The Amazing Benefits of Soccer for Childcare Kids

Childcare can be great for kids, but it can also be a really limiting time for them. Today childcare has turned its focus away from playtime to really being focused on academic and social skills. While these are important things for your child’s development, they’re also quite limiting in terms of kids’ development. After spending most of their day cooped up inside working on fine motor and academic development, kids need to get out and expand their gross-motor and kinesthetic learning skills. Soccer is a perfect way to do that. Here are some amazing benefits of playing soccer when your child is cooped up in childcare all day.
Emotional
We don’t often think about soccer as being a builder of emotional health, but it truly is! When kids stay inside for most of the day, that pent up physical energy runs over into emotional turmoil. Kids have a need to get moving. Being active releases positive mood hormones in the brain, meaning that kids literally get happier when they’re active!
Physical
The physical benefits of soccer are of course that it gets kids moving and active. Soccer builds not only cardiovascular health, it also promotes healthy weight, and shows kids how fun and rewarding it can be to get moving. Children are built to be little movers, and getting out onto the soccer pitch allows them to do what comes naturally!
Social
While social interactions are of course built into the childcare setting, playing together on a team is a wholly different way to interact for kids. This interaction offers kids the chance to learn not only how to get along when things are going well, but also how to get along when they aren’t. Another thing that kids learn on the soccer field is non-verbal communication, which is a backbone of human interaction.
Cognitive
Learning to be a skilful mover isn’t something that just happens, kids need instruction. Soccer offers kids the chance to get in tune with their bodies, learning to control them in ways that they didn’t know were possible. That control is an expression of their cognitive development, and making body-brain connections will help your child to feel sharper and have a greater ability to make connections in other areas.
The good news is that our fantastic programs are for kids as young as two to participate in! Now is a great time to get started with soccer so that your child will get all of the great benefits they need to grow up healthy and strong.