How to choose the right school that offers sporting activities

There are enough and more reasons why sports need to be integrated with the school curriculum. From simply ensuring regular physical activity in otherwise sedentary modern lifestyles to improving emotional fitness, sporting activities have a strong role to play.

There is no doubt that sports education complements academic learning, as it helps in developing the overall personality of the students. Importantly, sporting activities are seen to inculcate many life skills like discipline, sharing, teamwork, tolerance and a lot more among students. Needless to mention, for those inclined towards it, sports can also turn out to be a lucrative profession, not just as a sportsperson on the ground but also by way of a number of other opportunities that have arisen around it. Little surprise then that progressive schools are offering pride of place to sports in the overall curriculum.

Sure enough, you want sports to play a strong role in your child’s life. What then are some of the aspects to watch out for, in making the choice of school, to ensure that your child is offered the right sporting exposure?

• Sports Infrastructure Good sporting infrastructure is the first, obvious thing to look for. Availability of a cricket field, basketball court, tennis court, athletic tracks, and a swimming pool are important markers. Pro tip- For cities having extremes of temperature, it will also be worthwhile to check if there are any indoor play areas for children to make use of. You sure don’t want the child to wait for the better part of the year in the hope of the weather improving.
• Sports Teachers and coaches It will be worthwhile to check the credentials of the sports teachers and coaches. Sure enough, it is their passion and expertise that gets passed on to the students. Look at any successful sportsperson and they will vouch for the role played by their coaches in their career. With the right coaches the probability of the child taking to the activity is that much higher.
• Share of timetable It is clearly not enough to make a judgment about the school’s commitment to sporting activities basis the infrastructure alone. What is important is for you is to delve deep to see what kind of timetable share is allotted to these activities. You sure do not want mere tokenism when it comes to sporting activities. While the education system may have made sports a compulsory subject, whether or not the school accords seriousness and importance to it, needs to be judged. In fact, it will be worthwhile to check if the sporting activities offered by the school are age-appropriate and whether the school encourages participation in sporting events and competitions.