Sports Injuries & School Performance
It happens every year… a child participates in sports whether through school or independently and suffers an injury that sets them behind in school. Whether it’s a broken arm or a concussion, these injuries set the child back and can cause already-existing learning challenges to grow exponentially.
We just want to acknowledge the fact that there is a balance here! We can’t keep our kids in bubbles, and there is a HUGE benefit to sports participation. However, if you find yourself in a situation where your child is continually struggling, falling behind, and fighting their way through school, there may be some extra things you can do to support them and make learning easier!
Why Playing Sports is Beneficial for Kids
Sports open the door to physical activity that’s fun, build community through teamwork, and require practice and discipline that few other activities can provide. The research backs this up! Studies show that participating in sports can:
- Lower rates of anxiety, depression, and stress in kids
- Build confidence and self-esteem
- Increase creativity, cognitive performance, and problem-solving skills
- Develop a sense of community, teamwork, and responsibility
- Improve leadership qualities and social dynamics
- Grow executive functioning skills (like planning and critical thinking)
- And more!
The benefits of playing sports are wide and varied. It’s important to find avenues where your kids are excited and engaged, and for many, that is going to be sports!
How Common Are Sports Injuries?
Since sports can be so beneficial for families, it can be hard to weigh the risk of sports injuries. How commonly do they really happen?
Of the 30 million kids who participate in sports every year, approximately 3.5 million will have some form of energy (whether that’s an ankle sprain or something more serious). Nearly ⅓ of ALL childhood injuries occur while playing sports, and about ⅕ of childhood concussions and brain injuries occur during sports.
Typically, more injuries happen in higher contact sports (like football and soccer) than in low-contact sports (like swimming or baseball), but all activities have the potential for injury at some level.
How Do Sports Injuries Impact Learning?
A sports injury is very disruptive for the whole family. Not only can it mean sitting out of sports participation for a healing period, but it can also disrupt classroom learning and momentum.
Sports injuries can make your child:
- Feel more discouraged and frustrated in general, which translates into lower motivation
- Fall behind due to missed classes
- Struggle socially because they don’t feel like “part of the team”
- And even lose some cognitive abilities they had gained if the injury is to their head
This last scenario is definitely one of the most serious and delicate to work through as a family. Concussions and brain injuries during sports are common in kids, and many can have lasting implications for the rest of the school year (and beyond).
How Brain Training Targets Weak Skills
Whether your child suffered a brain injury or just feels like they can’t keep up, brain training is a great way to help them feel more confident and capable in the classroom.
Your sports kid is used to drills, practices, and coaching… and that’s exactly what our sessions feel like! We are less “tutors” and more “personal trainers for your brain.”
Brain training has helped hundreds of kids and adults:
- Improve memory and focus
- Read more easily
- Grow in confidence
- And experience greater success in ALL areas of life (even in sports!)
Instead of just suffering through feeling behind, left out, and frustrated, you can help your child experience faster, better success in school by building up their cognitive toolbox so it’s primed and ready to learn.
We have experience working with a variety of learning differences, brain injuries, and diagnoses, and we are happy to talk to you about your unique situation to see how brain training fits in!
