Should Your Tween Switch Sports?
Many tweens today are heavily involved in sports or other extracurricular activities, and in a good number of those cases the child became involved at a young age. If your tween suddenly announces that he wants to switch sports, how would you handle it? Do you let him switch a sport he knows and understands well for one he has little experience or knowledge of? Of course, every situation will vary from family to family, but for the most part, there's really no good reason to force your child to play a sport when he's interested in another one.
Below are a few reasons why switching one sport for another might be a good idea.
The Upside to Switching Sports
Avoids Overuse Injury: If your tween has been playing tennis or soccer since he was five or has specialized in one sport, there's a possibility that he's at risk for overuse injuries. Overuse injuries are caused when your child makes the same movements over and over again, and pediatricians are seeing these injuries in even young athletes. Switching to another sport, even if it's only for a season or two, may help your child avoid an injury due to overuse. If your child is burned out on his sport, switching to another would keep him moving and exercising, a much better alternative to sitting around on the couch.
Cultivates Additional Skills: Every sport helps its players build and cultivate certain athletic skills, and by switching sports you help your tween grow his athletic abilities. In fact, coaches will tell you that players who try other sports sometimes return to their original sport as better players.
Gives Your Tween a Necessary Change: Children want to expand their horizons and explore new things, so for some tweens playing the same sport every season may become boring or a bit of a drag. Allowing your child the opportunity to find new interests and abilities is what the tween years are all about. You might be surprised that your soccer phenom is equally as good at field hockey or basketball. Wouldn't that be a great discovery?
Opens Up Another Door to Opportunity: You never know what your child will find out by experimenting with another sport. Your team player may decide to try a non-competitive sport, such as bicycling or riflery, and discover that he's much happier in a non-competitive environment. Or, he may discover that he's better or happier in a sport that doesn't require a huge time commitment. Whatever the discovery, it could help your tween learn a bit about himself and help your child learn how to balance his interests with his skills and time.
It Helps Teach Decision Making: It's difficult to learn how to prioritize and make decisions, but allowing your child the opportunity to choose one sport over another helps him learn just that. While you might be tempted to allow your child to "have it all" and play both sports at the same time, forcing your child to choose one over the other gives him the chance to think about his choices and choose one over the other, and that's a skill that will help your tween throughout his lifetime.
Below are a few reasons why switching one sport for another might be a good idea.
The Upside to Switching Sports
Avoids Overuse Injury: If your tween has been playing tennis or soccer since he was five or has specialized in one sport, there's a possibility that he's at risk for overuse injuries. Overuse injuries are caused when your child makes the same movements over and over again, and pediatricians are seeing these injuries in even young athletes. Switching to another sport, even if it's only for a season or two, may help your child avoid an injury due to overuse. If your child is burned out on his sport, switching to another would keep him moving and exercising, a much better alternative to sitting around on the couch.
Cultivates Additional Skills: Every sport helps its players build and cultivate certain athletic skills, and by switching sports you help your tween grow his athletic abilities. In fact, coaches will tell you that players who try other sports sometimes return to their original sport as better players.
Gives Your Tween a Necessary Change: Children want to expand their horizons and explore new things, so for some tweens playing the same sport every season may become boring or a bit of a drag. Allowing your child the opportunity to find new interests and abilities is what the tween years are all about. You might be surprised that your soccer phenom is equally as good at field hockey or basketball. Wouldn't that be a great discovery?
Opens Up Another Door to Opportunity: You never know what your child will find out by experimenting with another sport. Your team player may decide to try a non-competitive sport, such as bicycling or riflery, and discover that he's much happier in a non-competitive environment. Or, he may discover that he's better or happier in a sport that doesn't require a huge time commitment. Whatever the discovery, it could help your tween learn a bit about himself and help your child learn how to balance his interests with his skills and time.
It Helps Teach Decision Making: It's difficult to learn how to prioritize and make decisions, but allowing your child the opportunity to choose one sport over another helps him learn just that. While you might be tempted to allow your child to "have it all" and play both sports at the same time, forcing your child to choose one over the other gives him the chance to think about his choices and choose one over the other, and that's a skill that will help your tween throughout his lifetime.