{"id":1711,"date":"2013-04-22T09:00:30","date_gmt":"2013-04-22T14:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com\/blog\/?p=1711"},"modified":"2024-05-09T11:53:27","modified_gmt":"2024-05-09T18:53:27","slug":"kids-activities-they-will-love","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ahblog.activityhero.com\/kids-activities-they-will-love\/","title":{"rendered":"Finding Kids Activities They Will Love (and Stick With!): 5 Tips for Parents"},"content":{"rendered":"

When it comes to keeping kids active, it can be quite a hassle to get them away from the screen.<\/p>\n

However, one of the biggest challenges that I have found as a mother is not getting them off the couch, but figuring out what to do with them when they do!<\/p>\n

They need constant engagement and it can be difficult to find kids activities that they will enjoy and stick with.<\/p>\n

\"kids<\/p>\n

As a mother of two I went through a lot of summer camps and after school extracurriculars in the hunt for the \u201cone\u201d\u2014that special sport or activity that would regularly occupy my energetic daughters.<\/p>\n

After multiple failed attempts to get my daughters excited about these activities I was almost ready to surrender them to a life of computer gaming and television.<\/p>\n

Relief finally came when I opened myself up to their opinions<\/strong>. I told them that they were allotted only a certain amount of time in front of the screen and that they could choose what activity they wanted to participate in.<\/p>\n

My eldest daughter, Rory, indicated her enthusiasm for cheerleading, while my youngest, Amy, asked to join a craft club after school. While my husband was disappointed that they didn\u2019t want to play soccer, we agreed to let them try, under the conditions that they commit to stay through the end of the season.<\/p>\n

\"Smiling<\/p>\n

Both girls are now enthusiastically engaged in kids activities that do not involve computers or televisions!<\/p>\n

In my own crusade to pull my kids away from the screen I have learned some valuable lessons that I think apply to any parent. Here are five things I have learned about finding activities kids will love.<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Let your children tell you what they want<\/h2>\n

A major key to finding an activity that your child will stick with is choosing activities they enjoy. They are the best judgment of what their interests are. Listen to them<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Don\u2019t be afraid to try new things<\/h2>\n

While this applies to children, it also applies to parents. Don\u2019t be afraid as a parent to introduce new kids activities (even ones you aren\u2019t familiar with).<\/p>\n

Just because you may have certain biases towards a sport or activity doesn\u2019t mean it can\u2019t be a great opportunity for your child. Don\u2019t close the door to potentially rewarding experiences.<\/p>\n

3.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Support your child\u2019s interests<\/h2>\n

When your kid does express excitement for a particular sport, support them! Just because it isn\u2019t your cup of tea doesn\u2019t mean it won\u2019t be fun for your kids.<\/p>\n

Be open minded<\/strong> and encourage them to pursue their interests.<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Be involved<\/h2>\n

Be involved in the process. Help your kids explore their interests and stay engaged when they find something they love.<\/p>\n

Go to their games, talk to them about practices or rehearsals, and ask about their accomplishments.<\/p>\n

Your enthusiasm will be contagious and help them stay excited.<\/p>\n

5.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Don\u2019t be discouraged<\/h2>\n

So what if your son doesn\u2019t like football? Maybe he is a great sprinter or talented actor.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t be upset if your kid doesn\u2019t pursue the path you had envisioned. We all fantasize about what our kids will be like, but we can\u2019t let our ideas get in the way of their real identities.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t close the door to positive experiences just because they aren\u2019t what you had in mind.<\/p>\n

Melanie Hargrave<\/a> is a wife and homemaker from Idaho whose pride and joy is her family. She is her daughters’ number one fan, always ready at a moment’s notice to grab her foam fingers and spirit shakers<\/a> and cheer on her girls. In addition to spending time with her family, she loves being outdoors, playing sports, and sharing her experiences with others.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When it comes to keeping kids active, it can be quite a hassle to get them away from the screen. However, one of the biggest challenges that I have found as a mother is not getting them off the couch, but figuring out what to do with them when they do! They need constant engagement […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14877,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"templates\/template-cover.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[101,197,214,109,215],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1711","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-after-school-activities","category-guest-posts","category-active-healthy-kids","category-parenting-resources","category-super-kids-activities"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1711","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1711"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1711\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14879,"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1711\/revisions\/14879"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14877"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1711"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1711"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.activityhero.com/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1711"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}