The benefits of sport for children are almost endless but how do we get kids hooked? We ask the experts
CREDIT: This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared in theGuardian
Parents can still play a crucial role in nurturing a love of sport and exercise in their children from a young age.
Pre-schoolers
Start ASAP, but focus on fun. “Getting children into activities at the earliest opportunity establishes a pattern … you can’t start too early,” says Claire-Marie Roberts, psychologist and head of coach development at the Premier League.
Make sport a normal part of life – Marie recommends trying to keep kids active every day. “A buggy is the most expedient way of transporting a child from A to B, but if you make the time to walk or scoot, you will all reap the benefits”.
Focus on praise – “Praise is important,” Marie adds. This is supported by the accounts of many adult athletes. For example, England footballer and former captain Steph Houghton said she needs, “that little bit of praise to feel appreciated for the commitment and intensity I give”.
Primary school age
Try a lot of different sports – expose your children to as many activities as possible – one might stick and they will be sure to learn a little bit from everything. This is exactly what happened to Steph Houghton. “Taekwondo was about discipline and respect; football was about being competitive and working as a team.”
Involve yourself – simply signing them up isn’t enough. Marie believes that parents who are involved “sets positive behavioural examples, so exercising becomes the norm in that family”. She encourages both parents to participate. “Unfortunately, in normative heterosexual family units, usually it’s the man who will role-model sport and exercise. It’s really important that both parents do this equally.”
It should not be seen as a chore – many adults think we have to exercise, but this is a mindset that kids do not need to develop. Olympic gold medalist, Sir Chris Hoy, sees things differently. “Sport was a reward…If my grades were good, I could go to the BMX track. If a kid doesn’t find sports fun, keep trying; just get out walking, or on a bike, or bounce on a trampoline – you never see anyone frowning on a trampoline.”
Find their passion (not yours) – “Parents often use their children as outlets for dreams they didn’t achieve,” Marie warns, and Chris Hoy advises parents that talking to their children about what they enjoy will help with “funnelling them in that direction because they’ll get more excitement from it”.
As a kid, Chris recalls “kids being dragged around the country to race, and quitting as soon as they were old enough to make their own decisions. The biggest reason I’m still riding my bike is that I never lost my love for it.”
Teenagers
Help them overcome disappointments – it’s a good idea to identify the positives, and focus on effort and improvement, to prevent teenagers from losing interest. “Encouraging children to reflect, and explaining that everybody experiences disappointments – including the most successful athletes,” are important, according to Marie.
Puberty – research by the Women in Sport charity found that 43% of girls who at one time considered themselves sporty disengage from the sport at secondary school age. Changing bodies, hormonal breakouts, periods etc. can be a problem. Rebecca Adlington remembers being self-conscious. “I was a lot heavier than the other girls. I suffered from spots too, so it wasn’t always easy.”.To overcome this, she focused on what her body could do, not what it looked like. “Swimming gave me confidence because I was good at it.”
Let them be teenagers – being a teen is difficult, so cut them some slack! “By not letting them go to parties because of training, we do them a disservice,” Marie says. Steph Houghton agrees. “It’s important to have normal teenage experiences” – though she also admits, “You have to make sacrifices…If there was training Sunday morning, there was no way my Dad was letting me out Saturday night!
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