Sports are fun activities for kids that can help them build skills and support their development. Kids that take part in sports can learn important life skills such as leadership, discipline and teamwork. Kids get to interact with others in a fun, active way and keep busy throughout the year. Knowing how to support your child in sports is not always straightforward and in this article we’ll share our top tips to help them along the way whilst keeping sports fun for them.
Get involved in your kids love of sports by taking part in an activity they like. Sharing a sport and doing it together will motivate your kids and keep them interested in the sport long term. For example, you could both develop a passion for running and start setting different paces and distances as you progress. There are so many other sports you can try together such as football, netball, hockey or even rugby. Choose a sport that your kids are interested in, then get practising different skills in the garden or park to build their confidence.
When the kids are learning different sports they are bound to have a few misplaced passes or shots from time to time, so being there as a parent to uplift them is important. Give your kids praise for doing well and when they are progressing with new skills, as in time this will turn into motivation for kids. Even celebrating the small wins and telling kids that you noticed they tried their best will give them a huge boost.
Like with everything in life, the best way to learn is often from trying and failing. As much as kids enjoy praise and encouragement, sometimes it’s more important to let them learn from their own mistakes. By giving them room to learn from their mistakes during the season, they’ll be able to grow into a better player and realise that there is nothing wrong with failure.
Sports are meant to be fun and it’s impossible for anyone to aim for perfection. That’s why it’s important to teach your kids that winning and losing is all part of the game so they can enjoy their sport without worrying about the outcome. Take the time to reinforce the fun aspect of sporting activities and get your kids to focus on being the best they can be whilst accepting that they aren’t perfect. By doing this you are helping them develop a healthy relationship with the sport.
You may find yourself asking how to motivate a child who is unmotivated especially when they have committed to a sports team. This question is bound to come up if the kids have been doing sport for a while and may be outgrowing the sport. Speak to your child to see if they are still enjoying it, or see if they would like to try something different. Remember it might take a few tries to find something they are really passionate about and if they aren’t enjoying it then it’s not worth forcing it. Keep the sport fun by celebrating small wins, remind them of the bits they enjoy and don’t pressure them if they aren’t feeling it anymore.
Sports are meant to be fun, entertaining and about your child’s development. It’s not easy to know how to motivate your child in sports but by practising these top tips you’ll be able to get a good feeling for what motivates them and learn how to support your child in sports they enjoy. It’s also important to remember that what works for your child might not be the same for another person’s child. If your kids aren’t having fun then there is no point forcing it. Try another sport with them until they find one they like and prefer.
If you would like to find ways to take part in sports this summer read our Best Olympic games for kids article where we share some ideas. If you want to teach the kids more about the Olympics why not read our History of the Olympic games article or our Top 5 Olympic Games of all time article.