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To play or not play is a debate that has been argued since people started playing sports. Since 2000 BC., sports have played an important part in improving physical ability and skills in children. These abilities and skills learned help prepare them for leadership roles in future society while making them more productive members of society. The positive benefits of sports for children far out-weigh the negative impact. The pros and cons of playing have intensified with the advancement of new technology and the great strides made in medicine. Sports can be played and enjoyed by anyone.
May I play baseball, football, or any other sport? Those four little words can mean the start of a lifelong commitment to sports for not only the child but also for the family of that child. Sports do not care if you are rich or poor, who you are or where you come from. It is skill and ability that define a player. The main benefit of sports, whether individually or as a member of a team, is to have fun.
Advantages of Playing Sports for Children
Sports playing is a great way for a child to take a break from academics and have fun while at the same time release the pent-up energy of being stuck in a classroom all day long. Any praise and support a child playing sports may receive from teammates, coaches and family will be a great boost to their self-confidence and self-esteem. The encouragement a child receives from playing sports also helps them to foster trust in their own abilities and will motivate them to push themselves to go above and beyond their limits. When children reach their goals on the playing field, it teaches the child they can reach any other goal they set later in life.
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Participation in sports and other fitness activities provides not only physical but also, social and mental benefits to children. Sports help children develop physical skills, get exercise, make friends, have fun, learn to play as a member of a team, learn to play fair, learn decision making, and improve self-esteem. Playing sports is a great way to help children stay active and provides a way for connecting with family members. Sports can also teach children the benefits of goal-setting and practice.
Research shows exactly why young athletes should stay in sports. Paul Carccamo, the Harvard-educated executive director of Up2Us, a national coalition of community-based sports, stated it best when he said: “Sports are more than a game; they are a set of life lessons. Kids growing up without them are really disadvantaged”. According to Mr. Carccamo, kids who participate in sports attend school more, are more community and civic-minded, get in less trouble, and tend to be more successful in their adult workplace. They have done studies from corporate leaders in the country: The number who made honor roll was less than 20%, but those who played sports was 70% – 80%.
Developing leadership and teamwork skills are just two of the benefits of children playing sports. Playing team sports gives you the chance to become a leader which can help develop leadership skills that you will use throughout your lifetime. Most jobs children may have in their adult lives will involve them working with the people around them. In the performance of those jobs, at some point, they will either be a member of a team or the leader of a team. Reaching a common goal as a team helps children develop communication and problem-solving skills that will benefit them on and off the field.
Another benefit of children playing sports is that sports teach them how to manage their time. Being smart can sometimes be overshadowed by failure if a child does not know how to manage their time. According to Simco, when a child plays sports, they should only be concerned with three responsibilities; school, sports, and family. Good time management skills learned early playing sports, will help a child better prepare for the future. Those skills will also help a child excel in their schoolwork as well. The dedication and hard work learned through playing sports can be applied to their studies. Playing high school sports can lead to a 41% chance of a young woman graduating from college.
The end of one sports season can be a gloomy time for everyone. While one sport season may be ending, it does not mean that other sport seasons for the year are ending. This is one of the many benefits of participating in many sports. The foremost benefit of playing multiple sports is that it helps to prevent burnout. Playing the same sport every day for extended periods of time, like over the course of a year, can quickly lead to burnout.
Burnout in a sport is when the athlete is mentally and emotionally tired from playing one sport all the time. When a child starts to play one sport early and plays that sport all the time, it can cause the child to lose the fun that was originally felt when starting out. The child wants to stop playing because they are tired of it. The sport turns into a chore, and they start to resent going to practice or playing in games.
Kids play sports to have fun with their friends, they enjoy playing, and they like to compete and win. These three things are the main reasons children become involved in sports. Too many children get burned out because of the monotony of playing one sport day-in and day-out. Taking a break from one sport to play another or to simply focus on something other than sports, gives the child more of a variety of options, and prevents them from getting into a rut. It gives them time to refresh and reboot themselves without having to worry about always giving a 100% and always having to excel or win.
While playing multiple sports may be a good thing for the child, parents or coaches will try to discourage the child. This tendency to discourage playing multiple sports comes because of fears that the child may injure themselves. A potential basketball star may be discouraged from playing football because parents and coaches are trying to prevent the player from injury. However, the child should be encouraged to play other sports. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, kids should not focus on just one sport until they are at least 10 years old.
There are two reasons why the decision to focus on one sport should be delayed until then: First, it lets kids try different things and have fun at each of them until they are old enough to decide what they really want. Second, and more importantly, playing multiple sports helps children build their overall athletic abilities, as opposed to simply becoming good at the skills necessary to play a single sport. Those enhanced skills will help the child avoid injuries, particularly those that come from repetitive actions, like arm injuries with baseball or softball pitchers. While the benefits of children playing sports are numerous, there are some instances when playing sports is not a good idea.
Here are some reasons why the child should not play:
- If playing the sport is no longer fun for the child, they should not play. Of all the previously stated benefits of playing sports, the number one objective is for the child to have fun.
- The child will sometimes experience defeat and failure. The child should not be shielded from the fact that you win some and you lose some. If the child feels that not winning is the end of the world, they should not play.
- The child can not commit fully to the sport. If other activities such as going to church, spending time with family, or hanging out with friends, is more important than focusing on games or practices, they should not play.
- If the child does not maintain his/her grades because the sport or practice demands all their attention, then they should not play. While the policy for playing sports is that the child’s grades have to be maintained, sometimes it is very hard to do so when there is so little time left for studying or doing homework—there are not enough hours in the day for everything the child has to do.
Conclusion
Whether playing as an individual or as a member of a team, playing sports can be very beneficial to a child. The memories, skills, and friendships made playing sports will last a lifetime. You may forget the name of your grade and middle school teachers, but you will never forget the bonds that you forged or the winning moments you had playing sports. You will always remember the encouragement and support of your coaches, teammates, and family. And whatever may come your way in the future, playing sports will have given you the foundation you need to overcome any obstacles. To play or not to play sports is a decision as an individual as the sport being played. Whether you decide to play or not, always remember to have fun.
References
- Center, Amateur Resouce. “ARC Benefits of Playing Multiple Sports.” Baseball USA (n.d.). https://www.usabaseball.com/arc/players-parents/maximizing-youth-experience/multiple-sports-benefits/.
- Cohn, Patrick. “Five Benefits for Kids Who Participate in Sports .” Youth Sports Psychology (August 20, 2009). www.youthsportspsychology.com/youth_sports_psychology_blog/five-benefits-for-kids-who-participate-in-sports/.
- Davis, Amanda. “Why Should Children Play Sports?” LIVESTRONG.com (2018). www.livestrong.com/article/160825-why-should-children-play-sports/.
- Powell, Maj Justin. “5 Reasons Why Your Child Shoud Be Playing Sports.” (2016). https://usmc-mccs.org/articles/5-reasons-why-your-child-should-be-playing-sports.
- Simco, Matthew Edward. “Does playing sports as a child help you become successful in life?” Livestrong.com (2016). http://www.livestrong.com/article/373329-how-many-youth-participate-in-sports-in-the-u-s/.
- VanDeWeghe, KiKi and John DiFiori. “Kids Should Play Multiple Sports.” USA Today (2015). https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/2015/08/13/children-sports-skill-development/31680375/.
- Wolff, Linda. “Benefits of Playing Sports.” Your Teen Mag (2015). https://yourteenmag.com/sports/benefits-of-playing-sports/.
- Wurtz, Thomas. “Why Your Kids Should NOT Play Youth Sports.” FaithandAthletics.com (2015). http://www.faithandathletics.com/.
