At What Age Should I Enroll My Child in a Sports Class?

Mina Rochel Marsow, owner of Prospect Gymnastics, shares the earliest age at which it is most beneficial to enroll your child in a sports class.

Engaging in sports is beneficial for children’s physical and mental well-being. Children develop their fundamental movement skills between the ages of 2 and 5. Toddler physical development is critical period where a child can learn to expand and increase her movement capacity and range of motion for the rest of her life. At many sports schools, parent and tot classes commence as soon as a child can walk, and sometimes even sooner. Engaging a toddler in sports advances her motor development and creates permanent muscle memory.

Sports help toddlers have healthier bodies and minds. According to the CDC, childhood obesity has more than doubled in children in the past 30 years. In 2012, more than one-third of children were overweight or obese. One of the main reasons for this rise in obesity is the decline in children’s physical fitness. On average, children ages 2-5 spend approximately 25½ hours a week watching television. Children who are not exposed to physical activity during early school years have a hard time becoming physically active as adults.