How Youth Sports Affect America's Kids
1A
NPR
4.3 • 4.5K Ratings
🗓️ 5 July 2023
⏱️ 30 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Even when school is out and it's time to close the books (or maybe, a laptop) time in the summer can fill up quickly. Often, with sports. Whether they're kicking a ball with the neighbors, going to the park for a game of pick-up basketball, traveling in Little League, heading to the Y for a swim, or even hitting a heavy bag, sports are everywhere in our early lives.
But getting involved in organized sports as a kid can be expensive. Some communities pull together to offer discounted programs or transportation for kids who don't have access to it.
We discuss how youth sports have changed over the years and what factors go into picking the right sport.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Kids these days are busy. |
| 0:10.5 | Even when school is out and it's time to close the books, summers get filled up, often |
| 0:14.7 | with sports. |
| 0:16.0 | But over the years, that's changed a bit. |
| 0:18.6 | 27% of parents say their children lost interest in playing sports. |
| 0:22.9 | That's according to the 2022 report from the Aspen Institute's Project Play, a yearly |
| 0:27.6 | report on youth sports. |
| 0:29.6 | And just like us adults, screen time can make up a good chunk of the day. |
| 0:33.9 | Kids between 8 and 12 have about 4 to 6 hours of screen time, and teens have up to 9 hours. |
| 0:40.5 | That's according to the American Academy of Child and Analysts in Psychiatry. |
| 0:44.0 | Now, some of you are still playing sports and we ask you what you're up to, and why? |
| 0:48.2 | My name is Hussiya. |
| 0:49.2 | I'm 11 years old and I am from Boston, Massachusetts. |
| 0:53.0 | My favorite sport is gymnastics. |
| 0:55.2 | I play it right now. |
| 0:56.2 | I'm a left-for-genist, and the reason why I love gymnastics is because it requires both |
| 1:02.1 | your mind and body to focus, balance, and all of that, and I just find it, well, not |
| 1:07.4 | really relaxing, but like, it's just easier for me to control what I'm doing, and then |
| 1:13.0 | that can help me in the real world too, I also really like how my teammates and my coaches |
| 1:20.8 | work with me to help me fill in those. |
| 1:24.3 | Why I like gymnastics. |
| 1:25.5 | Hi, my name is Robin. |
... |
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