if for nothing else, learning at a young age to play (and function) as part of a team is extremely important; moreover, even if you suck at the sport, it's an i

if for nothing else, learning at a young age to play (and function) as part of a team is extremely important; moreover, even if you suck at the sport, it's an important life lesson to find a way to best contribute to the team's success. imho, it's even more important for gifted kids, who are otherwise 'better' than everyone else and generally have a tendency to go it alone. i was one of the youngest kids in the class and a pretty dorky kid growing up but, without a doubt, playing sports throughout elementary school made all the difference between being the subject of an occasional joke and being picked on continuously. i was bored to death, and was honestly pretty bad, but i'm glad my mom signed me up each year. i have two sons, my oldest heading into 1st grade, and i can already see the same effect.