Sparkle Basketball: A Basketball Club for Children in Tangerang

Children need around 60 minutes of physical activity a day, according to research from the American Academy of Pediatrics. So it matters that a child actually gets that daily activity in.

Getting a child used to sport early tends to build a lasting affection for it. Sport also supports how they develop, leaving them more active and physically stronger, with better muscle, bone and heart health, and a lower risk of the obesity and diabetes now affecting more children.

There are plenty of ways to cover a child's sporting activity, and basketball is one of them. It's a sport a child can take up early, and from around five they can start getting familiar with the ball and the basic techniques.

What a Club Adds

Joining a basketball club carries several benefits. The first is that a child trains under a professional coach, which makes learning considerably easier. Their social skills also develop through training alongside other children, and since basketball is a team sport, learning to cooperate early matters.

A club also builds a competitive instinct. Clubs generally arrange practice matches or enter tournaments to test their players, which teaches a child to manage their emotions during a game and to accept a result either way.

With that in mind, the next step is choosing the right club. Our piece on why basketball is worth starting early covers the background in more detail.

Here are the things worth checking when choosing a club.

1. Adequate Facilities

Start with the training facilities. Make sure the club has what a child needs to train properly, since decent facilities make a real difference to how well they learn.

2. A Professional Coach

Make sure your child trains under a professional coach. A coach has an outsized influence on whether a child ends up loving the sport, and the wrong one can put them off basketball entirely. A good coach picks the right training for the child and reads their potential properly.

3. Distance and Access

Consider how far the training ground is, and try to keep it under an hour. That matters for a child's physical condition, since after training they should be recovering at home rather than sitting in traffic, and an exhausted child struggles at school the next day.

4. An Inclusive Environment

An inclusive environment is worth weighing too. It matters for a child's character and social development, since meeting children of different backgrounds and temperaments is what builds empathy.

5. Reputation and Results

Finally, look at the club's reputation and what its players have achieved, since both are evidence of how well it develops people. Instagram and Google reviews will give you a reasonable picture.

With those five in mind you can start choosing a club. Here's a profile of one based in Tangerang.

Sparkle Basketball in Tangerang

For anyone around Tangerang, Sparkle Basketball is one option worth considering. It has been based around the BSD area, at Villa Melati Mas in South Tangerang, which makes it straightforward to reach.

The club has said that children training there have gone on to join the Banten provincial basketball team. That kind of record tends to motivate the younger players to keep training.

Sparkle Basketball has also entered tournaments and won some of them. Worth noting alongside is that children are taught from the basics according to their age, and are regularly entered into practice matches to build a competitive edge.

Address

Basketball Court C3, Jalan Cemara Villa Melati Mas Raya, Jelupang, South Tangerang, Banten. Training has run on the following days, though the schedule has changed over time so it is worth confirming before travelling.

• Monday, late afternoon into the evening
• Wednesday, mid-afternoon
• Thursday, late afternoon into the evening
• Sunday, afternoon

Fees

Check current fees through Happy Kamper or with the club directly. Pricing has changed since this was first published, so it isn't worth relying on an old figure.

For the current training schedule and further detail, their Instagram is @sparkle.basketballclub. That is the most reliable place to check before turning up.

Finding a Club Near You

If you're in Jakarta or elsewhere and looking for a basketball club nearby, the Happy Kamper app is worth a look. It lists children's activities covering educational, recreational and sporting options.

It also lists a range of providers so you can compare before deciding. Registration can be handled in the app directly.