Should Kids Specialize At An Early Childhood?

One of the major reasons why adult think youth sports are being too intense is that sports specialization is at a record high. Although this is true it is still only at 25 percent. Sports specialization should not happen until 15 or 16 according to a harvard study(Sirs). If 25 percent of people are specializing in one sports that mean 75 percent of youth are not focusing on one sport. So even though some youth are specializing in one sport he majority of of youth players do not focus on one sport but rather play multiple sports. Jane Cray, a parent whose child specialises in hockey, says that the main reason she lets her son, who is 10, specialize is she believes that this will help him earn an athletic scholarship to a major college. This is not true. There was a study done by harvard in which they found out that specializing does not make you a better athlete or better at that one sport. Playing multiple sports when youth athletes are young helps develop to the athletes athletic potential quicker than they would.

Youth sports ages are considered to be high school sports and below. “And more than 45 national sports groups, including the USTA, MLB, NFL, PGA, and NHL are backing an effort to encourage multi-sport play” (Rosenwald, 2017, p. 3). Kids love sports, and it’s one of the things that they do for fun. Sports keep the youth in today’s society physically and socially active which can help prepare them for their future greatly. Most kids that do play youth sports are out for more than just one sport, which helps kids even more, and that is very helpful for them. When they play more than one sport it helps them develop skill that they can use in other sports. “They(the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and

Competitive sports in some cases are becoming very unhealthy for children. Most children would rather play on a losing team than sit on the bench of a winning team. Youth sports are a great idea to get children up and active, as well as improve their social skills. Just like every other thing in life it is important to practice and work hard to achieve success. However it is unhealthy to push for results over the needs or wants of the child. Aside from the mental stress that young athletes may experience from intense training and physical play long lasting injures is now a growing concern. Fact is competitive sports is a double edge sword if done right it is the greatest thing world, but if done wrong it can be very unhealthy for a child.

If kids don’t try other sports, how do they know whether or not they might like those sports more or be better at them? For many athletes their bodies are not completely developed. By playing at the speed of the higher conditioned and developed players in the professional league, young underdeveloped athletes run the risk of suffering an early career ending injury. These opportunities, though, come at a cost. While young athletes are participating in intensive sporting education, their academic education may be neglected. Age effects take a greater approach to the physical side of the sports people body, as the older the sports person is, the more mature and developed their body is and the younger the person is the less developed they are. Training and traveling all

Being a professional athlete is one of the most commonly heard dreams of a young boy or girl who currently elementary school. Whether it is realistic or not, these kids will be participating in the sport that they wish to thrive in. But, time after time we hear adults complain about their child’s insane soccer schedule, or how they have to spend their whole weekend traveling for games. The parents complaints shouldn’t be the topic of discussion, in fact the only opinions that matter are the children. The question shouldn’t be asking whether or not youth sports are too intense, it should be asking if it is worth it. If a child loves what they’re doing then they have every reason to continue playing their sport, but if they are not all in, he or she has to question whether or not all the craziness is worth it.

Research shows that early specialization in a single sport while eliminating others can have adverse effects. From the intense practices to pressure-filled competitions, young athletes can feel a considerable amount

“Playing with Pain,” by Michelle Crouch in December, 2016, teaches us that focusing too much on one sport is not very good. Studies show that specializing in one sport actually has the opposite effect of what people think or say about it. Crouch write in the article about the experiences of Kellen Sillanpaa, a young athlete. The central idea is that if a person specializes in only one sport, there could be consequences. Some of the consequences are having pains, not being able to play a sport or do normal activities, and having a lower chance of success later in life.

Sports are a popular pastime among all ages and types of people. People not only participate in them for fun, but also for money, physical fitness, rush of competition, and for many other personal reasons. Playing sports is especially common among young people in schools. Athletics are great and enjoyable for many reasons, but there can be a point where sports participation can go too far and become negative for children and adults. Sports specialization for young people is an increasing trend that results in sports having a negative impact on individuals and society.

Many youth sports are part of community organized after-school programs. There are many different types of these programs such as T-Ball, Little League Baseball, Pop Warner Football, soccer, martial arts, cheerleading, and so forth. “There are over 40 million youth participating in organized sports, and both girls and boys have a dazzling array of choices and can play a sport year round” (Le Menestrel and Perkins 13). Communities use youth sport as an outlet to encourage social activity, a healthy lifestyle, and skill development for that particular sport. For example, “Participation in organized sports can provide opportunities for youth to learn more about specific skills and exercises associated with a particular sport” (Perkins and Noam 76). These programs offer opportunities to boost skills and connect positively with others. Without these activities, parents will have to find another developmental setting that may not give similar or beneficial outcomes as those of organized youth sport. Studies found that, “Sports

However, the days of simply playing ball with your friends are over. It is a different world for young athletes. Sports at a young age should be fun and a great source of physical activity. Yet, many children are specializing in one sport early- playing year-round, joining competitive clubs, or travel teams and participating in special training programs- believing they’ll put themselves on the fast

There are tons of sports for kids to play and finding the right one can have a huge boost on children's overall wellbeing. Not every kid was made to play football or baseball. Dont force a child into a sport they aren't very interested in. Recognize what your child is interested in “There's something for everyone — from soccer and baseball for team-oriented kids, to tennis, fencing, karate, dancing, and swimming for kids who'd rather go solo” (Signing Kids Up) there's a sport out there for every kid so finding the right one is important. Playing sports around the house can be a great way to introduce lots of different sports into a child's life. When kids are just having fun with a sport not involved with a league just with their parents and

Sports are not for everybody, not only because of talent level, but because a certain mindset is to be had to be successful at any sport. A commitment is made. Forty hours of practice a week, the average amount of time spent practicing for football players, all for a one hour game, the average time of one game of college football, takes dedication. That is not even counting the time spent icing, resting, and studying the playbook or film, not to mention the school work to be kept up with for college and high school students. Most athletes have become used to the grind and juggling three or four time consuming activities all at one time while being successful at each. Waking up at the break of dawn, following a schedule, and suffering consequences when a bad choice is made creates character and discipline that is often needed for many little league, high school, and college athletes. The most important non tangible thing sports teach anyone is how to get back up after falling, how to get knocked down but get right back up and keep going, how to move on from failure and overcome it, focusing on the next important part of life. These skills of determination and courage taught through sports are essential for being successful in any part of life and are hard to come by anywhere

As mentioned by Sokolove on page two, “... we increasingly ask more of young athletes, especially if they show talent: play longer, play harder, play faster, play for higher stakes. And we ask this of boys and girls equally -- unmindful of physical differences. The pressure to concentrate on a ‘best’ sport before even entering middle school -- and to play it year-round -- is bad for all kids.” I agree with Sokolove’s quote because overspecialization can harm the social, emotional, and physical development of young athletes. Specifically, in terms of the physical development of an athlete for this reading response paper, overspecialization leads young athletes to commit the majority of their physical activity to one sport and

These days, there is too much pressure on children who participate in organized sports because of the unnecessary parental involvement they experience. A growing concern amongst those involved in youth sports is that certain aspects of parental involvement become detrimental to the development and experiences of young athletes. Early emphasis on winning, making money, and the disruption of education can exceedingly affect ones desire to further participate in a sport later on in his/her life.

Practicing a sport can be highly beneficial to children, until it’s taken too far. Often called training now, children as young as six years old are participating in sports that require too much time. At that age, sports should be something fun to do and a favorable source of physical activity. However, whenever an athlete shows a hint of a talent, child exploitation occurs (Bean 10234). Between the ages of 7-12, adolescents should be learning identity, motives, beliefs, and values, but nearly all athletes are practicing 5 days a week with games every Saturday. This leaves no time or energy for hanging out with friends, homework, family time, and relaxation. Dr. Shane Murphy reports that if a coach or trainer sees talent in a young child, immediately they are convincing the