Families For Life | Introducing your child to hobbies

Hobbies are a wonderful escape from daily life. It helps us reduce stress, improve our mental wellbeing, and spurs our personal development. An artistic child can find freedom of expression through the arts while an active child can release pent-up stress by exercising or playing sports.

With so many activities out there, how will you find the one that suits your child? Read on to find out what you can do to guide your little one to their passion!

Painting, Dancing, Soccer and More!

The first step: Give your child space to try different activities! Encourage them to explore something new and motivate them to take up anything they find interesting. Try joining in if you can. If not, showing your support can go a long way!

Remember to be there for them on their journey and celebrate every milestone and achievement!

Unstructured Play – The Gateway to New Hobbies

Our little ones might need to explore the world to discover activities they truly enjoy. Unstructured play can help them do just that! Here are some activities that can help your child find their interests:

Outdoor play

Take your child outdoors and let them choose how to explore the world. You can take them to the playground with friends or siblings, teach them how to ride a bike, or simply let them wander and explore nature (under supervision of course!).

Simple crafts

Help your child express their creative side through the arts. Craft activities include threading beads and string, creating sock puppets, painting with poster colour or using recycled boxes and tubes to create something new!

Dress-up games and pretend play

Let your child’s imagination run wild through imaginative play! Encourage them to turn household items into props: A blanket as a superhero’s cape, a soft toy as an adventurer’s trusty sidekick.

Musical play

Music is another way for children to express their emotions. Try making and playing homemade instruments or jumping and dancing to music!

Unstructured play is also an important part of a child’s development. Let your child decide for themselves what to do and how to do it, and they can develop critical life learning skills, creative thinking, and problem-solving skills.

After-School Activities

Besides unstructured play, Co-Curricular Activities (CCAs) are another way for young children and youths to discover new interests and talents. Whether your child is part of the school band, the photography club or one of the uniformed groups, they can find an experience that resonates with them!

Extracurricular classes like ballet, piano, or swimming can also fall under this category, allowing curious children to explore interests outside structured school activities. Enrolling your child in these activities can also connect your child with people of similar interests and boost their self-esteem.

Just remember that while extracurricular activities can be good for our little ones, too much activity with little downtime can cause stress and put more pressure than necessary on your child.

With these in mind, you’re on your way to helping your child find their passion! While we all want the best for our children, let’s remember to give them the freedom to explore interests on their own and support them on their journey!