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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]OP here...I guess what I'm asking is whether you just say no to travel sports/competition sports in early elementary? I don't want him to have to "choose" something now when he wants to do a lot of stuff and he really has no idea what the future holds. Did you just say no to competitive teams in elementary and middle school? If he does 12 hrs of gymnastics a week he won't be able to do anything else.[/quote]

OK, I'll take a crack at this. Gymnastics is the easiest sport to decide about, because boys in gymnastics are outliers. If he is PASSIONATE about it, and understands that 12 hours is a lot for a 2nd grader, I'd let him try it for a couple of years. It makes kids incredibly strong, which would only benefit him if he ultimately picks any or all of the other sports instead.

A boy who STICKS with gymnastics is also more likely than a girl to get a college scholarship, but that is a million miles away from 2nd grade, so you don't have to worry about that now.

As for all the other sports you mentioned, don't worry about running, because soccer is all running, and that's more than enough for a little body. As for the others, one per season. The reason you're getting swept away is that we DO ask kids to specialize too early. If he was invited to be on a travel baseball team, sure you can say no, but then all the kids who say yes progress, and it can be hard to crack in in, say, 5th grade.

But as a parent of older athletes, I will tell you that there is too much bullshit surrounding travel sports for 2nd graders, so I would let him play and dabble for another little while at least. [/quote]

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