disclosure: collaborative post
Left to their own devices, children are likely to stay on computer games or YouTube if they are left to it, even if they have a whole host of new things from Father Christmas. While these things aren’t bad on their own, there is so much more for children to learn about and getting them involved in different hobbies can be a great way to spark their imagination and give them some important skills for later down the line. Not only are hobbies things that are great for developing a child’s self-worth and self-esteem, but it can also help them physically, socially, and mentally. But with so many hobbies to choose from, knowing what your children are going to enjoy the most can be tricky. Here are a few different things to think about, to help and encourage your children to find and pursue some hobbies that they will love.
Encourage conversation
Talking to your children and getting to know their likes and dislikes is a really good place to start when you are thinking about your children and their interests and passions. Starting off conversations with open-ended questions can be a good idea, as it will allow them to think about their answers and the things that they would like to actually pursue. Do they like animals and want to try something like horse riding lessons, where you can get them horse riding hats and other equipment? You don’t want them to just pick the same things as their friends.
Write it down
If you can get your children to write down some of their favourite things, and then go through them with each other, it can help you to see if you can transform something into a hobby. Writing down things will make your children really think about what to write, which could lead to some thinking outside of the box. For example, if you have a child that likes to read, something like comics in particular, then cartoon drawing could be a hobby to pursue as it offers plenty of imagination and creativity.
Avoid being pushy
Being pushy and trying to live your dreams through your children are going to backfire, as they are their own person and what you would have wanted to do is likely to not be what they want to do. Pushing them to do things that they don’t actually enjoy isn’t going to be a good thing for them. One of the key things that helps them to stick to their hobbies is for them to be involved in things that they want to do and that they naturally love to do.
Research what’s local to you
You are probably going to be surprised at just how many classes and courses are actually available to your children in the area where you live. There can be things like drawing classes to roller skating, so trying out some new things can be a wonderful thing. Your children can’t be interested in something that they don’t even know about.
