Finding the Best Sports Program for Your Child.

• Author: Zartman, Sharkie
• Position: ATHLETIC ARENA

WHEN IT COMES to participating in sports, most kids have two things in common: they want to play and have fun doing it. However, children also have other goals and expectations and that is where we, as parents, need to match the program to our offspring.

Keep in mind that your child is not a minime. Just because you were a successful athlete and a fierce competitor does not mean that your son or daughter will follow suit. Each kid comes into this world with different talents, personalities, and body types. So, taking an honest look at your child is a good place to start.

It usually is a huge transition for parents to see their kids play a sport for the first time. Up until then, mothers and fathers had a lot of control over what their children did but, when your child is on the court or the field for the first time, get ready for a roller-coaster ride. You have no control and you just have to watch and support. That is both exhilarating and difficult.

So, how can we help our kids enjoy sports without butting in? We need to match the program with our child and also be ready to change when--and if--our child changes. Besides physical attributes like height, body type, and quickness, we need to consider our child's personality. Certain kids seem like born competitors and others appear more passive and sweet. If you put your child into a program where the coach always is screaming at them to "kill" the other team, the passive child will not want to play. This especially is a problem when the parent is a competitor and the child is more like a dove who just wants to hang out with other kids and be nice.

Also remember that it takes a while for a child to learn a new skill, and many sports have a lot of techniques that must be mastered before proficiency can be displayed. Be patient. Hopefully, you will have a coach who teaches the techniques correctly and allows the players to make mistakes while they are learning.

When is a child is ready to learn a game? Kids usually are able to perform a variety of motor skills by the age of four or five, but developing agility takes longer. When you combine this with a relatively short attention span, you can see why teaching kids at this young age is difficult. A good rule of thumb is to introduce skills when they are ready to learn them with the emphasis on fun and trying to do the skills correctly.

There generally are three stages most kids go through concerning interest and motivation for participating in...