Children Sports

Leaps, turns, and handsprings are hard enough, but when a beam is added, difficulty is maximized. In this book, gymnasts will learn the best tips and tricks to conquering the balance beam.

Floor exercise requires a lot from a gymnast. You need artistry, precision, and skill. But the feeling you get when you stick a complicated tumbling pass makes all your hard work and dedication worth it. Learn everything you need to know to compete in floor exercise.

Mixed martial arts competitors wrestle, jab, and kick their ways to the top. The best fighters never pull any punches. Listen here for the biggest names in MMA.

Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert come from completely different places and play tennis in completely different ways. Chrissie is the all-American girl: practiced, poised, with perfect technique. Martina hails from Czechoslovakia, a Communist country, and her game is ruled by emotion. Everything about them is different, except for one thing: they both want to be the best. But as their intense rivalry grows, something else begins to swing into place, and a friendship forms that will outlast all their tennis victories.

Yikes! Stink Moody, family brain, brings home a report card that isn’t perfect? Time to get into fighting shape and beat back that U for Unsatisfactory he got in Phys Ed (aka gym class)! For Stink to be victorious, he’s going to need the help of a Snake in the Grass, a Banana Split, and a Tsunami Smash, not to mention a Moose, a Dragon Master, an Empty Hand, a Crouching Tiger, and a Hidden Thumb. Hiiiii-ya!

Athletes throughout history have dreamed of competing in the Olympics—and some were kids themselves when those dreams and plans began! In Kid Olympians: Summer, discover the childhood stories of legends. Featuring kid-friendly wording, this book will inspire you to dream bigger, faster, and higher than ever before! The diverse and inspiring group also includes Dick Fosbury, Ibtihaj Muhammad, Gertrude Ederle, Nadia Comaneci, Ellie Simmonds, Tommie Smith, Wilma Rudolph, and Megan Rapinoe.

‘Okay, lads, you have everything you need to win this game. So go out and do it ,' said the coach. Eoin's not sure if it will be so easy! He’s just started a new school...and a new sport. Everyone at school is mad about rugby, but Eoin hasn’t even held a rugby ball before! With new rules to learn, new friends to make and new teachers to get a handle on, he really doesn’t need to have Richie Duffy, the resident bully, picking him out as his latest target! And just who is this guy Brian who looks so out of date but gives great rugby advice?

Do you know how to play soccer? Soccer is a popular sport all around the world! Learn the skills to play—running, dribbling, blocking, trapping and kicking the ball to score a goal. Learn about the scientific forces on the ball. What special equipment do soccer players wear on the field? What special tricks can be dangerous or hard to learn? Let’s play!

Do you like to play basketball? Learn how to shoot free throws using science! What is an arch? What is the effect of resistance and drag on the ball? How do you use the forces of physics like angle, backspin and angle? Learn to shoot free throws like a scientist and improve your game!

Tom loves to build rockets and has never lost a competition. He spends all his time trying to win instead of having fun and making friends. After spending the day watching the other children struggle to launch their rockets, Tom must make a decision—win or help the other kids.

Mustafa just moved from Turkey to the U.S. He is excited to make new friends and learn about his new home. On his first day of school, Mustafa is bullied by another student because of his differences. How will a game of soccer, or football, help him prove himself?

Adrian does not like sports—especially baseball! He’s eager to impress his new friends, though, so he goes to a baseball game with them. When they start speaking in baseball lingo, it almost sounds like a secret code! Will they figure out that he isn’t really a fan of the game? Maybe baseball isn’t really as bad as Adrian thinks!

Zander is embarrassed when a photo of him wearing a tutu is printed in the school paper. With the help of a ballerina and a football player, Zander and his classmates learn that ballet is not just for girls!

Have you ever watched a race car take a pit stop? Learn about all of the different jobs members of the pit crew have. The pit crew does everything from change the tires of a race car to refilling the gas tank, all faster than you can count to ten!

Trina wants to play sports like the rest of her family, but she doesn’t know which one to try! Should she be a runner, a gymnast, or a baseball player like her siblings? Or should she find something else? With the help of her family, Trina learns that she doesn't have to pick just one!

Have you ever tried to walk on snow using snowshoes? Grandma Mary gifts her grandson with his very own pair! Follow along on their family’s winter nature walk.

Have you ever gotten bored when the weather is too bad to go outside for recess? Bored students and bad weather inspired James Naismith to invent the game of basketball in the late 19th century. Using a soccer ball and peach baskets, Professor Naismith worked out the rules of the new sport at the local YMCA.

In urban areas, bicycle riding is often favored over driving cars. More and more large cities are introducing bicycle lanes to encourage this healthy and eco-friendly mode of transport. Some countries in Europe like Denmark and the Netherlands helped start the biking sensation. Some cities even allow people to even rent a bike for a small fee. Explore your city by riding on a bike with a friend!

This sweet, simple story captures the rhythms of a little boy's week as he yearns for winter to start, and for his favorite treat: hot chocolate. Children will enjoy seeing James help his family prepare for what the adults see as "bad weather" before enjoying what he thinks of as "hot chocolate weather."

Ever wonder why sports balls always seem to move in an arc when thrown or hit? Explore the physics of parabolic motion through the use of basketballs, tennis balls, and baseballs. Once you've figured out how the kinetic energy of a thrown ball is replaced by potential energy, you can use these facts to help you play sports in real life!