1. She's a Natural
Is your 18 month old making baskets in her mini basketball net? Does your little girl dance to the beat of your favorite CD, kid songs or commercials? Does your child expertly kick and dribble a soccer ball around the back yard for fun? If so, you are easily able to identify natural abilities and inclinations they may have for certain sports. Taking that knowledge, you can cultivate their interest and skills through formal lessons, teams and play. Sometimes, it is not easy to spot these athletic abilities and match them up to the right sport. For instance, you may see your favorite little guy loves climbing trees, but what sport would that translate to? Possibly rock climbing, maybe wrestling. Think outside the box as to what athletic skills and inclinations they are demonstrating, and then see what other sports use them. Climbing a tree requires much upper body strength and grappling ability, both great skills to have in wrestling.
2. Schedule
Time and energy are big issues when determining what sports are right for your child. Ask these questions: how many practices/games and of what duration? What is the location of the activity? Being able to comfortably fit it into both of your schedule is vital to success. If swim team is five days a week at 6 a.m. and dance class is twice per week at 5 p.m., you may have to opt for dance. Practicality is important. So keep these in mind when you select and/or offer sports training to your child.
3. Communication is Key
Ask them what they want and have lots of suggestions with details ready so you can both come to the best agreement on finding the right sport. Just because you love watching figure skating on TV does not mean you are raising the next gold medalist. Be realistic when trying to find the right sport for your child. Ask them what they like to do. They may not be able to verbalize "I want to play indoor soccer," but may instead say, “I like playing with the balls inside gym." Talk it out with them; even the young ones have a lot to say. If it is a collaborative effort between a parent and child, you can be sure you have found the right sport for your child. Keep in mind, kids change their minds often, so be willing to be fairly flexible.
