Activity Overload

There are so many activities available for our children that there are now activity guides for parents everywhere you look. Guides filled with categories and lists of endless possibilities of stuff for children to do. Some are silly, some are fun, some educational and others can be argued to be life skills that simply 'must' be learned. As a parent, I find myself faced with the task of selecting activities each season that I want my children to participate in.

When they were 3 they began swimming lessons, at 4 they began soccer, at 5 it was skating. Each of these activities were in constant rotation, one after the other, rarely overlapping. In our house, we wanted one day a week of activities for the kids and it seems to work well for us.

However, the simplicity we have in place currently leaves them left out of a lot of activities that they would enjoy and thrive in which brought me to the question; why can't they do a little more? With no clear answer in front of me I had to re-evaluate the house rules and make a new decision.

Since I believe that swimming is one of those life skills that children must learn, swimming will remain 'non-negotiable' for now. Skating however, we can do as a family throughout the season without anymore formal lessons. Soccer is one of the children's favourite activities so it will still be a part of each summer.

The change we've made is to allow them one steady, year round activity of focus. In an effort to keep the choices reasonable, my husband and I narrowed the choices down to 3 and presented them to the boys. Choices were based on their current interests and included; taekwondo, indoor soccer or gymnastics.

Even with 3 choices they are having a difficult time deciding on just one. If they had their way they would have a different activity every day of the week. Thankfully I know that too much is no good for them or my bank account in the long term. To assist them in making the right choice I have signed them up for a free trial class of taekwondo to test out the waters a little for themselves before committing.

Sometimes I wish I had the time and money to let them explore martial arts, five different sports, music and everything else they ask to try. Then I remember that they need to miss out on some things in order to have a balanced life.

Many parents are often asking themselves, how much is too much? I think it will depend on your child, your lifestyle and your budget, but even if your time seems limitless, and you were the latest Lotto Max winner, balance is always a good idea. Stick to 2 per season at most and leave room for some unstructured learning through play.