At what age should kids start organized sports?

[Mazurka Girl]

At what age should kids start organized sports? (http://www.sunspot.net/sports/bal-sp.youthsports26jan26,0,5539691.story?coll=bal-sports-headlines)
Johnny Johns, executive director of the Detroit Skating Club and a top pairs coach, remembers how he dreaded figure-skating lessons when he was a child.

[Dave Amorde]

Interesting read, but it completely ignores the reasons why organized sports are becoming so popular. American culture no longer accepts the notion of kicking the kids out of the house for the day, to let them organize their own play. Parents insist upon direct supervision. Such a thing would be intolerable if play was unstructured.
When I was a kid, I spent untold hours riding my bike within a 20 mile radius of my home - from age 8 on up. I explored oil fields, orange groves, creekbeds. Today, my wife panicks at the idea of my 11 year old son riding beyond our small neighborhood. Team sports are a way of "letting the stink blow off" while still keeping the kids supervised. Not to imaginative, but at least I know where my kids are.
The same can be said today for skating. Although an individual sport, it is learned within a small group (the other rink rats) and in a fixed location. There are bleachers for the parents to sit at while they balance the chequebook, update the calendar, whatever.

[meli]

I agree with your general thrust, Dave. But I just have to lament the fact there are legions of children out there who will never truly develop the sense of "play" because they've been stuck in organized sports all their lives and never had to learn it on their own. It's the way some parents view coloring books--they don't want to give their kids the coloring books because they don't want them to learn that they can only color within the lines, and that only certain colors go with certain things (trees always have to have green leaves, for instance). In an organized sport children are taught to play within the lines.

I'm not totally knocking the concept--in organized sports children should learn fair play and how to sacrifice for the concept of the team. They also learn self discipline and in solitary organized sports (like skating) how to be happy with personal improvement. But I don't think a parent should force a child into any organized sport simply because the society currently demands it, paranoia, or the parents can't or won't take the time to supervise their children.

[Lee]

Unfortunately, the dangers out and about in our world -- even in small towns -- is all too real, and parents are all too rightfully afraid to give their kids the freedom to roam that we once enjoyed.

Our kids are couch potatoes for the most part (read the latest statistics in child obesity in North America), so if they're NOT in organized sports, they're not getting much of any physical actiivity. Even though educators recognize the value of daily physical education for healthy bodies AND minds, one of the first things that gets cut to the minimum when money is tight *is* PE. If every school could offer daily phys. ed. to every student, it would help.

As for the organized sports -- I think organized sport can be wonderful as long as the proper perspective of fun and fitness is kept at the forefront by the adults in charge. Left to their own devices, the kids would figure things out and have a ball doing it -- it's usually the adults and *their* agendas that take the fun out of sport. Just ask all the kids who quit organized (fill-in-the-blank -- hockey, baseball, soccer) every year. How did so many adults lose their sense of fun as they grew up? Sad, isn't it?

[Dave Amorde]

Organized sports are not necessarily that constricting, either. Both of my boys play soccer, but much of that time is spent in the backyard or the neighborhood "greebelt" polishing their skills spontaneously with whoever comes to play. It may not be "hide and seek", but it is still healthy activity.
Just about any sporting activity that involves real practice and competition can be used as a springboard for learning and character building. It is up to the parents to emphasize those positive aspects, minimize the negative, and allow their children to grow.

[yogurtslinger]

There really is some truth to the "you'll thank me later" idea. Some activities I wanted to do initially, but then "got sick of" a little bit into it, my parents made me keep doing... and I'm very grateful now that they did push me. Especially when I hear stories from other people my age of how they've done so many things but have never stuck with anything.

And considering how valuable that "learning frame" is when you are young... it's not something you can go back and undo/redo. So, I do think it's very valuable to dedicate yourself to something at an early age.

[Rachel]

You know, when I was growing up and taking piano lessons and ballet classes, no one ever said, "Oh, you poor deprived child, robbed of your childhood."

Most people thought I was lucky to have the opportunity.

Maybe my kids are weird, but....they both take lessons in some things and they both play soccer on teams and they both have homework just about every day. And they both ride their bikes and rollerblade up and down the street and play pick-up football in someone's backyard and hang out at the pool in the summer. So far the organized sports show no sign of destroying their ability to play.

Some parents are out of control, but I think some people take it all way too seriously, too.

[MyTripleFlutz]

I have every intention of getting my children involved with organized sports while they are still in the fetus stage. That's the only way to get ahead in life these days. ;)