As therapists, parents, and caregivers, we all want our children to thrive and be the best they can be, physically, mentally, and socially. One of the most powerful tools we can use to help them flourish is sport and physical activity. Research shows that movement isn’t just good for growing bodies; it’s transformative for growing minds. Whether your child is neurodivergent or neurotypical, sport can offer profound benefits!
I, for one, am a huge advocate for integrating sport in children’s treatment, not just for all its physical and health benefits, but also because it enhances inclusiveness, connection, and life skills, and assists with self-regulation, fostering lifelong friendships, and social well-being.
Physical activity not only strengthens the body but also boosts attention, memory, and learning, while lowering the risk of depression and anxiety. Team sports uniquely enhance executive functions, like working memory, organisation, and focus. These cognitive advantages extend into school life: children who stay active through youth sports tend to have better grades, improved classroom behaviour, and greater engagement in learning and activities.
Sports teach children more than just gross motor and coordination skills. A 2019 UNICEF report highlighted how sports participation increases self-regulation, involvement, optimism, and passion, helping children stay engaged, especially those at risk of disengaging from school and having behavioural challenges. Sports also foster emotional growth, child-learned discipline, coping with both wins and setbacks, and how to work cooperatively with peers.
In all, whether through team camaraderie or inclusive play, sports offer a powerful environment for children to grow in confidence and feel connected.
Together, these layers show how sport is more than exercise. It’s an essential part of children’s flourishment and understanding of their bodies.
Benefits of sport for both neurotypical and neurodivergent children:
- Builds gross motor skills (balance, coordination, agility).
- Encourages social play, turn-taking, and cooperation.
- Supports early self-regulation (managing excitement, following simple rules).
- Improves sleep and appetite through healthy energy expenditure.
- Enhances sensory integration (e.g., water play, proprioception activities, vestibular benefits from swinging/running).
- Provides predictable movement routines, which can help reduce anxiety.
- Encourages communication—even non-verbal (gestures, imitation, joint attention).
- Helps strengthen early body awareness (important for children with dyspraxia or ADHD).
- Builds discipline and resilience (coping with wins/losses, following rules).
- Encourages teamwork and empathy through shared goals.
- Improves executive functioning (planning, problem-solving, sustained attention).
- Linked with better academic performance due to improved focus and memory (Lubans et al., 2016).
- Provides opportunities to practice social skills in structured but supportive settings.
- Repetitive movement in sports like swimming or martial arts can be calming and regulating.
- Martial arts and gymnastics are linked to improved motor planning and coordination for children with dyspraxia or DCD.
- Builds confidence and self-identity.
- Sport can create a safe social identity, offering a sense of belonging (e.g., being “part of the team”).
- Helps develop coping skills for frustration and self-regulation.
- Can reduce social isolation, as structured environments often provide clearer rules than unstructured play.
My personal top sports for children
Whether through team sports or individual sports, children will acquire numerous fundamental skills when participating in such activities. Sport helps develop children’s social skills, focus, and attention, and improves gross motor skills and self-regulation. It creates a known place of comfort and safety.
- Swimming: Not only a great forever life skill! Swimming also benefits motor skills, coordination, and core and muscle strengths. It also offers sensory input, promotes calming and relaxation, reduces anxiety, and improves focus and attention.
- Gymnastics: Understanding of body awareness, targeting most, if not all sensory systems, motor planning and coordination, strength, focus and attention, planning, and organisation.
- Parkour: Planning, organisation, improved strength, coordination and motor skills, cooperation, social skills, and decision-making skills.
- Martial Arts: Emphasise discipline, self-regulation, and routine through repetitive, structured movements, motor planning, focus, and attention.
- Dance: Fosters creativity and improves body awareness, motor planning, self-expression, and imitation.
- Track and field: Offers individual events like sprints or jumps, which can be less overwhelming than team sports.
- Football: Small-sided games can reduce sensory overload, while the sport promotes teamwork and coordination for children who are movement-driven. Helps children learn to cooperate and read social cues within a structured, predictable environment.
Many sports overlap with the same outcomes, skills and social engagement. Find one that suits your child and what your child enjoys!
Key Tips for Parents
- Follow your child’s interests. Whether it’s team sports, swimming, dance, martial arts, or calm outdoor play, enjoyment is key to lasting engagement.
- Prioritise inclusivity. Seek programmes that offer adaptations, sensory-friendly spaces, or low-pressure participation for children who need it.
- Balance activity and rest. Encourage regular physical play, while also ensuring ample time for unstructured downtime.
- Celebrate effort, not just outcomes. Highlight progress, perseverance, and joy rather than just performance.
- Collaborate with therapists, teachers and coaches. Share what motivates and supports your child so their strengths can be lifted.
Sport and physical activity offer a wealth of benefits for all children. They nurture mental health, sharpen cognitive skills, build confidence, foster social connection, and support lifelong well-being. For neurodivergent children, inclusive and adaptive sport environments open doors to joy, belonging, and personal growth.
When thoughtfully integrated into your child’s life, sport isn’t just something they do; it’s where they learn who they are and what they can become, and a comfort zone where everlasting connections are built.
References
- Eime, R. M., Young, J. A., Harvey, J. T., Charity, M. J., & Payne, W. R. (2013).
- Lubans, D., Richards, J., Hillman, C., Faulkner, G., Beauchamp, M., Nilsson, M., Kelly, P., Smith, J., Raine, L., & Biddle, S. J. H. (2016).
- Pan, C. Y. (2009).
- UNICEF. (n.d.). Sport for development. UNICEF Belarus. Retrieved August 21, 2025, from https://www.unicef.org/belarus/en/sport-development
A systematic review of the psychological and social benefits of participation in sport for children and adolescents: Informing development of a conceptual model of health through sport. International Journal of Behavioural Nutrition and Physical Activity, 10(98), 1–21.
Physical activity for cognitive and mental health in youth: A systematic review of mechanisms. Preventive Medicine, 95, 40–47.
Motor proficiency and physical fitness in adolescent males with and without autism spectrum disorders. Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly, 26(2), 134–150.
