Family Health
Individual Sports for Kids
Being active and healthy doesn’t have to run to a team schedule. There are so many sports your child can enjoy that don’t require minimum numbers, or league competitions, or inflexible training times. Individual sports provide heaps of opportunity for building strong friendships with like-minded individuals, and even individual sports can require an element of teamwork when an opponent or partner is required. Find your child’s perfect fit with these individual sports.
Golf Fresh air, a good walk, conversation, and heaps of unexpected health benefits! Golf is low intensity and non-contact, minimising risk of injury. It helps growing bodies develop a strong core and spine, improves hand-eye coordination, and has the surprising added benefit of staving off short-sightedness. In a world of excess screen time and instant gratification, golf promotes quiet time, patience, endurance, and emotional control. It can be played alone, with friends, and even in teams.
Sailing Being out on the water is exhilarating. Children who sail learn responsibility and accountability, as well as patience, courage, and a healthy awareness of changing weather! Sailing as a solo sport is best suited to older kids who have had full training and will be fully supervised, but kids can start learning to sail in Brisbane from six years old.
There’s no real age limit to golf. Children can play from a young age and enjoy the game alongside players of all ages.
The Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron runs school holiday programs and all-year-round programs for children as well as private lessons, and you can find other “Learn to Sail” providers on the bayside and the Brisbane River.
There are golf courses all over Brisbane for fun and practice, and professional lessons are available at the beautiful Victoria Park in Herston.
You don’t need to own your own sailboat as the clubs have just the right-sized boat for your child, with all safety equipment provided. You just need to provide the sun protection and the towel.
www.familiesmagazine.com.au/junior-golf-victoria-park
Martial Arts There are many martial art disciplines to choose from: judo, karate, hapkido, and taekwondo are the ones most people are familiar with. Some focus on strikes and kicks, some on throws, and some are allrounders for self-defence. All have great benefits! Martial Arts don’t teach aggression. The focus is on self-discipline and self-control, with a side effect of improved self-esteem and selfconfidence. There’s a lot of self-improvement in self-defence! Martial arts are available to children aged 4 years and up. Not all martial arts involve sparring or tournaments, and your child can progress through their belt levels at their own pace. Take a look around to see what’s available near you, and which would best suit your child.
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Tennis
Tennis is a sport that develops the whole body. It can help children develop gross motor skills, hand-eye coordination and ball tracking, agility, flexibility, speed, and strength. It’s also accessible to anyone who can hold a tennis racket – just ask 2022 Australian of the Year, Dylan Alcott! There are lots of places offering tennis coaching around Brisbane, with programs for children from 3 years old. Find a venue near you here: www.familiesmagazine. com.au/kids-tennis-lessons
Your Local Families Magazine April / May 2022 www.familiesmagazine.com.au