Parents & Youth Sports: Keeping your Kids in the Game
It’s no secret that most kids drop out of sports by the time they’re in middle school.[1] This is unfortunate because sports can have many benefits for kids including:[2]
•reduced risk of obesity
•increased cardiovascular fitness
•healthy growth of bones, muscles, ligaments, and tendons
•improved coordination and balance
•a greater ability to physically relax and, therefore, avoid the complications of chronic muscular tension (such as headache or back ache)
•improved sleep
•mental health benefits, such as greater confidence
•improved social skills and personal skills - including cooperation and leadership
If your child doesn 't participate in sports or drops out of sports by middle school, they
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I’ve seen kids drop out of sports time and time again. Talented children who pour their hearts into youth sports in elementary school will stop playing because it’s just not fun for them anymore. Why? They feel too much pressure or their parents push them too hard, they may be upset because they’re not selected for elite teams, or they are bullied by peers and coaches.
Bullying
As a sports parent and youth sports coach for more than 20 years, I can share that bullying in youth sports is rampant. I 've seen bullying in youth sports coming from a few different sources: opposing team members, teammates, coaches, and parents. Bullying in youth sports can take many forms. Here are some examples:
•A team member who does not perform as well as others is ridiculed.
•A team member is ostracized because a "leader" on the team doesn 't like them.
•A highly talented team member is teased or bullied because the bullies are jealous.
•A team member is teased, harassed, or hurt by a coach who believes such behavior will improve the player 's
Fewer kids play amid pressure” explains how parents are pressuring their kids with training and what they may not want to do. Most kids are not joining youth sports because of this constant feeling that they are not good enough compared to these more experienced kids. According to this article, kids would rather have fun as a team in sports rather than trying to be the best and compete as demonstrated when the author declares, “Also low on the list: playing in tournaments, cool uniforms, and expensive equipment. High on the list: positive team dynamics, trying hard, positive coaching and learning” (Rosenwald 3). Kids are being pushed into becoming elite athletes when what most of them really want is to have fun and be positive.
A major reason is that sports keep kids healthy. R. Dawn Comstock, an investigator at the Center for Injury Research and Policy stated “We have an epidemic of obesity in this country, and sports is one of the ways for kids to incorporate exercise in their lives” (qtd. in Perkel 2) . Most kids don’t get active anymore.
Kids can translate the hard work they've put into their sport by working harder to be a better student or employee and a better person overall. Kids sports can most definitely help in the area of working together with someone or a
Coaches are just as guilty. Many times coaches are so focused on winning and running up the score that they miss out on the opportunity to actually teach the players. They don’t teach them how to to play the game, how to have respect for their opponents, or how to have good sportsmanship and compassion (Grissell). As reported on BaseballDudes.com, “Adults are being so consumed with winning some tournament or some national ranking, that decisions are made and actions are taken that are not good for the players physical and mental well-being…these are kids playing a game but too many adults treat it like they are running a MLB team.” It stands to reason that these young athletes are learning more about negative attitudes and behaviors than they are learning about how to be good sport even in the face of
The importance of children’s athletics is for kids to have fun. When the child stops getting enjoyment out of the sport, then it is the parent’s job to take them out. Sports can have many positive effects on a child’s life, but it is important to remember too much of a good thing can make it a hurtful thing. As the culture of youth athletics spirals out of control, it is the parent’s responsibility to save the child from short-term and, unfortunately, long-term damage. Parents need to evaluate how far they are willing to go for youth athletics and when they will have taken their obsession too
Did you know that depending on the sport, students who play sports in college most likely have less than a 2% chance of becoming professional athletes? At middle schools, high schools and colleges across the country, everyone is arguing over whether or not students with failing grades should be allowed to play sports. In my opinion, a good education is so very important for our country’s youth, especially the athletes. Not a lot of kids are good enough to play in the top college sports programs in the country. But even those who are, still have an astonishingly low chance at making the professional leagues.
Health and contact sports are something parents worry about as over 500 deaths in the past 3 years from contact sports alone are making parents stand out against these sports and if the government doesn 't do anything about it the number of 7% overall contact sports drop will just keep getting lower and lower each time. Dr. William Speight also had this to say “Many other kids have suffered paralyzing spinal injuries”(Pennington). Kids being paralyzed is the fear for many athletes these days and the number f kids getting paralyzed has increases 2% which is equivalent to about 8,000 kids each year which is crazy to think about kids can 't play sports for the rest of thrie and maybe not be able to live their life because of it so next you hear mom or dad i wanna play sports your answer should be a simple NO. Kids under 10 need to stop playing contact sports because 45% of kids under 10 getting hurt are from contact sports and 5% of the time its ending that kids chances to play sports in the feature, Not to mention contact sports can also make kids go to their fullest and being burned out and although contact provide some kids will useful tools in life most of the time there is more negative than positive. Health, Age, Contact, parents, are some of the many reasons contact sports can be very dangerous for the youth.
Children have strived for years to make their parents, teachers and coaches proud of them. Kids have come to practice Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday, and Friday to get better, while their academics are suffering. Students have pushed their bodies to the limits, causing extreme injury that will hold them back from sports in the future. Student athletes are not getting the opportunity to play multiple sports during the year, because they are expected to spelize in one sport and focus on it year round, leaving no opportunity to play other sports or do other activities. Youth sports are becoming too intense for young children to keep up with.
If you have ever been in sports or school athletics, act fast! Schools are getting rid of their sports and we need to stop it. “Being a student is harder than ever. You are being held to tougher academic standards-and so is your school.
Dr. Frank L. Smoll states, “All children and youth need vigorous physical activity as part of their daily lives, and sports provide the benefits of exercise and the potential for acquiring a sense of accomplishment.” (Smoll 1/2).
The amount of children participating in competitive sports has been on a steady decline in the past decade. Between the years of 2008 and 2013, the total number of children participating in competitive sports has dropped by approximately 2.6 million. This is mainly due to the many negative impacts that young athletes face when partaking in these sports. Competitive sports involve sports where competition is encouraged, and where winning is more important than anything else. Competing in these sports causes the children to be vulnerable to many risks and many other negative impacts.
Summary In “Children Need to Play, Not Compete,” Jessica Statsky tries to demonstrate the negative effect of organized sports on the physical and psychological health of growing child. She claims that the games are not festive but they end up in the wrong development of a child’s brain. The coaches and parents have high hopes for their children that result in the pressure building. This changes the purpose of sports from teaching tolerance, teamwork and sportsmanship to merely winning by all means.
“In the U.S., about 30 million children and teens participate in some form of organized sports, and more than 3.5 million injuries each year” claims Stanford Children’s Health. It’s definitely true that competitive sports can cause all sorts of injuries from big to small. The media teaches people simply that sports leads to horrific injuries and can cause stress, but what the mainstream media hardly discusses are the great benefits of competitive sports. While there may be some negatives to competitive sports, that’s just life, and to add on to that; there are plenty of benefits which are sure to override to media’s facts. Kids should play competitive sports because competitive sports teach children powerful life lessons, contributes to their social and mental stability, and because of the physical gain competitive sports provides.
Kids leave sports for reasons not just because it was a bad sport. Most kids leave because of the added pressures to win. Most kids play sports to learn how to play the right way, and to have fun. If someone could find the bliss between the two, youth sports would be the best thing that ever happened to the world. There is such thing as healthy competition.
From the Friday night lights to the last second goal, school sports are a major part of the high school journey. In fact, according to "Are High School Sports Good For Kids?" by Daniel Gould, Ph.D., over five million students from the United States participate in a school sport. High school sports are a great way for student-athletes to stay healthy, make new friends, and be a part of a team atmosphere. In addition, school sports keep kids off of the streets and lower the athlete's chance of committing a crime. School sports are a tremendous way for student-athletes to create new, meaningful relationships.