Today I would like to share a guest post with you from John at www.gametablesguide.com.

Nowadays, it seems hard to connect with your kids because of all this internet stuff. The technological advancement that we live in today makes kids feel like they’re very different than previous generations. Although, they’re not.

Kids are almost all the time in front of a screen. They seem to have a lot of fun doing different things online. For parents, this makes getting the attention of their kids very difficult. It’s getting harder every day to spend enough time with your kids doing something together.

This is where table tennis comes as an effective solution. It worked for me and I believe it can work for you too if you give it a try. Why I think this is a good solution?

Here are five reasons why I do believe you should teach your kid how to play table tennis.

1. Table tennis can strengthen your bonds with your kid

Table tennis is fun. More importantly, the experience that you live during a ping pong match is something that you can’t find anywhere else.

Since kids love to play more than anything else, they will certainly love table tennis especially if they discovered the game at an early age. That’s why it’s better to have a ping pong table at your place as soon as possible so that your kid will grow up loving the game.

Table tennis is an excellent way to spend more quality time with your kids doing something that you both love and enjoy. These moments of joy shared during a ping pong game will certainly leave a positive impact on the relationship that you have with your kid.

From personal experience, I can say that table tennis has (and still) definitely made me feel closer and more connected to my 12 years old kid.

It’s a lot easier to have a conversation with my kid during a ping pong game. It feels more casual and spontaneous to him. It’s an effective way to let him open up to you and tell you more about how he feels and the things he encounters in his daily life.

2. It teaches the value of working hard

Table tennis is a lot of work. It requires maximum concentration on the ball and constant movement around the table. The person that works hard during the game is usually the winner. This correlation between winning and hard work is an important concept that your kids should be aware of.

Table tennis can be a proper way to introduce your kids to the idea that “hard work is an essential element if a person wants to win something or achieve her goals”.

That’s why exposing your kids at an early age to activities that require some hard work is never a bad thing like some parents imagine.

Raising your kids to grow up feeling that they’re entitled to anything they want is the worst thing a parent can do.

3. It’s a great sport that your kid will love

This is the best thing you can do for your kid. He or she will always be grateful to you for the rest of her/his life. I’m talking about encouraging them to play sports. It’s not only because it’s a lot of fun but it’s something that will help them maintain a healthy lifestyle later in their lives.

Most parents push their kids towards team sports such as Football or Baseball. That’s a good thing too. However, we all know that some kids aren’t just into team sports and they feel anxious about playing on teams. In this case, table tennis (or martial arts) can be a good fit.

The reason I believe that sport is important for young kids is essentially due to three main reasons. The first one is that sports teach discipline which is super important for them later in life. The second reason is obviously the physical activity that comes with sports which is beneficial to their health. The third reason is that sports boost self-confidence at an early age which is very important.

4. Table tennis enhances decision making skills

Table tennis requires immediate reactions to the opponent’s moves which helps regular players develop a sense of fast thinking. Making tactical decisions in less than a second under pressure can improve cognitive abilities of the kids.

In a story done by ABC News, Dr. Wendy Suzuki, professor of neuroscience and psychology at New York University have stated the following “In ping pong, we have enhanced motor functions, enhanced strategy functions and enhanced long-term memory functions,”

Being able to make sound decisions under circumstances of high pressure when a lot is at stake is a valuable skill that will help your child a lot later in his life.

I’m not saying that a few games of ping pong will be sufficient to acquire this ability. However, practicing table tennis regularly will definitely make his nerves stronger.

5. It improves alertness and concentration abilities

Table tennis is a fast-paced sport that requires total concentration on the ball with an excellent hand-eye coordination. During a table tennis game, various areas of your brain are activated simultaneously.

It’s scientifically proven that while you’re playing table tennis, your physical and thought alertness are at their highest rates.

Through practice, ping pong can improve dramatically your mental alertness and concentration abilities. As for kids, the impact gets even bigger because their bodies and brains are still in the development phase.

Conclusion

As you can see, table tennis has many of benefits for your kids. There are other benefits of table tennis that could have been included in this post. But, I wanted to focus only on the main ones that can convince you that purchasing a table tennis table for you kids isn’t a bad idea.

I hope that this article has helped you to realize the potential advantages of table tennis as a healthy and fun activity that your kids will certainly enjoy.

I hope you enjoyed the article and if you have any questions or personal experiences you’d like to share, please feel free to use the comments section below.

 

Please note that this is not a sponsored post.