The Kiddos Activities & Which To Participate In

My boys are 5, and have never come to me and said....I want to do that! Regarding a sport or activity. I do however want to expose them to as many different things as I can so that they can get a taste of what is out there & then go from there.
 
We still do a little of the Story Time at the Library from time to time but this will be the last year for that. They have also been in gymnastics which they really seem to enjoy.
 
I am thinking about swimming lessons and also things like T Ball in the future etc. Some of the activities like the gymnastics can get pretty spendy so we are staying with one activity at a time since we are trying to save to build a new home.
 
I almost feel a little bit leary about getting them into sports at this point (of course as they get older they will tell me what they would and would not like to do, but in the mean time I almost don't know if I want to get into a competitive sport...the gymnastics that they are currently in is pretty nice because it is fun and laid back....no competitive side to it.....if you miss a week no one cares... etc....
 
I guess I am just pondering what all to do with them at this point, when I am the one leading the group since they don't know what they want. Am I doing this right? Just experimenting? How did you all handle it? . 
 
Thanks!
 
 

 

Maybe you could try looking for a class that's a mix of sports? We have a few offered through local city programs where they do indoor soccer, ball hockey, basketball, and whatever else so they get a different flavour of each thing. There's also arts classes where they get to try a bunch of different media. Another way to approach it might be to take them to batting cages or just trying out different sports at the park to see whether something catches their interest. We also tend to stick to sports that dont' need a lot of equipment and can be played anywhere so that we can go do it whenever we feel like it. Tennis, soccer, etc have been great.
 
We try to keep the boys enrolled in one cultural thing and one sport. They didn't really show an interest in sports until the last 6 months or so though, and now they have become a bit more competitive and are more interested in developing their skills. They did soccer, then over the summer it has been swimming. We haven't settled on a sport for fall yet, but for cultural they're doing piano and boy scouts. Last spring they did clay sculpting, which was a big hit. I think gymastics is a great thing to keep them in as it helps develop balance, coordination, and general body awareness. Competitive sport has been fun for us because it helps the boys stay interested and it's also been good for learning how to handle winning and losing. I don't really think you can go wrong as long as you're keeping it positive and trying new things.

 

I don't if you have this in your area, but here, we've had programs that we've enrolled the kids in where it shows them how to play the sport.  It seems like around here, the sports don't get competitive until the 7-8 year old age range.  So you could find a sport that is more showing the kids how to play it and play the game more so then being competitive.  It's a good way to figure out if they like it or not.
We've done dance, art classes (which my son wants to sign up for again), our school starts choir in second grade which the kids will join, soccer, T-Ball.

 

We started swimming lessons two summers ago, but it's only for a few weeks at a time.  They are really interested in karate, so we did a camp last week.  We found a small local studio that's not too expensive and is a month-by-month commitment (many of the local places require 6 months to a year, which I'm not willing to do unless I know they are going to stick with it).  We are going to start going next week and see what happens.
 
If they don't stick with that, we might try gymnastics or t-ball in the spring.  Right now they are most interested in karate, probably because DH has a black belt and they have a much older cousin who is a brown belt. 
 
In a few years, we plan to do piano and maybe an instrument - they definitely want to do that but don't have the patience or focus yet.
 
Mainly we are going with what they are interested in.  Talk to them about various ideas - maybe take them to some events - see what sparks an interest.  At this age, 1-2 activities is a max for us.  Karate is twice a week, so that's all we'll do for now unless they lose interest.

 

My two do gymnastics year round (6 1/2).  It is a great building block for other sports.  They are also in swimming and I expect next summer they may do a swim team.  Around here I know mom's of 5-6 year olds who were at practices and games several times a week. Some as late starting as 8:00 on a school night.  I just can't imagine that kind of commitment at this age.  Crazy.  Do you have a rec center?  Often sports through the city or county are less expensive and not as time consuming.  Mine take gymnastics through the rec center.  Love the program. 
 
We are very lucky their school actually exposes them to all sorts of sports during the year.  They do units in soccer, t-ball, tag football, hockey, tennis, golf, fencing, volleyball etc.  One hour a week.  I think that this has really helped them get a feel for different sports. 
 
My two want to try fencing this fall along with gymnastics (talk about an expensive sport).  It was their favorite class during the school year.  So after swimming is over they will try out fencing.  During Kindergarten last year we just stuck with gymnastics and added swimming in the spring.  That was plenty for them.  This fall they will end up with fencing (just one month to see if they like it), gymnastics and cub scouts. 

 

We started soccer at 4 around here. It was through a club team, but a developmental program. Practices were three days a week, no games. You are not required to go to every practice! One of my boys (7.5) is a ridiculous die hard soccer player. So, I'll admit it is insanity... He plays for our town(so he can play with his peers in school) in the pioneer valley league(up from say a Rec league). Practices are two days a week with a game on the weekend. And, he also plays for an NEP team, which is the premier league for the state. That is three practices a week, plus games every other weekend(travel). THEN, he's still part of the developmental team, so he will have practices through them, and usually there are 3-4 days to choose from. So he will do soccer 6-7 days of week. By choice. Not my doing!

Annabella does soccer. She did dance last year and while she liked it a lot...she wasn't crazy for it by the end. So we will stick to soccer(my husband is Italian and a die hard fan lol) with her. She mentioned gymnastics and I may look into that for her.

And then there is Anthony(7.5) and he would rather read books all day. Nothing wrong with that, but he needs to be active, so I find him to be the hardest. He's done tae kwon do, baseball, and soccer. He is not athletically inclined, so it's a tad difficult. He is willing to try soccer for the rec department in the fall. We will see how that goes!

It's all a crap shoot! See what your local library, etc is offering in terms of classes/shows, etc. We used to do music and they loved it! We've done swimming lessons as well.

Part of me wants to tell you to just sit back and enjoy the lack of insane schedules!

 

We didn't get into any sports until the spring of 1st grade.  We had done swim lessons and storytime, but were pretty happy just hanging out at home and going to the park.  Then Timothy got introduced to soccer at recess and he finally had something he really wanted to do.  So that spring I signed him up with the YMCA for a soccer league.  It's supposed to be more of a learning league and he's been with it since.  He's even been with the same coach the whole time and a few of the same boys.  They've got from the YMCA league to a more competitive league, but he's always wanted to do it and had fun.  In the winter, I don't like the indoor soccer schedule so Timothy bowls.  Hopefully, we're going to do a developmental league this winter.  It emphasis is on middle and high school kids and helping them make their bowling teams.
 
Of course when Timothy started soccer in 1st, Sarah wanted to start something also.  I was tossing out ideas and when I threw out horse riding as an idea, her eyes got real big and she said "you can take lessons for that?".  That's been what she wanted since that point and that's what she does. We don't own a horse, but if we ever move out to the country, she has learned enough to mostly take care of a horse and could have a lot of fun.
 
We've stuck with one thing at a time that they love.  It's worked for us.  
 
Marissa

 

my kids kinda went with what their friends were doing.  Abby started dance at 3 and Ian started ice skating/hockey.  Then they both played hockey for a while but the rink was in an area of town that was being shot up and that ended quickly!  We did T-Ball and they hated it so we only did that one summer.  Then they did football/cheer - not really big fans.  Basketball in the winter and then Ian discovered soccer and loves it.  They also now like baseball/softball....
 
it sounds like a lot but its only one sport per season.

 

I enrolled my girls in a town run soccer squirts when they were 3 and 4.  When they started K they did a season of soccer but didn't like it since it was co-ed and it got cold.  They started soccer again when they were in 2nd grade, and now play for a travel team ( but the travel is all local. During the fall and spring season, it is 2 practices a week and 8-weekend games. In the winter of 2014 they did a winter league.  So one practice a week plus a Sunday game.  Winter 2015 their team only had a practice once a week no games.
 
In Pre-K through the  end of 2rd grade, they also did a gymnastics.   Last fall they did a cheerleading tumbling class one day a week.  They did ice skating lessons  in 3rd grade from February to June. 
 
Sydney started to play basketball in the winter as well, which she also did in the spring.  It was a little tricky with soccer since sometimes soccer practice ending 15 minutes after Sydney's Bball game started.
 
I blocked out that they also did dance lessons in K ( one day a week for an hour), 1st ( one day a week for 2 hours) and 2nd ( 2 days a week one hour class each time). 
 
I would find 2 things you think your boys will be interested in and ask them which one they want to do.   My girls know if sign up for something we are committed to it.  So they have to last through the season/ session. 

 

Thanks everyone for all of the comments and ideas!

 

Mine did recorder lessons through their pre-school for the last year (equivalent to K in the US), so it was not an extra afternoon activity but part of their mornings. They will continue this as their musical activity for now because their teacher is so great, but it will be an extra afternoon activity once they move to 1st grade in the fall.
 
They have also been in Judo for a year now and will continue that too. We originally started that for DS who is very athletic but also very shy so he would not do well in a team sport at this point (although he is great with a ball and plays soccer a lot and well with his friends) and his big cousins all do judo, so he thinks it's cool. He loves it, the atmosphere is very friendly, big on respect and fairness as well as fun and very structured which suits him. After watching for a couple of weeks DD wanted to join in but while she likes it she is not as committed and we might switch her to a different sport if we find one. She would love to do horseback riding which I fully understand because I did that for many many years until I got pregnant with the twins but classes here for her age (6) mean lots of parental involvement and I can't do that safely with a one-year old toddler in tow.
 
They also did 10 weeks of swim classes in spring and will do another 10 weeks in the fall. They both love it but swimming is so expensive here I can't see them doing that year-round.

 

I would look into your local rec league.  My boys have played rec sports since K.  They have had options to play for club teams, but like the laid back structure of rec.  In K, our rec does coed teams that are only local K students, so they play with their school friends.  In 1st and 2nd grade, the teams are no longer coed, but still basically instructional, and only play within our rec.  Sports don't become competitive until 3rd grade.  We play one sport a season, generally soccer, basketball, and baseball.  My boys also do Scouts--started in 1st as cub scouts, and are still participating as boy scouts.  They also have Hebrew School once a week, and participate in Band.  Now that they are in Middle School, they are involved with a few clubs, but for the most part, they are done with those by 3:30, so it isn't that bad.

 

Martial arts!  My boys have taken Jiu Jitsu for several years now.   It's low key, if they miss a class or a week or a month, it's not a big deal.  Whether they want to compete is usually up to the individual and the sensai/teacher.  And it teaches them self defense, too.  It can get pretty pricey.  I've paid from $75 a month for one kid to $180 a month for two, plus the gi's they wear are about $100.   Typically they meet twice a week for an hour.