Children often enjoy dance classes and playing sports, but sometimes they can become stressed when they are trying to keep up with the demands of a week at school as well as all their extra-curricular activities. oeals get missed, social time is limited and the whole family is under pressure trying to get all the kids to their commitments every day. Here are some tips to make sure your family isn’t overstretched:
Keep an eye out for a child who is tired, anxious and having trouble managing homework, family and friends.Check in regularly to see that your child isn’t becoming burned out by signing up for too many activities. It’s important that kids get some time to just hang out and be kids.
Talk to your children about some ground rules.one sporting activity per season and no more than two after-school activities is a good basic schedule. This allows your child time and energy for the other parts of their life, such as friends, homework and being part of a family.
If your child still wants to do more, ask them – and yourself – why.Are they avoiding being at home for some reason? Are they choosing sport over school? or are they just a naturally enthusiastic kid who wants to do everything and needs to learn to set some limits? It’s important you find out why and help them work out how to take things a little easier.
Is your child participating in activities just to please you?Did they really want to take piano lessons or did you enrol them because you thought it would be nice? Are they playing rugby because Dad wants a rugby player in the house? Be honest and only enrol your children in activities they enjoy. Don’t make them take part in an activity just because you think it will make them more well-rounded or because your friends’ kids are doing it.
Calendars can help you to get some perspective.If you don’t already have one, busy families often find it useful to put up a central calendar or whiteboard where everyone’s activities and commitments are marked up. once you have filled it in, you may see very clearly how little time your child has to relax.
Be your child’s support person. Sometimes telling a coach you want to drop out of a team or a ballet teacher that you don’t want to sit an exam can be met with a negative reaction. Be there to talk to coaches or teachers and support your child’s decisions if necessary.
Make sure your child is only doing activities that are appropriate to their age and size.Sometimes children can be put in a grade because they are physically bigger, but if they are much younger than the rest of the class, it may be hard for them to keep up. You be the judge of where your child should be placed.
When your child comes home with a new activity they want to join, they may not realise the commitment involved. Go through it with them, discussing in detail how often they will need to practise and train and what current activities will have to be reduced or stopped to make the time. Check they are okay about all of this before signing them up.
Geography is important, especially if you live in a city.Joining a team that has its practice sessions an hour’s drive across town is going to put serious strain on you and your family’s resources. Check there isn’t a similar activity closer to home.
If the problem isn’t so much your child’s activities but using your time to take them, consider carpooling and teaming up with other busy parents so that you make it to every second game, rather than every single match.
Make sure you share the time activities take equally between your children.If you spend all your time transporting and supporting one child while the other misses out, this is not really a good use of your time. Even if the other child doesn’t enjoy sport, they still deserve a fair share of your time. Factor that in when scheduling your family activities.
Don’t allow your child or yourself to be too strict.If they’ve been sick, or there is a family event which causes a schedule clash, encourage kids to miss the occasional training session in of some quality time resting or being with their extended family.
School comes first.If homework is being favour g skipped and school missed, you need to step in and do some rearranging.
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