Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Swimming is great. It is really good for kids who can listen well to directions and are detail oriented, so could work well for a kid with ASD. Also there isn;t the same rec vs travel dynamic. even if your kid is slower, he or she will still get private coaching.

They'll get coaching because you're paying travel prices (actually more than travel in most sports)

Yes but for sports like baseball, an unathletic kid won't have the option of playing on a team with a professional coach. I don't think op asked for a cheap sport. If so, don't pick winter swim team!!!!

If the kid is that unathletic, they will have trouble finding a swim club to take them

Almost everyone read the original post, but not the title.

Anonymous wrote:Depending on how he presents, wrestling could be a good sport. I read an article awhile back about wrestling for kids who seek tactile pressure, as well as those with vestibular seeking tendencies.

Also, wrestling is a sport that allows you to attend practices without pressure to participate in real matches. That is optional

Depending on how he presents, wrestling could be a good sport. I read an article awhile back about wrestling for kids who seek tactile pressure, as well as those with vestibular seeking tendencies.

Anonymous wrote:Swimming and gymnastics great for little kids. Also consider skating lessons - hockey players benefit greatly from getting an early start in skating, sounds like DC has the right body type, and it is a social/life long sport (adult beer leagues are the best).

Hockey coach here. I think hockey is a bad choice for someone with autism--the noise, lights, speed of the game, contact, pressure, all of it. Just skating, or maybe speed skating, but I would not encourage hockey. Think of it as soccer on steroids.

for those saying whatever sport he enjoys, that is true. But at least in my experience, kids are less likely to enjoy a sport they feel incompetent at. I remember when my son started swimming, he said he refused to go to any meets. When we took him to his first one and he got third place in an event at a young age, swimming suddenly became his favorite sport. On the other hand, he hates basketball because while other kids clearly have been playing casually for years and can dribble and shoot without issue, he looks completely uncomfortable.

As a former special ed teacher, I second swimming. We took our students swimming as part of our school week (1x/week at a JCC (pre-covid and it was being slowly reintroduced at our non-public school before I left)

It's great exercise, not too hard on the joints, and when you think about the social aspect, so many summer activities involve swimming and an introduction to new peers. It's also a life skill for safety purposes as they are more likely to fear learning it later in life.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Swimming is great. It is really good for kids who can listen well to directions and are detail oriented, so could work well for a kid with ASD. Also there isn;t the same rec vs travel dynamic. even if your kid is slower, he or she will still get private coaching.

They'll get coaching because you're paying travel prices (actually more than travel in most sports)

Yes but for sports like baseball, an unathletic kid won't have the option of playing on a team with a professional coach. I don't think op asked for a cheap sport. If so, don't pick winter swim team!!!!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What a sad question to ask! How about "what sports would my kid enjoy"?

this. Your child will not be the best at a sport just bc he starts it young. He can become pretty good with hard work, perseverance, training, and good coaching. He will never surpass the kids who have natural talent and do those things. It’s how it is for everyone. And for all the sports listed above…this still applies.

Not ping pong. You seen those 3 year olds train in Asia

Anonymous wrote:What a sad question to ask! How about "what sports would my kid enjoy"?

this. Your child will not be the best at a sport just bc he starts it young. He can become pretty good with hard work, perseverance, training, and good coaching. He will never surpass the kids who have natural talent and do those things. It’s how it is for everyone. And for all the sports listed above…this still applies.

Ping pong of course

If you yourself are interested and your child would be okay with the crowds, going to casual social dance like contra dances as a family might be a good set up. It's fun and very easy and repetitive, offers lots of socialization within the bounds of a shared activity (so no one's put on the spot by needing too much small talk), and has lots of patterns. No competition so skill is not a prerequisite and there's no being cut from the team.

However, it's definitely a mixed age/adult experience so it won't set your kid up for friendships with many peers necessarily, there are lots of crowds and touching with might lead to serious overload in a sensitive kid, and it's pretty unrepentantly nerdy so while it's a safe place to be a weido among weirdos it won't win anyone popularity in a conventional part of society like school.

What a sad question to ask! How about "what sports would my kid enjoy"?

Anonymous wrote:Swimming is great. It is really good for kids who can listen well to directions and are detail oriented, so could work well for a kid with ASD. Also there isn;t the same rec vs travel dynamic. even if your kid is slower, he or she will still get private coaching.

They'll get coaching because you're paying travel prices (actually more than travel in most sports)

Swimming, fencing, but most of all, golf.