As an elementary school kid, our DD was fast, coordinated, climbing on everything, doing cartwheels and tricks on the monkey bars. I am sure I didn't list everything that made us proud of her athletic abilities. After she hit puberty she slowed down. It didn't help that COVID hit right around that transition, so we couldn't place her in any rec sports. Now she loves her team sport (that she discovered after COVID), but she is not the same. She is less coordinated and her reaction time is delayed. She is doing ok during practice, but we can see the difference between her and the kids who are really "hungry" to learn and better themselves. She rarely trains outside the official team practices, so I have little hope that she might excel later on. We still encourage her to continue (even though she might never be a standout) because of the benefits of playing sports.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 1st grade daughter really dominates her soccer games. There are usually about 16 kids playing and she just appears to be a bit faster, more coordinated, and more hungry to score than the other kids every time she plays. My husband and I are not and were not good at sports so I am surprised to see this. I guess what I am asking is - is being very good at this age just a product of the other kids not having figured the idea out yet?

It’s obvious you know nada about sports. Wait until after puberty

Correct, which is why I asked in the first place. I was not good at sports.

Ignore these a**holes who know everything and cannot contribute anything positive to a discussion. Sometimes I wonder how they are in real life because the image they project is not very flattering.

+1 it was obvious you were genuinely wondering

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 1st grade daughter really dominates her soccer games. There are usually about 16 kids playing and she just appears to be a bit faster, more coordinated, and more hungry to score than the other kids every time she plays. My husband and I are not and were not good at sports so I am surprised to see this. I guess what I am asking is - is being very good at this age just a product of the other kids not having figured the idea out yet?

It’s obvious you know nada about sports. Wait until after puberty

Correct, which is why I asked in the first place. I was not good at sports.

Ignore these a**holes who know everything and cannot contribute anything positive to a discussion. Sometimes I wonder how they are in real life because the image they project is not very flattering.

Puberty + work ethic

It sounds like she’s athletic and likes the sport! Keep her in lots of sports and keep the focus on having fun, teamwork, sportsmanship, and practicing hard. She’ll be prepared for any sport she chooses to focus on when the time comes

Puberty. For girls around 12 they’ll start to separate. For boys around 14. I’ve seen tons of girls that are awesome hockey players at 8-10u because their dads shad them on skates before they could walk, then everyone else catches up. The real test is at 12-13 (girls) are they still progressing faster than their peers.

14-15 is when separation really begins for boys at least

I was going to say 8th grade or freshman year of HS, so thinking about 1st grade seems a little funny to me! I will say that "hungry to score" is probably more than half the battle. Some athletic kids have a more lackadaisical approach and don't get that competitive edge until later. For example, being "good" at basketball and football versus actually aggressively wanting to block the shot, score the touchdown, tackle the ball carrier, break up the pass, etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 1st grade daughter really dominates her soccer games. There are usually about 16 kids playing and she just appears to be a bit faster, more coordinated, and more hungry to score than the other kids every time she plays. My husband and I are not and were not good at sports so I am surprised to see this. I guess what I am asking is - is being very good at this age just a product of the other kids not having figured the idea out yet?

It’s obvious you know nada about sports. Wait until after puberty

Correct, which is why I asked in the first place. I was not good at sports.

Anonymous wrote:My 1st grade daughter really dominates her soccer games. There are usually about 16 kids playing and she just appears to be a bit faster, more coordinated, and more hungry to score than the other kids every time she plays. My husband and I are not and were not good at sports so I am surprised to see this. I guess what I am asking is - is being very good at this age just a product of the other kids not having figured the idea out yet?

It’s obvious you know nada about sports. Wait until after puberty

+1 To all of the above. Fast kids typically stay fast, but lots of kids who did not appear to be particularly impressive will catch up and potentially exceed those early stars if they are motivated and get physically stronger. That said, different sports have different "growth arcs" and then of course there's a big difference for boys and girls.

At age 6, kids are all over the map in terms of gross motor skills, agility, reaction time, and cognitive abilities. You can’t really predict who’s going to be good later on.

At age six, the “best” kid on my DS’ travel team ended up plateauing and then quitting. The “worst” kid stuck it out, had a growth spurt, practiced in the backyard, and blossomed into the most skilled player at age 12.

Sounds like your DD is off to a good start. Keep encouraging her.

7:15 again and if she’s fast and coordinated maybe it won’t be soccer forever but she might be just naturally athletic like my kid and go from one sport to another. Don’t overthink any of this and let her play for fun in these years.

Anonymous wrote:7th grade seemed to be the year it was really clear who were the standouts. It's great that she is good in first grade but long term- it probably doesn't mean much. Girls really change in 6th/7th grade and sometimes it is good and sometimes it is bad.

But the girls who were really fast in first grade are most likely to stay really fast.

I agree with the fast kids stayed fast. You can’t tell much about how they will be as teens until after puberty. Kids who develop faster, have athletic ability and the desire to train are going to stand out more in late elementary/middle school. It will all change from the early standouts.

My DD did not stand out in 1st at soccer, hit puberty early and was really into it and looked like she was dominating for a few years. We were all in and were researching different club teams by later elementary school and doing travel. By middle school she lost all motivation and quit entirely for a different sport.

7th grade seemed to be the year it was really clear who were the standouts. It's great that she is good in first grade but long term- it probably doesn't mean much. Girls really change in 6th/7th grade and sometimes it is good and sometimes it is bad.

But the girls who were really fast in first grade are most likely to stay really fast.

My 1st grade daughter really dominates her soccer games. There are usually about 16 kids playing and she just appears to be a bit faster, more coordinated, and more hungry to score than the other kids every time she plays. My husband and I are not and were not good at sports so I am surprised to see this. I guess what I am asking is - is being very good at this age just a product of the other kids not having figured the idea out yet?