archery gives students a chance to practice and compete with people they might not normally have the chance to get to know. Competing in various tournaments gives students the opportunity to visit new communities in their state and possibly other states. It benefits the archers to shoot in tournaments because it pushes them to strive towards their goals. After going to several tournaments, students become familiar with archers from other towns and coaches start to recognize archers from attending tournaments. It’s been nice to hear coaches from other schools come up to me and comment on my form.
Offering NASP® at your school would be a great way to let students find something they enjoy doing and can excel at. Students can look forward to practice or tournaments because of how much fun it is. It also might get students to want to do more archery outside of school, such as bow hunting.
-McKenna Montgomery is a 2022 student contributor. Watch for her future submissions.-
