Lately sports have been getting a bad reputation for concussions, injuries and the competitiveness it has. Though all of those are problems, there are many benefits to playing grade school sports or sports in general. The three main reasons are to stay in shape, to have higher self esteem and to know how to be on a team and work with other people.

The first reason playing sports helps children is staying in shape. Due to the amount of physical activity sports give you, you will be stronger and build up more habits of being active. Studies show that if you walk and bike a lot but don’t play sports you have a 22% higher chance of obesity than those who play sports. Obesity in the U.S.A. has increased about 20% in the last 40 years. That is why we should play sports, they help you stay fit.

Another reason playing sports will benefit you is too boost your self esteem. When you play sports and succeed your confidence goes up and you can feel proud. When you don’t succeed, you try harder and can have a proud and confident feeling that you tried your best. I asked Avery Adams about how sports help his confidence and he said, “When I win games it makes me feel happy.” Sports help you have higher self esteem and confidence that you can use in school or in other things you do.

The last benefit of playing sports is knowing how to be on a team and interact with others. When you are on a team you have a role you need to fill and people who depend on you. If you fail at your role it will affect your team’s success. This translates into school and when you get a job. At your school and your future job people depend on you to get things done and if you don’t, you get a consequence and let people down.

So, even though there are disadvantages and faults about playing sports there are many reasons why sports are very good for children.