Kids and sports: The crack of the bat, the last-second score, cheering together: Youth sports can be exhilarating and build connections in families, among teammates and in the community.
Both the regular physical activity and the acts of teamwork are healthy for your child’s brain and body. I’m a big fan of team sports and encouraging kids to join in. I also know we need to work to recognize and challenge some of the barriers to equitable participation.
Kids and sports: the positives
Team sports build personal and community bonds while they build up health – what a win-win! Any fitness activity is great, but team sports have some advantages when it comes to positive development and health. Team sports encourage:
- Fitness: Kids need to be fit and healthy to thrive. Team sports demand a regular exercise schedule and a commitment to yourself and others to get out there and get moving.
- Mental health: Involvement in sports is related to higher confidence, lower stress, lower depression levels among adolescents and even reduced suicide rates.
- Togetherness and social skills: Team sports build collaboration, social skills and social responsibility toward teammates and coaches. Team spirit around sports helps build community and togetherness.
- The joy of play: Children learn about the world around them, develop their interests and test out social interaction through play. Team sports are a fun and healthy way to develop these skills in a structured environment.
- Resiliency. Team play teaches lessons on accepting your own and others’ mistakes, on winning with grace and bouncing back from defeat.
- Life skills. Sports teach children all sorts of life skills and research shows that those skills last into adulthood. Problem solving, collaboration, taking directions, time management, discipline and dedication are all learned in team sports and are all skills we need as adults.
Some kids are naturally attracted to team sports, while others need encouragement to join or stay engaged. You can help get kids excited about team sports by making it about fun rather than winning and letting kids choose what sports they want to play. It’s OK if they pick up baseball for a while and then want to switch to soccer. They’re young and discovering their passions and talents. Praise their efforts, be supportive and set goals to help them to reach.
Kids and sports: the barriers
There are also serious hurdles that keep many youths sidelined from sports participation, like financial constraints, lack of community resources and barriers including systemic sexism and racism.
According to a national survey, youth ages 6-18 from low-income homes quit sports at six times the rate of kids from high-income homes because of the financial costs. Some schools face constrained budgets, poor facilities and equipment, and neighborhoods can lack park space. Travel fees, pay-to-play fees and uniform and equipment costs (those shoes can be so expensive!) bench some kids from being able to participate.
It’s critical that parents work to open up opportunities for all youth by recognizing these challenges and working to level the playing field for all kids to participate. You can ask your school, coaches, peers or sports organization if there are needs that can be addressed for increasing access for youth of color, girls and lower-income families, and seek out local non-profits that are working on these issues.
Team sports build health bodies, minds and communities, things I think we call can root for. Go, team!
