After-school classes for five-year olds...what do you think? - Page 2

[cjam]

I read these threads with interest because my DD's would probably fall into the category of over scheduled. This fall we are doing swimming, dance, ringette and sparks. My kids, DD5 especially, is so curious, so active and just so interested in everything. She would do 10 activities if I didn't put a cap on it. Since we can afford it and we live in a community where it's convenient, I can't see myself saying no. And in reality, it only works out to 3.25 hours a week. That leaves plenty of time for down time, puttering friends etc. And with childhood obesity rates so high, I'm happy to send them to activities that foster a love of fitness (like ringette, dance and swimming).

Cjam

[texmati]

Originally Posted by lach

I'm sorry, I agree with Cycle.

When I was in kindergarten, I went to an after school program while my mother worked. That was 5 days a week. How is this different, except that these are activities that the kids actually want to do and where they'll learn something fun, instead of sitting around coloring worksheets for 3 hours. If kids have specific interests, it's not like those subjects are being covered at school.

this, exactly. Different strokes for different folks.

[nextcommercial]

We would have been OK with one of those. Or if they were scheduled one at a time through the year, we'd have been fine with that. It's always good to try new things.

We tried soccer, dance, and gymnastics. But, one at a time til she found the thing she loved. (dance)

I doubt we would have enjoyed doing all of those classes at one time AND school too.

[lach]

Originally Posted by New Mama

Well, maybe it's that *I* can't imagine keeping up with so many activities. I'm kind of glad that my kid doesn't seem to need so much stimulation. My favorite days are when we just putter around the house! Of course, his soon-to-be born little brother may be more energetic...

See, that sounds really boring to me. It comes down to different strokes, as people are saying. There are so many really amazing classes and enrichment opportunities around where I live, I can't imagine not availing myself of them. I'm actually surprised that you do so little, as homeschoolers. One of the reasons that homeschooling appeals to me is that I find the enrichment classes MUCH more interesting than school could ever be, and I'd rather save my kids time and energy for the interesting and fun stuff!

[phathui5]

My kids like having a lot of activities. They're 9, 6, 4 and 3. We homeschool also.

In the fall, our schedule will look something like this:

Monday

1pm- Art class at friend's house
6pm- Lego Robotics club (9yo)

Tuesday

5:30pm- Yoga at Y

Wednesday

2pm- Gymnastics class

Thursday

1pm- Homeschool group book club @ library
5pm- Swim lesson for 9yo and 6yo

Friday

Field trip day

Saturday

11am- Swim lesson for 4yo

We also have to work in 4yo ds' speech therapy 2-3 days a week.

[Needle in the Hay]

Originally Posted by lach

See, that sounds really boring to me. It comes down to different strokes, as people are saying. There are so many really amazing classes and enrichment opportunities around where I live, I can't imagine not availing myself of them. I'm actually surprised that you do so little, as homeschoolers. One of the reasons that homeschooling appeals to me is that I find the enrichment classes MUCH more interesting than school could ever be, and I'd rather save my kids time and energy for the interesting and fun stuff!

Not all 5 year-olds are ready for lots of (or any) drop-off activities. The OP and her child are easing into it which IMO is a good way to go. We've always homeschooled and my son didn't do any enrichment classes at age 5. We did go to lots of playgrounds and indoor playspaces, visit the library, travel, visit family, go hiking, go bowling, play mini-golf, and have plenty of relaxing days at home. You can't really know that the OP does "so little".

[AndrewsMother]

Our son is only 4 but he will attend a different activity each day of the week through his schools after hours program. I have the choice to pay the same amount for him to play and engage in various group activities or enroll him in a specific activity each day of the week. This year we chose cooking, imusic, art, yoga and etiquette. DS is prone to boredom induced negative behaviors if he has too much free time on his hands. He is excited about his upcoming classes and looks forward to them weekly.

DS will still have an 30 to 45 minutes of free play before we arrive to pick him up.

[madskye]

DD will start full day kindy in the fall and I'm debating signing her up for even one thing. She has gone to daycare and camp 9-3 and that's a pretty full day. She definitely needs downtime afterward. But, she would like to do gymnastics and ballet. Not sure how to balance that...

[lerlerler]

My 2 cents (worth less than that) is wait until the newness of K wears off.... At the beg. of the school year with a Kindy DD? She was TIRED (and we went half day). By Oct? she was fine

[amcal]

amen, cycle.

My kids have always been in lots of activities. We don't homeschool but, our school day is from 11-4pm and my kids have activities probably 4 days a week. They do dance, take gymnastics, do a Fall basketball league, take piano.

I don't force them to do anything but, from a very young age my children were curious and active and loved to experiement with different interests - they've taken creative movement, art, pottery, drama, tap, ballet, jazz, lyrical movement, soccer, bible study etc..... and they have lots of down time, friend time, family time etc....

If it's too much, we pull back. But, if they express an interest and we're able to let them explore it then I don't see why not.

[loraxc]

I think it's kind of a lot for a 5yo, but that's just my opinion. My DD is very extroverted and would sign up for 20 billion things if I let her, but she needs more quiet time and downtime than she actively realizes. I usually notice that she is keyed up and a bit combative after long hours of scheduled time with other kids. I also really believe in the value of lots of free play and value the ability to entertain oneself, and I don't want to end up with kids who mope around the house whining if they aren't stimulated every instant.

There's also the parental burden from this stuff, which is not insignificant.

[Heavenly]

It really depends on the child and I don't think one can assume a child COULDN'T handle it just because their own child couldn't. My son is 9 and goes to school all day. He is able to handle one after school activity and maybe an additional one on the weekend. Any more than that and he totally melts down. On the other hand my older daughter is 7.5 and she is busy all the time. She goes to school all day, plus asks for extra credit school projects, does spelling bees, etc. and she takes advanced gymnastics twice a week, modern dance, and ballet. She also often does talent shows, school plays and community theatre. Some people would read her schedule and think we are pushing her but she loves it. That is what she wants and she has no problem handling it all.

[quelindo]

Originally Posted by lach

See, that sounds really boring to me. It comes down to different strokes, as people are saying. There are so many really amazing classes and enrichment opportunities around where I live, I can't imagine not availing myself of them. I'm actually surprised that you do so little, as homeschoolers. One of the reasons that homeschooling appeals to me is that I find the enrichment classes MUCH more interesting than school could ever be, and I'd rather save my kids time and energy for the interesting and fun stuff!

Originally Posted by Needle in the Hay

Not all 5 year-olds are ready for lots of (or any) drop-off activities. The OP and her child are easing into it which IMO is a good way to go. We've always homeschooled and my son didn't do any enrichment classes at age 5. We did go to lots of playgrounds and indoor playspaces, visit the library, travel, visit family, go hiking, go bowling, play mini-golf, and have plenty of relaxing days at home. You can't really know that the OP does "so little".

OP here. My son does not want to do any classes without me; in fact, he STILL wants me to sit with him during storytime, while lots of other (younger) kids are fine alone. It's just how he is. And it's only recently that he's really interacted with kids other than the (older) neighbor kids.

I was filling out the calendar for fall and we're doing art at the rec. dept. on Mondays, story time on Wednesdays and possibly open gym at a local gymnastics facility on Fridays. Plus on Thursdays we go to my mom's for lunch and since she's 45 minutes away we stay most of the day.

We also have a membership to our local children's museum and go to different libraries in our city-wide system if we're looking for more to do. We were involved with a local unschooling group but recently decided to take a break due to the other children's behavior.

[lerlerler]

I think it may also depend on HOW scheduled the classes are?

Strict ballet - stand and listen and follow quietly?

or

parks and rec - "we've got gym mats and show you a sumersault then you goof around and try what you want while hanging with friends.."

the latter is more a "playdate" activity for moms that stink at setting up playdates

[buttercup784ever]

I didn't find that the op was being judgemental. Sometimes I wonder if I should have my kids in more activities, and I feel guilty when I hear that some people are doing 3 and 4 activities with their kids a week. I don't judge them for doing too much, I ask myself if I'm doing enough!

My kids are in school all day, and they do struggle with reading problems and things. We spend a lot of time after school concentrating on homework. I limit them to one sports/active activity and one other if we can afford it. I don't see how people with more than 1 or 2 kids can afford 3 and 4 different activities a week.