mydogsarelazy, you’ve fostered much creativity in your home. That’s really great. Now, about that long URL, that doubled the width of the entire thread… (Pretty please, use Links)
Interesting perspective, PD on sports. My entire family is very toned and in shape, but are not on any teams right now. Competitive sports is not the only way to get fit. My son did 3 years of competitive soccer starting at age 7, but he is one of the 80% of kids who drops out of team sports by age 13.
I have to say, the number of times he laughed and felt happy playing soccer is probably counted on one hand. But running with his dog, playing flag football with his friends, swimming laps with his sister, all cause laughter and squeals of delight.
Personally, I think competitive sports are great only if the child is asking to do it. In any case, every child needs physical activity, whether a dance class or just riding his bike around town.
It’s very interesting that many parents sign up their kids for sports teams, thinking the child is learning team spirit. From what I see, “team” sports are less about being a group, than about competing against each other. The best players in the team get the most playing time, while the others sit out. Like in band, where you compete against your classmates for the best chair, you’re constantly trying to be better than your mates, to get more recognition, more playing time, more approval of coach and parents.
While team sports are satisfying for kids who like to compete in this way, they do not nurture a feeling of comraderie and teamwork in the sense that I consider important. Real teamwork is found in building something together, like the house my kids built on a recent mission trip, or my daughter’s participation in her church youth group, or my son’s movie making.
At what age should kids start competing, and getting ready for the adult world? At what age should a tree’s support post be removed? With a tree, you don’t remove the post to encourage the tree to be independent and strong against the wind, but wait until it has developed sufficient strength to go it alone. Kids get plenty of competition in their lives, so I find it valuable to give them opportunities to work in tandem, in harmony. If everything they do is a competition, where in their lives is the joy of just doing, learning, being?
So while I like competitive sports, I think they take up too much time in our culture, and are not sufficiently balanced by doing sports for sports’ sake. A middle schooler should have no more than 3 days per week in a competitive sport, including games on weekends, and spend the other 4 days doing a sport for pure enjoyment: bike ride with mom, running with dog, basketball with friends, swimming, etc. This way, the child is not constantly led by adults, and trying to get their approval.
