swaggerdad Have you ever thought about getting your child into sports? If so, now could be the time to stop thinking and start doing! While you don’t necessarily want your 5 year old child to start acting like a 15 year old child, getting your kids involved in sports could help them to mature. When we say mature we mean they could do the following:
*Teach them about teamwork
*Teach them about fair play
*Give them confidence
*Give them something to be passionate about
*Improve their physical and mental health
Photo bt @Teaneckjrfootball
Why wouldn’t you want your child to grow up with a great sense of all of those things? It’ll help them not only on the playing field, but in school and even in their everyday lives. Below, we’ll give you a few ideas that could help you get your child interested in sports:
Play With Them As A Family
Playing with your child as a family could be the best way to get them interested in sports from the offset. Just put a focus on learning the basics and having a lot of fun. You can even purchase custom lineup cards to help you keep score and teach your kids a thing or two about that. Having fun as a family will also help you to bond, and this could be when your child decides they’d like to try playing on a team.
Photo by @Swaggerdad
Don’t Put Pressure On Them
Your child can almost feel the pressure you put on them physically, especially if you’re not careful. You need to stay relaxed. The second your child doesn’t find this fun, is the second they don’t want to do it. Take a good look at yourself and figure out whether you’re actually helping or hindering your child by doing what you’re doing.
Give them Freedom To Fail
Your child should always have the freedom to fail. If you put too much pressure on them to win and teach them that winning is everything, it’s unlikely they will ever want to try. Your kids need to know that everything is going to be ok whether they win or lose.
Photo by @teaneckjrfootball
Use The Right Language
The language you use and the intent behind it can make a huge difference. If you’re praising your child for talent rather than effort, this automatically put them under pressure. This is the reason many children are scared to try new things – what if they’re not so talented at it? What if it turns out they have no talent, or it has disappeared? Praising the effort is the best way to go about it.
It isn’t just about praising your kids right either, but making sure you’re using positive words to describe their hobbies, always.
Photo by @Swaggerdad
Ask Them If They’d Like To Sign Up To A Team
When you feel your child is ready, ask them if they’d like to try out for a team. Giving them the option could be the best way to go about it, or even giving them a choice of teams. Make them feel like they have some control.
Post Contribute by Luke Mansell
Cover Photo by @teaneckjrfootball
