Which Sport to Choose for My Daughter

image:flickr.com/photos/wojtekp/7513120260/

 

If you're a responsible parent, you should always try to guide your children into the taking those decisions you deem the best for them. After all, it's not like you're projecting your own past hopes and unfulfilled dreams onto your child – you want to help them become productive and successful members of society so they can save themselves the embarrassment of saying they couldn't succeed which would consequently mean you've failed as a parent. No one likes failing and that's why we do everything in our power to push the children to succeed.

Sports are a great way to build up obedience, discipline, succumbing to a higher power, and respect for authority – all skills crucial for every productive member of this society. After all, sportsmanship teaches us how to work in teams and how to be competitive, as well as that we should do everything in order to win. It's not really that much about the sport – it's victory that matters and the earlier your child learns that, the better.

This process can be especially difficult for girls. When you say “sports”, the first thing that pops up into a person's head is usually baseball or football, associated with male strength and characteristics. So how can you help your daughter develop the skill needed to survive in the city jungle without having to bid her against the high school's boxing champion (or whatever)?

Where do you start?

The first step on the way of your daughter's success is assessing her body type. It might be a little difficult for you as a parent to be objective about this but it's crucial. You can't sight up a scrawny little girl into the high school's sumo wrestling program (if they have one) just like you can't sign up a stocky girl in the synchronized swimming team (I mean, you can, but you will force your kid to be embarrassed in front for the whole school and have to suffer untold amounts of mockery just because she will be a bit different from the other girls on the team; high school is a cruel place). In fact, you shouldn't sign her up for anything. After assessing her body type and deciding what sports would be best for her, instead of telling her to pick one, you should...

Expose her to all sports she might fit/like

This is one of the few times in your daughter's life when the decision should be hers (after you've presented the options, of course). Expose her to a wide variety of sports and see which ones fit her and which ones she seems to enjoy. This is a great way to see what kind of a person she is growing up to be. Whatever sport fits her best should be the logical choice for her, but you have to let her decide. In the end, from handball, through volleyball to gymnastics and swimming, they will all be beneficial for  her in the sense that they will help her develop certain skills. However, important things to consider is...

Individual or team sports?

Some people were born to be lone wolves while others are always able to enjoy the company and support of others. If you're daughter is socially awkward, her first instinct would be to go for individual sports. You should encourage to at least try team sports. They are excellent for developing communication skills and team-play while in a friendly and competitive environment.

If she still insists on individual sports, she learn to better deal with problems on her own in individual competitions, but her communication skills aren't going to develop that much.

Consider all the options and then decide what works best for you, as well as her.

Author Bio: Jessica Conars likes to spend her time with her family. In her professional life she is a manager in a cleaning agency, providing professional cleaning in London.