Sports activity important for our children

Aug 22, 2019 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

As our August holidays quickly come to an end and parents are getting set preparing for the re-opening of school, I want to remind parents of the importance of sport in our children’s lives -from pre-schoolers to high schoolers.
During the past month, I was very pleased to see a number of sporting disciplines conduct “Summer Programmes for Children”. This positive activity must be commended. In particular, the more organised Junior Sports Programmes out there like swimming, table tennis, tennis (formerly lawn tennis) and archery.
Activity is important. For the most part, sports programmes, in Guyana and around the world for our very young ones, are primarily about having fun. If it is a team sport, a score is usually not kept (although chances are that you’ll find a child who does) and the focus is on safety and a very loose interpretation of the rules (run in that direction). For individual sports, again, safety and the basic parameters of the sport of choice are covered.
Whether team or individual, sports are undoubtedly a great way to encourage fitness and develop important social and motor skills. They also learn persistence and determination. Having a child active in sports is a really great way to help boost self-esteem and confidence in addition to helping instill important life skills, like good communication habits and being a team player.
No matter what we as parents decide, it’s very important to make sure that our child is active, whether it is through one of the above organised sports programme or disciplines or just running around outside as we did when we ourselves were small. It’s well-known that an hour of exercise is the minimum.
And just as a reminder if you have your heart set on your child playing a sport but (s)he just isn’t interested right now…don’t throw in the towel just yet. As (s)he gets older and more mature and confident in his/her physical abilities, chances are that enthusiasm will be there!

Sincerely,
Mommy V

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