Not only does playing sports allow your child to be physically active, but it also improves their health, self-confidence and social skills. Having said that, there are children who don’t really want to play sports and avoid it at any cost. You can’t force your kid into loving sports, but there are ways that you can show and teach them how to enjoy sports more.
Let them choose
Providing your child with many options may get them excited about joining a team or starting practicing an individual sport. Explain what each of the sports is like, what your child can expect from it, or introduce them to various sports by taking them to trial practices. After that, let your child choose the sport they want to do based on their preferences. Don’t influence them too much. Avoid generalizing and categorizing sports into boys’ and girls’ ones. Boys can take up dancing, just like girls can play soccer. Furthermore, simply because your child is short, it doesn’t mean they can’t opt for basketball. They don’t have to excel at a sport, they just need to be active and enjoy themselves.
Make sure they have fun
Your six-year-old kid doesn’t want to be a professional player. They want to play with their friends, and if there’s a nice jersey or a uniform in the picture, even better. They want to have fun, so let them. This way, they’ll link their sport of choice to a pleasant feeling and will be more likely to stick to it. However, if you notice that your child avoids talking about the sport, has headaches, stomachaches and gives a whole bunch of other excuses to skip practice, that they aren’t at all excited before a competition, or they want to quit, maybe it’s time to explore other options. Find out what the problem is and let them take up an individual sport instead of a team one, or find a different coach, if the current one criticizes too much or is pushing your child too hard.
Get involved
Involvement doesn’t mean just driving your child to their practice and back. Watch their practice sessions and their games. Cheer for your child; show them how proud you are of them, no matter what the outcome of the game was. You need to let them know winning is nice, but not really as important as enjoying themselves while playing. When your kid loses a game, praise them for their efforts and comment on the parts of the game you liked, like the nice teamwork or the way they kept doing their best even after they’d realized they would probably lose. Another way to get involved is playing sports with them whenever the opportunity arises. One good example is getting portable soccer goals for your garden and playing with your kid. Plus, if your child likes the neighbors’ kids, including them and their parents is a nice option, too.
Explain the benefits of sports
If your little one thinks you’re forcing them into doing something without a real explanation, they might resist it more. Talk to your child and let them know why you think it’s important that they play sports. Tell them how much you loved it when you were a child and all the amazing experiences they could have if they are active in sports. Mention that sports can help develop certain qualities, such as motivation, cooperation, commitment and discipline, which can help them be better at school and make new friends more easily. Don’t forget to comment on the health benefits of sports, the resiliency they can gain, as well as all the fun they can have.
The main reason you want your child to play sports is their own health and happiness, so be sure to maintain a positive attitude towards sports and to transfer that attitude to your kid. And once they find the sport that brings them joy and fulfillment, keep supporting them and encouraging them to be the best version of themselves, while not being pushy or too demanding. After all, sports are for playing, not suffering through.
