“A Father’s Perspective on Active Play: Get Kids Watching Sports, Get Kids Playing Sports”
As parents and former competitive athletes, Jen and I have always tried to encourage active play with our kids by introducing them to a variety of activities.
Climbing. Running. Jumping.
Racing. Tumbling. Throwing.
Biking. Swimming. Skating.
Bouncing. Tagging. Kicking.
Swinging. Sliding. Spinning.
Our kids have been fortunate to have grown up across the street from a large public park, and for the better part of the past twelve years we’ve used that park with them for all of its worth. Families bond in many ways, and a major part of our family’s dynamics revolve around the interactions that Jen and I share with our kids through physical play. Our involvement can come in many forms. Teaching. Engaging. Coaching. The underlying theme we’ve always tried to stress isn’t so much about competition as it is about them having fun. Most kids, particularly at younger ages, aren’t interested in being trained to become superstar athletes. What they want is to spend their time doing the things they enjoy with the people who are closest to them. In other words: the pursuit of happiness in its purest form. For adults like me, we could learn a lot by slowing down our busy lives and taking notice of their ambitions. A closer look reveals an obvious truth: they’re chasing the same goal as we are.
The benefits of active play go beyond physical activity.
One of the greatest aspects about getting kids involved with sports is that it allows them to socialize with their peers. They can practice healthy lifestyle habits, expend energy, and learn to work with others in ways that are constructive, inclusive, and (with just the right amount of balanced supervision) safe. The more positive associations they can relate to active play the better, as the bridges they build from physical, social, and emotional perspectives will be able to diversify and strengthen over time.
There are plenty of reasons why kids are drawn to sports. The most effective strategies for getting them involved can vary, but most require more than us merely telling them they should do it.
I’ve previously written about how the concept of “show, don’t tell” relates to my work as a writer (https://www.toddlynchwriting.com/blog/show-dont-tell-beyond-the-books). Not surprisingly, there are a number of “show, don’t tell” applications that go hand in hand with encouraging active play for kids. Explaining the value of something is one thing, and not without purpose, but as most parents can attest it’s much easier to hit home on the points we try to make with our kids by demonstrating them. When parents embark on a new activity they often need to step outside of their comfort zones. This can be intimidating, but we should keep in mind that we don’t need to be experts at what we’re doing in order to get our kids to participate along with us. Not everything we take part in is going to be easy, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still try to make the activity fun. If our attempts are genuine, then odds are our kids will recognize them. Life has a funny way of managing to hold us accountable. So long as we do our best to try to live by our words, then a healthy balance exists for everyone.
Once kids witness the excitement of sports being played at the highest level, the odds are good that they’ll become more inclined to engage in the activity themselves.
When I consider how the allure of watching sports has contributed to my own kids’ motivations to participate in them, I recall the playoff run of the 2020-2021 Milwaukee Bucks. As a family, Jen, Graham, Penelope, and I watched a lot of Bucks games during the 2020-2021 basketball season. The kids couldn’t play organized basketball that year in our community due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so with our social options being limited, we invested ourselves in the journey of the Bucks team. The trials of Giannis, Khris, Jrue, Brook, P.J., Bobby, and Coach Bud were inspirational to basketball fans of all ages in the state of Wisconsin, including our kids. Giannis’s gritty return from what looked like a season-ending knee injury. Jrue Holiday, “unlocked,” carrying the team on his shoulders when they needed him most. Khris Middleton’s rise from offensive sidekick to the team’s coldblooded playmaker in the clutch. P.J. Tucker’s ferocity as a giant-killer and the job he did as the team’s one-on-one, defensive stopper. Bobby Portis’s work ethic, energy, unadorned style of play, and the connection he forged with the Bucks’ fan base (Bobby!...Bobby!...Bobby!). What I’ll remember most from that season though, is Graham and Penelope staying up late to watch as much of each game as we’d allow them to, their amazement over the tens of thousands of fans who’d be gathered in front of the jumbotron outside Fiserv Forum on the streets, and the fact that they went from being casual basketball observers to dedicated participants of the game, seemingly overnight.
The big moments in sports that happen on the grand stage are great for capturing kids’ attention, but sometimes the little things can have just as much of an impact.
To demonstrate this point, I’ll share with you a pair of personal examples. One is from when Graham was three years old. My father-in-law, Dennis Crawford, was over at our house for a visit. I remember it being a summer day, and because the weather was nice, we took Graham over to the nearby school playground to let him run around. Denny and I brought tennis rackets along, with the idea of hitting tennis balls to each other on the basketball courts that sit next to the playground equipment. We probably spent 30 minutes launching tennis balls back and forth while Graham looked on. Our playing surface was easily twice the length of a typical tennis court, so we were able to volley uninterrupted for long stretches of time. Graham, who never kept still, watched in amazement as we hit one towering shot after another. He’d laugh and cheer loudly throughout our rallies, making it just as entertaining to observe him as it was for Denny and I to play. In the days that would follow, Graham and I would begin hitting tennis balls to one another over at the same school, albeit from closer range, and although many years have passed since then he still remembers the day, making it one of his earliest and most formative sports-related memories.
As for Penelope, she too has a sports-observation memory that I remember well since it was just as impactful for me as it was on her. She’d just turned three years old, and in my efforts to be Super-Dad, I was pushing her in the swing at the park while also giving seven-year-old Graham instructions for hitting golf balls on the nearby grass. I was bouncing between one kid and the other, doing my best to advise Graham on how to keep his golf swing smooth and consistent, while also entertaining Penelope by singing nursery rhymes and pushing her as high as the swing set would allow. At one point, Graham crossed the street and went back home, bringing his golf clubs with him. Once Penelope had enough of the swing, I helped her get down and began walking across the woodchips with her, hand in hand, in the direction of the sidewalk. She looked up at me, and with an expression of precious innocence, asked, “Dad, can you teach me how to swing a golf club?” I turned to her, and knowing she was about the same height as the average club, I smiled, and replied, “You know, Penelope, you might be just a little young right now. Golf is kind of complicated. I don’t think I started teaching Graham until he was at least five, and even then…”
That’s when Penelope stopped walking and let go of my hand. She glared at me, and with an icy tone to her voice, she told me something I’ll never forget.
“Don’t tell me I can’t do it.”
For the past twenty-five years I’d stood six foot, four inches tall, but in that moment I felt like the smallest human being on the face of the Earth. Realizing my error, and knowing that any form of an apology would fall on deaf ears, I gazed over at the green space where Graham had just been hitting from, and responded to her in the only way I knew could make the situation right.
“Let’s go get the clubs.”
Take it from me. When it comes to active play, you never know when a child will first show interest in trying something new. So be ready, because the moment may present itself when you least expect it to.
Thanks for reading, everyone!
- Todd
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