Hobbies are a great way to teach your children the value of hard work. They may not be interested in piano lessons or chess clubs, but they should learn that just because they don’t enjoy it doesn’t mean they can’t do it. Another important lesson is that there are many ways to enjoy yourself. For example, your child might find joy in drawing or fishing even if they could never make the piano sound like anything other than random notes.
The following are some of the most common children’s hobbies and suggestions on making them interesting for your kids.
Music
If you can’t get them interested in piano lessons, try encouraging an interest in singing or even an instrument such as the ukulele. A great way to start this is by taking your child with you when you go tune your piano. They might find it fascinating that each piano has its own pitch and needs to be adjusted accordingly. After tuning the piano, show them how to play a simple melody on it and see if they want to learn more. If so, maybe they would like piano lessons after all and want to meet a piano teacher.
Alternatively, if music isn’t really their thing but they still enjoy making noise, your child might enjoy learning an instrument such as percussion or drums. You could encourage this by asking your piano teacher for some music they have composed that is appropriate for young children, then playing it on the piano. Then you could show your child how to play a simple rhythm on one of the instruments lying around your house, like a drum or tambourine.
Math
With our increasingly technological world, math is becoming more and more important in everyday life. Why not expose your child to advanced math concepts if your child enjoys numbers? An excellent place to start is with algebraic equations. This can be done by taking basic numerals they are familiar with (for example, 2+2=4), then changing something about them (in this case, make one number negative as well as positive), and asking them what the equation would equal. You can encourage further participation by offering a reward for every equation they correctly solve.
Worksheets are an excellent resource to use when trying to teach advanced math concepts to children. Many websites have free printable worksheets that deal with addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, square roots, and fractions, just to name a few examples. Keep your child interested in learning advanced math concepts by showing them how fun it is to complete these worksheets.
Inventing
If you lack any formal training in this area yourself, try getting some books from the library on how to invent things or how stuff works. Show your child pictures of inventions such as airbags and explain how they work. If you have a 3-D printer, that’s even better! For older kids, show them videos on building things such as fishing poles or model boats and then set aside time for them to try it themselves.
Sports
While all sports teach important life lessons such as training hard, being team-oriented, and developing character, many parents limit their children to just one sport to give them the best chance at succeeding in it. With so much potential energy going to waste, why not challenge your kids by introducing a new sport? You could offer a reward for every sport they play for a month straight without quitting (for younger children, this would be something simple like an ice cream cone). This will allow your child to get a taste of many sports and make them even better at whatever sport they choose to compete in.
Reading
If your kids are young, reading might be the last thing on their minds. But if they get to an age where they can read by themselves, encourage them to start a book club with their friends. If you don’t have any young readers at home, borrow some great books from your local library, then offer a reward for whichever child reads the most books over the month. This will improve their literacy skills and give them something fun to do with other children around the same age.
Similarly, you can encourage older children to read by offering a reward for every book they finish (again, something like ice cream or cookies will work well).
Although many kids will spend their time alone playing video games or watching uploaded videos on YouTube, we should try to get them out of the house and encourage them to get involved in hobbies. Hobby-less kids are more likely to fall prey to negative peer pressure, but with a bit of encouragement from mom and dad, they might find themselves excelling in a hobby that could change their lives.
