Travel sports for elementary school kids worth pursuing?

[Anonymous]

I can see if a child is really talented but Even then, why push do hard early? When we were young we didn't even start formal sports until middle school. Now they are playing Football in third grade. Go figure

[Anonymous]

Sounds like travel sports aren't right for your kid. Why ponder further?

[Anonymous]

The travel sport industrial complex employs a lot of people and gives a lot of adults an identity they very much enjoy. In most cases, I don't think it's good or even always fun for the kids.

But it's not going anywhere.

[Anonymous]

I don't even consider travel for my kids that are this age. My oldest and youngest (9 and 6) would be travel kids, were we to do it (i.e they are already being "recruited" to teams at their age, which I consider to be ridiculous) My 8 year old is a wonderfully average player. We already spent $500 and then $180 on uniforms for rec league soccer and its all of 9 weeks. My friend whose son is 8 and tried out for the "development" league practices 3 times a week and has games/tournaments which require travel every weekend. He cries before practice because he wants to stay at home after a long day at school and play with his friends.

[Anonymous]

We don't do it.

A consistent 8 pm bedtime, free play, reading time and family time (including hanging out with siblings and nightly family dinner) are all higher priorities for us at age 8/9.

For now, DC plays rec level sports. Baseball in fall and spring, short sessions of indoor soccer and basketball in the winter. Games are all local and on the weekends, except one night a week for local baseball games in the spring (over by 7:30/8.) plus a variety of rec level sports camps in the summer and done 5k races with DH, too.

DC is athletic. He loves all the activities. His skills continue to improve. Our family is happy. Our kids enjoy having time to hang out together. We're not frantic with scheduled activities. So far, so good.

[Birdmom5]

We didn't do more than one thing at a time. Just like PP. Kids enjoy just playing. Less stressful schedule. No running every single day!

OP- So what do you do? Do you let your kids do one sport a season?

[Anonymous]

Travel sports shouldn't be pursued until MS.

[Anonymous]

Travel sports are a lifestyle choice.

[Anonymous]

It's hard to make a travel team in middle school, though, when you are competing against kids that have had travel experience/instruction for 2-4 years.

It's not for everyone. Some people love it. There are lots of kids that try out for things like travel soccer a year earlier than they are even supposed to. To each their own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Travel sports are a lifestyle choice.

Yep. A lifestyle choice parents force upon their kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous[b wrote:]It's hard to make a travel team in middle school, though, when you are competing against kids that have had travel experience/instruction for 2-4 years.[/b]

It's not for everyone. Some people love it. There are lots of kids that try out for things like travel soccer a year earlier than they are even supposed to. To each their own.

This is the problem. Generally your kid won't make the travel team in late elementary or middle school if they haven't been playing travel since 3rd grade. If they're not playing travel they also
won't make their middle or high school teams (should they want to do that).
Of course there are athletic phenom outliers but it's generally hard to make up for 5 years of intense practice when you're 12 or 13.

I personally think this all stinks but it is what it is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous[b wrote:]It's hard to make a travel team in middle school, though, when you are competing against kids that have had travel experience/instruction for 2-4 years.[/b]

It's not for everyone. Some people love it. There are lots of kids that try out for things like travel soccer a year earlier than they are even supposed to. To each their own.

This is the problem. Generally your kid won't make the travel team in late elementary or middle school if they haven't been playing travel since 3rd grade. If they're not playing travel they also
won't make their middle or high school teams (should they want to do that).
Of course there are athletic phenom outliers but it's generally hard to make up for 5 years of intense practice when you're 12 or 13.

I personally think this all stinks but it is what it is.

And then people wonder why kids stop playing sports as they get older.

[Anonymous]

Also, in my experience, it's not really accurate to say "is it worth pursuing". I have one kid that played rec in all his sports and was never good enough to play travel. He never tried out and we never discussed it. My other kid was "asked" to play travel by a coach and then we had to decide whether to say yes or not - it wasn't my idea, for sure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't even consider travel for my kids that are this age. My oldest and youngest (9 and 6) would be travel kids, were we to do it (i.e they are already being "recruited" to teams at their age, which I consider to be ridiculous) My 8 year old is a wonderfully average player. We already spent $500 and then $180 on uniforms for rec league soccer and its all of 9 weeks. My friend whose son is 8 and tried out for the "development" league practices 3 times a week and has games/tournaments which require travel every weekend. He cries before practice because he wants to stay at home after a long day at school and play with his friends.

I actually had a classmate in elementary school who was very athletic and sporty, but she used to cry on Sunday nights because she didn't "get to play" all weekend. All the time was taken up with sports. Even if they're really good, they are still kids, and they need time to play.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous[b wrote:]It's hard to make a travel team in middle school, though, when you are competing against kids that have had travel experience/instruction for 2-4 years.[/b]

It's not for everyone. Some people love it. There are lots of kids that try out for things like travel soccer a year earlier than they are even supposed to. To each their own.

This is the problem. Generally your kid won't make the travel team in late elementary or middle school if they haven't been playing travel since 3rd grade. If they're not playing travel they also
won't make their middle or high school teams (should they want to do that).
Of course there are athletic phenom outliers but it's generally hard to make up for 5 years of intense practice when you're 12 or 13.

I personally think this all stinks but it is what it is.

This is actually why I wouldn't have my kid take the travel team path so early. Either my kid is a great athlete and they'll make the team in middle school or high school when it's the right time and developmentally appropriate. Or my kid is an average athlete and really why would I want them to spend their whole lives starting from when they're 8 years old playing one sport that they'll mostly never play again after high school. I'd rather have them learn an instrument or do a wider variety of activities. Evidence has shown that a lot of these kids get injuries too from overplaying at one sport too young.