Selecting A Sport, Part 4

WHICH SPORT? 

The specific choice of a sport can be difficult because kids have a rainbow of choices. Some issues to consider:

Think About a Child’s Need for Success

Before you decide whether to sign your child up for baseball or basketball, remember what is primary: young children need to succeed. Sports psychologist, William Beausay explains:

All children need a series of happy, victorious experiences. The normal defeats will come in the routine give-and-take of their own play. But they must learn to succeed before they can accept defeat. After thirteen, they then must be defeated to instigate further growth.

Success is important for a young child because he can’t reason that if he fails, he will be good at some other sport or other activity.

A child’s success will be greater in a sport that fits his talents. As a child athlete, our son Andrew had the endurance of a South Dakota winter—even his brothers were impressed with his stamina on bike rides. Soccer was a perfect fit for him.

I recently saw an e-mail address that included the words: raisingswimmers. Is someone forcing an identity on the whole family? Would a child be allowed to pursue golf or soccer? One psychologist has written that girls who are allowed to pursue “their true interests are two steps ahead of the game. Teens who believe their parents have hopes for them that are in line with their actual talents and passions—feel most equipped” for the future.

Think About Exercise

Medical experts report an alarming increase in heart problems for the young—a problem lessened by vigorous exercise. If your child is interested in a sport like bowling, you might encourage her to swim or bike also. Since the benefits of exercise are temporary, my wife and I wanted to establish the habit of exercise in our kids. Thus, our routines included physical activity—vacations included hiking and swimming; we biked to restaurants; we kicked a soccer ball or threw a Frisbee while dinner was being prepared; we walked our cocker spaniel--whose idea of fetching a stick was to run away from us and see if we could catch him!

Parents, turn in your chauffeur license and let your child bike or walk herself to school, to ball practice, to a friend’s house. (The media’s fixation on the rare child abduction has led many parents to be overly protective of their children. Your child has a 100 times greater chance of dying in an auto accident than being abducted!)