IT’S MORE THAN A GAME
FROILAN G. ISIP
Children have to be active every day. Physical activity like sports stimulates growth and leads to improved physical and emotional health. Various medical studies and researches observed that highly active children are less likely to suffer from high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer of the colon, obesity and coronary heart disease later in life.
A sport is form of exercise. It is also known to relive stress. Some children experience as much stress, depression and anxiety as adults do. And because exercise improves health, a fit child is more likely to be well-rested and mentally sharp. Even moderate physical activity has been shown to improve a child’s skill at arithmetic, reading and memorization.
But sports is more than just an exercise for it gives a child more than just physical well being, it contributes to a child’s development both psychologically and socially. Sports is an important learning environment for children according to Dr. Glyn Roberts-University of Illinois. It can affect a child’s development of self-esteem and self-worth. It is also within sports that peer status, sportsmanship and peer acceptance is established and developed.
Diverse studies show that children would rather play sports than do anything else or would rather fail in class than be incompetent on the playing field. This is how important the role of a parent or coach to child’s development. They must work hand in hand in providing a forum for young people to learn how to deal with competition and how to cope with both winning and losing without sacrificing their studies. Many institutions used sports to keep students in school or class. Though others have wrong connotations in sports, still the value of sports to a child’s life is inevitable. Parents and coaches must help children find the success in sports they need to make them feel valued and wanted. These learning concepts highlight the impact of physical education and sports on a child’s social and moral development in addition to physical skills and abilities.
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The author is Master Teacher I at Floridablanca New Settlement Elementary School