How do you know which sports?

[Anonymous]

My 1st grader says every sport is the best when he is taking it. I do not come from a sports family and I never played on even a rec team. How do you keep your kid in sports and make sure you’re making the right choices long term for making the high school team?

I see other elementary families whose kids are doing two or more sports every season and often skipping half of a season’s soccer practices and games to make basketball or football events. Are they just flakey or is this what you actually need to do to keep a foot in various sports?

[Anonymous]

At this age, it's fine to try a new sport every season if the kid wants to. An athletic kid will have no problem picking up a new sport in middle school and being competitive within a year or two. Don't worry about "choosing" yet, just let the kid explore and eventually they'll decide what fits best. The goal now is to keep them active and learn how to play on a team - the specific sport is less important.

[Anonymous]

Stop worrying about the HS team.

If your kid is enthusiastic about the activity, you can afford it and the logistics aren't too difficult, it's the right choice. If he loses interest and wants to try something else, do that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Stop worrying about the HS team.

If your kid is enthusiastic about the activity, you can afford it and the logistics aren't too difficult, it's the right choice. If he loses interest and wants to try something else, do that.

My problem isn't him losing interest, it's that he wants to do everything. I also don't want him to do 2 sports a season, move to the next 2, and not have continuity. Like... if he plays soccer in the fall on a rec team. Shouldn't he do SOME kind of soccer to keep his skills developing before the following fall?

Or is it ok to just keep cycling through 2 sports per season and only play each once a year? For example: Fall soccer and basketball, winter hockey and football, spring tennis and baseball, summer swimming and golf, repeat same or similar following year... until when? I just feel like at some point he needs to choose and work on skills. And also the social aspect of continuing on the team with the same kids.

[Anonymous]

Each season has a sport. Until all seasons are the same sport.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At this age, it's fine to try a new sport every season if the kid wants to. An athletic kid will have no problem picking up a new sport in middle school and being competitive within a year or two. Don't worry about "choosing" yet, just let the kid explore and eventually they'll decide what fits best. The goal now is to keep them active and learn how to play on a team - the specific sport is less important.

I had a parent at a recent rec game come up to me and tell me her middle schooler couldn't play X sport because all the other kids had started in kindergarten and he was shut out. I will say we do not live in a transient area at all and I fully expect the soccer kids in Kindergarten will be the same soccer kids in middle school if they choose to be.

[Anonymous]

“At some point” yes, he’ll have to be more selective, but omg not in 1st grade! You are thinking waaaay ahead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“At some point” yes, he’ll have to be more selective, but omg not in 1st grade! You are thinking waaaay ahead.

But in the meantime, just let him keep doing 2 sports every season? He has swim lessons, 2 music extracurriculars (his choice), math at home (school curriculum isn't great, so we are supplementing a little), and 2 sports. And it were up to him he would be adding a third. I am just hoping he learns how to swim soon so we can quit that. His friend just started tennis so of course he wants to take that too.

[Anonymous]

He’s 6-7 OP. Please stop planning his HS athletic schedule.
My DD is 11 in 6th and tried different things too. She swam club for 2 years and now doesn’t. She did baseball for one season and didn’t love it. She’s currently doing rec Basketball for the first time and likes it.
She has played rec spring and fall soccer for 3 seasons now and really likes it. She’s playing this spring but I have no idea what we’ll do next fall yet.
As long as she’s happy and staying active I don’t care about anything else. That’s what matters.

[Anonymous]

Its fine to add as much variety and also as much volume as he wants and you are able to support. There are natural limits like your time- he cant be in 2 places at once, do not sign up for activities that overlap. And your energy and his energy. If he wants more unstructured time you need less activities. But if he likes a different activity every night and you can get him there, then yes its fine.

In general most kids play 1 sport per season, some play 2, and some just pick one sport for the whole year.

My 3rs grader cycled through a lot of things and currently plays soccer year round, competitively, and picks a less competitive rec option as well. This year it was flag football for 10 weeks and swim for 8 weeks. The schedules didnt conflict and he wanted to do them all.

Once he gets passionate about training he will naturally lessen the variety.

[Anonymous]

I found this thread helpful as I have an athletic kid (younger) who seems to excel in every sport, and I'm worried about too many sports yet not enough time in one to hone in on schools.

PP's advice that an athletic kid will pick up the skill even if they start later is reassuring. For my older, less athletic, kid who is interested in all but not interested in working hard in any sport, I am still not sure what to do.

[Anonymous]

You are focused on how your first grader will make a high school sports team?!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You are focused on how your first grader will make a high school sports team?!

Like I said I didn’t play sports growing up so this is new. A mom on the team said her older kid in middle school couldn’t make teams starting “late.” So her younger child is doing all the sports at 6. If that’s not how it is in some parts of the country do tell, but I assume it is hence all the private coaches and skills camps for elementary I see everywhere. Her comment and all the sports mania I see at age 6 to 7 had me assuming there’s some truth to it. Most of the kids on the soccer team for example started at 3. As a non sports person I had no idea there could even be teams at age 3.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You are focused on how your first grader will make a high school sports team?!

I get that it’s not reasonable to be worried about this. But as another parent who played no sports, this also stressed me out. Memories of not being chosen for gym x100.

If you have your kids play some sport all year and expose them to different things they will be fine. There are no cut sports in high school, but it is true that some are very competitive.

I was honest with my rec soccer playing 6th grader that he could keep playing rec and I’m very happy with that. But, if he wants to make a high school team, he needs to get on a travel team and put in more time. I am not pushing him to do that, but I felt it was good to set realistic expectations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are focused on how your first grader will make a high school sports team?!

Like I said I didn’t play sports growing up so this is new. A mom on the team said her older kid in middle school couldn’t make teams starting “late.” So her younger child is doing all the sports at 6. If that’s not how it is in some parts of the country do tell, but I assume it is hence all the private coaches and skills camps for elementary I see everywhere. Her comment and all the sports mania I see at age 6 to 7 had me assuming there’s some truth to it. Most of the kids on the soccer team for example started at 3. As a non sports person I had no idea there could even be teams at age 3.

For teams that are that hard to make, the kid needs to be self driven and want to put in the work in order to succeed. Keep trying different things and he will pick what he likes. Soccer starts young, as does baseball, but I promise you the high school lacrosse team have not all been playing since they were 3.