As their children grow up, every set of parents has a different idea as to what should be the main focus of their upbringing and how they should spend their free time, especially when it comes to extra-curricular activities. Some parents place a huge emphasis on academics and want their children doing extra reading or working with a tutor. Other parents are heavily into sports and want their children to focus on sports. Some parents simply want their children to be children and don’t push them in any particular direction at all.
In most cases, schools give children at least some opportunity to participate in a team sport. Along with the team sports that are taught during physical education classes, there are usually a few varsity sports teams that will represent the school while competing against other schools in the area. In addition to this, most communities have a few organized sports leagues that children can be active in.
In my opinion, participation in team sports is vital to healthy social, physical and emotional development. Participating in a sports team exposes children to a range of challenges in a team environment where they are forced to work with others, rely on others at times and also to encourage or root for others on their team. All of this leads to the development of a cooperative mindset. Now although all of this sounds ideal, I am aware that it does not always work out this way. Some times a child might be a ‘ball hog’ and refuse to pass the ball, or want to score all of the goals themselves. But with time, even this child learns at some point that they must work with others if they want to see true success.
Some kids just love sports and have a natural tendency towards them. There is very little that a parent could do to stop a child like this from participating in sports. Other children are quite nonchalant about sports, and some children even hate sports. A variety of factors can influence the way that children feel about sports. Sometimes they are shy or insecure about the abilities yet with a little encouragement they will get out there and do fine. At times, a child may have a physical attribute that they are conscious or overly conscious about that stops them from doing a sporting activity they would love. I encourage parents to find at least one team sport that their children can become involved in. Not all team sports have to be high impact activities or ‘popular’ sports. A swim team is great for a child that is not boisterous or overly physical. Some schools have sailing as an extra curricular activity which again falls outside of the typical team sport.
I believe that team sports teach children not only how to compete, but how to compete fairly within structured boundaries. This is an important life lesson and the skills and the disciplines that they learn in sports will definitely last them a lifetime. Team sports will teach children how to communicate, since most team sports require children not only to talk to each other while the activity is taking place but also how to plan strategies for an upcoming event and how to debrief or review things that have happened in a game. Perhaps most importantly, team sports teach children how to succeed and how to fail since inevitably throughout each season of their sport their team will do both. With every win and loss, children learn coping skills. These again are important skills to develop in a child and they will last them throughout li
Many parents want to get their children involved in team sports because they want their child to be active, make friends, learn how to work with a team, etc. However, not every child wants to play team sports or is able to play team sports. So what do you do to get your child active? One great alternative to traditional team sports is karate classes. Karate classes allow children to gain all the benefits they would see in a team sports program, plus much more.
Good For Health and Fitness
Just like participating in any sport, karate classes help promote health and fitness. Martial arts is a great form of exercise and many people turn to this sport to help them lose weight, increase their cardio fitness, and build muscle. Your child will learn to take care of their body through proper exercise and stretching. They will have a positive outlet for otherwise unused energy and get just as much exercise, if not more, as they would playing any other sport.
Competitive Atmosphere
If you are looking for a competitive atmosphere, this is still available through martial arts. Many karate schools host or participate in karate tournaments. While this is not a requirement for taking a karate class, many parents and kids love to have the competitive atmosphere of a karate competition to help push them to be their best while also learning about being a good sport whether you win or lose.
Learn Life Skills
Good karate schools teach more than just kicking and punching, they also teach life skills. Some of the many life skills that children learn through martial arts that they can use through their whole life are respect, self control, focus, self discipline, responsibility, leadership skills, confidence, and the list goes on and on. Many people are surprised at how taking a karate class helps their child do better in school and social activities.
Make Friends
Some parents turn to team sports as a way to help their child make friends. Unfortunately, this does not always work. If your child is shy and has a hard time making friends, putting them in a situation where they have a whole group counting on them to perform may not be the best option at first. Although it is definitely a very good thing to help children learn to be responsible and realize how their actions affect others, if you are trying to help your shy child make friends karate is a great choice. They will be able to focus on their own progress while still being able to work in a group of peers who are striving to reach the same goals that they are. Every time your child learns something new or passes off a technique this will give their confidence a huge boost. At the same time, they will still be learning responsibility and how to work with a group through small team-building exercises in class.
No Prior Athletic Background Needed
Many children who do not have an athletic background or any athletic experience struggle in team sports. This can be very discouraging. Karate classes do not require any previous athleticism for students to have a good experience though. Everybody starts at the same level with the basics and builds up from there.
No Age Limit
As children grow older their ability to participate in team sports becomes more and more limited. At a young age it easy for them to become part of a community or recreational sports team, but once they reach high school age it becomes increasingly difficult to continue participating in team sports as they go through team try-outs. Not everyone makes the team. Karate classes however do not have an age limit, there are no try-outs, and it is a fun sport that anyone can participate in at any age.
Great Activity for the Whole Family
Because karate programs do not have an age limit, it allows parents to take class with their children. Unlike team sports, where parents are generally just cheerleaders on the side lines, karate is a sport that an entire family can do together. This gives your family some great bonding time and a common interest.
Year-Round Activity
Finally, karate does not have an “off-season” and because it is indoors it is not weather dependent. Many parents find themselves at a loss as to what to do with their children during the “off-season” of whatever team sport they play. They want their child to stay active and healthy, but struggle to find an alternate activity when soccer or football is over. Karate is great activity for the whole family to do together year round.
The Nintendo 3DS is a portable gaming system, just like the Nintendo DS. It is light and very handy, so that you users can bring this console wherever you want to play those of your favourite Nintendo games.Its wide, 3.53-inch top screen LCD display shows the 3D view of your game without the need for special glasses. This 3D feature creates the illusion that the graphics and characters pop out from the screen, giving you a more immersive gaming experience minus the silly-looking glasses. The bottom screen is a 3.02-inch stylus-based touch screen. It comes with a stylus to give you easier control over the options you want to choose from the touch screen. This telescoping feature of the stylus allows you to manipulate the length you prefer, and measures to approximately 4 inches when fully extended. It has three cameras – one inner and two outer – to help deliver the 3D effect and take 3D pictures as well.Located on the right side of the 3DS is the 3D depth slider. This control allows you to change the level of 3D effect displayed on the top screen. You can adjust the amount of 3D you want based on preference and particular viewing distance. With Nintendo 3DS built-in motion sensors and gyro sensors, the game created are more motion intensive providing you with a greater gaming experience.This gaming console also has built-in WiFi, allowing multiple Nintendo 3DS systems to connect through local wireless connection and let other users communicate and enjoy competitive play. Gaining access to the internet gives you the chance to play games with or against other players, instead of just playing against the computer-generated characters. The 3DS hardware is also designed to automatically exchange data via internet even when in sleep mode. This means that the upgrading or level-up of your game characters goes on even without you playing. The wireless switch allows you to choose whether to turn off or turn on the wireless communication.The game controls such as the touch screen, embedded microphone, face buttons, control pad, left-and-right buttons, and start and select buttons, provides you with more coordination and regulation of the gaming experience. You are given more choices as the buttons represent different and specific commands for your games.Other essential features include the port, which is compatible for both the Nintendo 3DS game cards and Nintendo DS game cards. Also, the SD memory card slot that comes with it gives expandable memory to your Nintendo 3DS. It has an AC adapter connector and a charging cradle terminal. Its stereo headphone output jack provides a connection for your headsets, or you can choose to have the stereo speakers found at the left and right sides of the top screen.
Today’s world offers more opportunities than ever before to have fun. The rapid growth of the web has created hundreds or even thousands of exciting online adventures available to any player with an Internet connection. The best part is that you don’t have to invest in expensive gaming consoles or software packages to enjoy hot games. Just log on and surf over to one of the countless sites that let you play games for free online.If you’re about to dive in to a new entertainment experience, you may want to consider a few things before you play games.Browser SupportOnline games utilize technologies like Flash, JavaScript and HTML5 to provide rich and immersive virtual experiences. Nearly any modern browser can support these popular protocols, but you may need to install a browser plugin or extension for full support. Check out the system requirements before you begin. If you receive an error message, you will most likely be directed to site where you can download any additional software needed to run the game. Fortunately these are almost always free downloads which can be installed in only seconds. You should be ready to play games without having to wait very long.Data ConnectionUnlike software running locally on your PC, Internet games rely on both your own computing power and processing that occurs on remote servers. Many browser based hot games will run flawlessly even on outdated machines. The good news is that you won’t need to upgrade to the fastest processor or most advanced graphics cards. However, your playing experience can be affected by the speed of your data connection. A wi-fi or 3G/4G connection is generally sufficient for most online games, although a broadband or DSL connection may result in smoother and more responsive gameplay. If you are using dial-up, you might have to face some lag.ControlsWhile some software packages support external game controllers, most online games do not. That means you’ll need to use your keyboard and/or mouse for some of the best hot games. Fortunately, web applications are usually designed for this type of input. Spend some time to read the game instructions beforehand to make sure you understand how to navigate your virtual world. If you are playing with a mobile app, you may have to use the touchscreen to control it. Touch controls are mostly easy to use but can take some time to get used to if you are unfamiliar with them.If your system meets the minimum requirements, you have a reliable and fast data connection, and you get the hang of the controls, you can count on a great gaming experience. Of course, playing hot games and mastering them are two different things. Don’t give up if you find yourself failing on the first few tries. After all, practice makes perfect. The more time you spend, the better you will be when you play games.