Lessons that she loves or lessons that she are good for her?

[Dandelionkid]

My dd7 loves synchronized swimming- she is trying a camp out this summer. The club here is awesome- love the instructors and the way they interact with the kids.

She is starting full-time school for this first time this fall so we want to keep her activities to 1 or 2. She has been in suzuki for 2 years, still on book one and it is a struggle for her and I to make time to practice and she complains about lessons every week. 

I would feel bad about stopping the violin lessons because they are supposed to be so good developmentally for a kid but I really believe in following a child's lead in regards to activities. She is willing to take a break from violin lessons but she hates to quit anything. 

She already is in sewing lessons at her request. So her two things would be sewing and swimming, we would take a "break" from violin.

Swimming is about half the price of violin but this is a side-benefit and not a decision-maker.

What would you do?

[Alyantavid]

I'd drop the violin. 

Things are "supposed" to be good for kids are great and all, but what benefit do they get if they hate it and aren't really into it? 

Our kids try a variety of things and continue the ones they enjoy and don't keep up with the ones they don't. 

[LynnS6]

Originally Posted by Dandelionkid 

 She has been in suzuki for 2 years, still on book one and it is a struggle for her and I to make time to practice and she complains about lessons every week. 

Drop the violin. The information you posted above is enough to suggest that violin isn't working for her. The reason that music is 'good for' kids is that it teaches them rhythm, counting/grouping and patterns. She'll get a lot of similar skills from synchronized swimming.

Maybe after she's adapted to school and gotten older, she can add in a different kind of music. In 1st grade, we limited dd to piano and 1 gymnastics class a week. This year (2nd grade), she wants to do piano, swimming (not gymnastics) and children's choir. I think she can handle it.

[Owen'nZoe]

I have to agree - for my kids, if they've just started something and hate it I'll push them a bit to keep trying, because learning something new is hard, and sometimes doing something before you master it is just no fun, no two ways around it. I'm especially willing to push if it is an activity they chose themselves and really seemed to want to master. The only other time I insist is when it is a safety issue - my son hates swim lessons, for example, but we are on the water a lot. He must know how to swim, so those lessons are not negotiable.

But in your case, she's been trying for 2 years and doesn't enjoy it. It sounds like a break is absolutely warranted.

[Dandelionkid]

Originally Posted by LynnS6 

Drop the violin. The information you posted above is enough to suggest that violin isn't working for her. The reason that music is 'good for' kids is that it teaches them rhythm, counting/grouping and patterns. She'll get a lot of similar skills from synchronized swimming.

Maybe after she's adapted to school and gotten older, she can add in a different kind of music. In 1st grade, we limited dd to piano and 1 gymnastics class a week. This year (2nd grade), she wants to do piano, swimming (not gymnastics) and children's choir. I think she can handle it.

That makes a lot of sense. I never thought about the music component to the swimming but it makes me feel a lot better to consider that she would still be doing some type of music.

Thanks for all the responses. I am leaning toward getting rid of the violin.