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Youth Sports

Discussion in 'General Discussions - USA & Canada' started by KashmirFlower, Jul 18, 2016.

  1. KashmirFlower

    KashmirFlower IL Hall of Fame

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    I have same questions (as raised in the spelling bee discussion) about sports and wanted to ask here for the past few days.

    I felt taking kids to sports and making them get interested is not easy, as mostly

    1. weather:
    it is in summer/spring/fall, and i live in very warm place now, and it is very hot now a days, but other days also here weather is not that great. So I thought indoor games may be better for my kid at this age. (3.3 is his age, I know he is very young for sports but he had some aggressive behavior in school and teacher suggested to take him to sports)

    2. what sports is good? any particular thing which suits us (laid back when it come to sports) more?
    Does basket ball always played indoor? i am thinking in long term also. he played T-ball for this summer season and as everybody gets their turn to hit the ball, he did ok, and at home also he played for 2-5 minutes, few times in a week, which helped in how to hold the bat.

    3. Practice with other kids or parent:
    With above things I understood that what coach says we also have to listen and make them practice, otherwise they can't learn, as most of the other kids dads play and make them practice, as I saw. How much do you help/play with them?

    4. to not get hurt and not to hurt others seriously:
    some games like soccer , there may be chances more to get hurt. base ball may be not, as people are not falling on other, but they may get hit by a ball. at this age they are given softer balls.

    5. what kid likes comes little later, when we observe and then they also can be decided what they like.

    5. I think atleast 2-3 sports kids need to play through out their growing period . If they become lazy now, later they can't change, TV/tablet/ laptop etc, are so addictive. Active life style is needed.

    what are your thoughts on these points? which sport your kid is interested? How much time weekly do you / kid spend on sports. Till what age do you think they can spend good amount of time on the sports.

    I saw kids playing soccer at age 4 very very nice, with lot of focus.
     
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  2. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    Check with the community center if they have indoor physical activities for kids his age. Swimming is a good option, but until they learn a bit of swimming, there is some drama and tears. A basketball hoop in the driveway or backyard is another option.

    Basketball at the YMCA is easiest one for laidback parents. The focus is on having fun, and it is only indoors. Not sure what age they start with. Other local leagues have some practices outdoors at times. Don't think about long term for now.

    Aah been there, learnt some, taught part of that. Here's my conclusion: if it helps you in bonding with child and it is building some memories etc., go to the effort of learning the sport to teach the child. If not, pick a sport and coach and setting where parent only has to show up and cheer/encourage child, no at home practice needed. If child shows enough interest/promise, you can throw money at this problem and find a 1-1 coach at a price that suits your budget.

    I've found swimming, basketball, and martial arts to be the most useful return on parent's time/money.

    When I didn't know better, I used to hear from other parents that every child needs to be good or very good in sports for admissions to college. Aiyo... how I worried about that. That is not true. As long as child is getting the needed physical activity from 1-3 sources like school etc, good enough.
    In elementary school, there is mostly only generic P.E. (Physical Education) at school. But from middle school onward, they have track and field, and other sports, and try-outs for those.

    Like kids in India play cricket? : )
     
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  3. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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  4. jskls

    jskls IL Hall of Fame

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    Initial years exposure matters. Try different sports to find which intersts your kid most. Swimming can start as early as 3 (YMCA), Soccer at 4-5 yrs ( enrolled through town), Basketball /Baseball around 6 years in through town/community center, martial arts (Taekwondo) /tennis/badminton in elementary school etc.

    once they enter middle school they will decide on which sports to pursue based on their interest and you will also have an idea how much time needs to be invested (if the kid is in travel team your weekends are gone and one /two days per weeknight they need couple of hours for practice). In high school if the kid participates in any sports activity representing the school team based on the season (fall/winter/spring) it takes considerable amount of time -a min of 2 hrs everyday after school day for practice and a full evening (6 hrs) after school or on weekends during team meets / events.
     
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  5. Gauri03

    Gauri03 Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    Three might be too young for structured sports. For now, an hour at the park, riding a bike or running around with friends should provide ample exercise to wear off some of the aggression. As others have suggested, swimming is a good sport to start with. You can sign up for mom and child classes, where you will be in the water with him. Easiest to find indoor swimming facilities too.

    Common options for little kids are soccer, baseball, tennis, and martial arts. Don't make long term plans right away. Initially you can enroll him in one individual, and one team activity. Just to let him have the experience and observe how he performs. Once you have an idea of his preferences, you can explore alternatives. You shouldn't worry about practicing at home. All of that comes much later and only if he decides to pursue a sport beyond a recreational level. Having someone to play with at home always helps. You will notice that the kids whose dads or siblings play with them will perform better in class, but again that is not important at this age. The objective is to get kids to experience team sports and learn sportsmanship.

    Most games will carry a minimal risk of injury but coaches are very careful and I have seen a lot of emphasis on safe play in my son's classes. He started with swimming and soccer. He still swims but we gave up soccer. He just wasn't interested. We've tried golf camps, badminton and recently tennis. He plays golf and badminton now. Golf is mostly recreational, but badminton is turning out to be his favorite.

    I think you have the general idea. Just let your child explore as many different activities as possible and observe his interests. You still have a lot of time to figure this out.
     
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  6. justanothergirl

    justanothergirl IL Hall of Fame

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    I will only add what has not been covered.
    Swimming is a life skill whether or not u both (child + parent) decide to pursue competitive swimming. Start early.
    In US sports is serious business . As ur child crosses elementary school the competition gets intense. Not all children(or parents) are cut out for it. DH used to play soccer for his school so wanted the boys to play atleast one sport competitively . We tried...my boys love to play ..are reasonably good but they are just not cut out for competitive sports. Mercifully they figured it out early so now just play basket ball for fun.
    Take ur childs lead.
     
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  7. KashmirFlower

    KashmirFlower IL Hall of Fame

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    Thanks @jkls and @justanothergirl

    for the above scenarios may be kid will not ready, (when he reaches that age) and I too don't feel to give that much time and efforts and don't believe in cut throat competition (because of sponsors etc). But my job is introduce to available sports and help where ever I can, either playing or arranging play dates with some kicking ball or hitting a ball etc as of now. If he really excels in any we can encourage.

    @Rihana , thanks, if any skill comes out in the kid, I will remember this option is there.

    @Rihana we love playing together like hitting t -ball and running towards it saying my turn , my turn.

    This summer he played T-ball.
    When coach said how to hold the bat, He was not remembering how to hold the bat (till next week), so at home I told when we playing , even for a minute , if we do daily, he can remember, and it showed on the ground.

    Soccer also he played this summer, but I don't think he is interested in this one. he always used to come off the field to me, he never kicked the ball by himself, but sometimes ran behind the kids.

    YMCA next year Feb enrolled for basket ball, I think he likes that one. Swimming also we started , he is OK in water, not crying but cling to me/instructor.

    Thanks @Gauri03 , my kid is 3.3 but looks like 5, I am little worried if he hurts any kid by falling on them, while running, As soccer is like going close to each other and trying to get hold of ball, i think may be not good for my kid. as of now. yea badminton , tennis less chance to hurt others. in his montessori teacher said he enjoys his PE class. As he is physically very strong I feel he should use it and play something, nothing like right now, but as he grows.

    Thanks you all for your suggestions and letting know what your kids are interested in. it is informative and good to know that college admission is not that dependent on this.
     
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  8. Srama

    Srama Finest Post Winner

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    @KashmirFlower,

    Others have covered so well and I concur with them. To give a couple of personal scenarios, my DS when he was your kids age refused to play soccer and I had to literally pick him from every practice because he complained even before the practice began about a head ache or a stomach ache and this was just an after school program. Later I enrolled him for swim lessons and once he learnt how do a few strokes was done! Taking that as a cue, I enrolled my DD later for every thing - she played soccer for a year (including indoor soccer) and didn't show much enthusiasm and at the same time I was not ready for the time commitment. Then I enrolled both of them for swim lessons - my DD at 9 an my son a review of what he knows at 13 :) DS did the same again, showed me he can swim and quit but DD has moved on to doing triathlons for kids. In the interim years, the only sport they have hung on to is Taek won do. DS more interested than DD. DS is level one black belt and ow working on level 2. Both of them have also taken a liking for running. DD does 5k and DS ready for a half.

    So like every one said, it is figuring out for the next couple of years at least.

    Finally, @Rihana, thank you for tagging took me forever.
     
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  9. KashmirFlower

    KashmirFlower IL Hall of Fame

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    Thank you @Srama , so trying different sports till they decide what is their interest. As I know it now here, I won't feel guilty about it.
    Looks like our Indian kids are developing more interest in individual sports than team sports as they grow.

    Yesterday we went to a school open house where they arranged a petting zoo, and other stuff. so we went. there is "amazing athletes" coach telling what they offer and kids can try throwing/kicking a ball etc.

    Amazing Athletes: teaching children life skills through sports

    I felt it is good choice for kids at this age. The coach comes to school every week, for half an hour, for ages 2 to 3.5, they play different sport through out year, they play 9 different ones, it also includes hockey, golf, lacrosse, tennis, other than regular soccer, basketball, volleyball, baseball. I liked this concept, but my kid is not studying in this school. Getting introduced all sports this way is good. monthly 50 $, except first month which is 72$.

    Anybody has experience with amazingathletes, they are in several states.
     
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  10. KashmirFlower

    KashmirFlower IL Hall of Fame

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    about coaches I want to know, we paid 150$ per 6 weeks, and coaches are one of the kids parents, they can volunteer, but looks like they don't have enough coaches , still they joined kids and some how adjusted parents as coaches. For soccer we got Indian coach, he said to me he has to take it, as nobody else is there as a coach for this group of kids. Any idea about this.
     

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