Sports

Whether it’s a Little League game or the World Series, sports offers opportunities for everyone to challenge their abilities. In addition to building strength and endurance, sports develop self-esteem, concentration and a sense of teamwork. Explore the wide world of sports and find out how you can develop your skills through the direct links on the Times Launch Point Web site:

https://www.latimes.com/launchpoint

Level 1

Kids’ Almanac: Sports Section: What is the difference between aikido, judo and karate? Learn about various sports and unusual games like foot tennis and kite-fighting, the stories behind sports heroes and animal athletes, and some interesting sports superstitions and statistics.

https://www.yahooligans.com/content/ka/almanac/sports/index.html

Sports Illustrated for Kids: Find out what to do in different sports situations, read the latest sports news from the Shorter Reporter and try some sports trivia questions and games.

https://www.sikids.com/index.html

National Hockey League Kids’ page: Discover what referees’ signals mean, try some drills to improve your play and get to know NHL players and teams through this site packed with hockey tips and information.

https://www.nhl4kids.com

Level 2

The Locker Room: Sports for Kids: The ancient Romans and the ancient Greeks played games similar to today’s soccer. Learn about the history as well as the techniques needed for 12 sports. Try some helpful drills and some important warmup exercises to help you avoid injuries.

https://members.aol.com/msdaizy/sports/locker.html

Girl Power: There Are No Limits: From the history of women’s baseball pioneers to the current exploits of current basketball great Katie Smith, read about the achievements of female star athletes and find out how to improve your skills in various sports.

https://www.health.org/gpower/girlarea/sports/index.htm

Black Belt for Kids: Learn about the philosophy behind martial arts through stories and articles, find out how various martial arts experts got started and test your knowledge through some games and puzzles.

https://www.blackbeltmag.com/bbkids/index.html

Level 3

Sport Science at the Exploratorium: Why do golf balls have those little dimples? What does it take for a hockey puck to speed across the ice at 100 mph? Learn fascinating facts about the physics behind such sports as golf, baseball, hockey, rock climbing and mountain biking.

https://www.exploratorium.edu/sports/index.html

Just Sports for Women: How do you train for a triathlon? What is it like to be an Olympic fencer, a sports lawyer or a sports psychologist? Keep current on what’s new in women’s sports through news updates and interviews with top athletes.

https://www.justwomen.com/

PE Central Sport Web Sites: Find tips, drills and resources that can help you improve your play in 23 sports, including basketball, volleyball, soccer, tennis and golf.

https://pe.central.vt.edu/sportsites.html

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EXPLORER’S QUEST: How many miles might a player run during the course of a soccer game?

CLUE: See The Locker Room: Sports for Kids

Answer to last week’s Quest: A unicorn

Find What You Need to Know: Have a project on California history? Need help doing a math problem? Launch Point now covers more than 50 topics for getting your schoolwork done. Go to https://www.latimes.com/launchpoint for the full list of subjects and direct links to the best Internet sites.

Launch Point is produced by the UC Irvine department of education, which reviews each site for appropriateness and quality. Even so, parents should supervise their children’s use of the Internet. This column was designed by Anna Manring.