Helicopter parents - activities all weekend. Why?

[Cutitup]

My DD goes to a lovely school which has high academic demands so she is busy all week doing homework in the evenings. I give her a break on the weekend and she can do what she likes. She often does 2-3 hours of homework on a Sunday.

I have invited the neighbourhood kids round many times on the weekend but they're too busy with clubs, extra tuition and the like. I feel like the parents are trying too hard to mould their kids into something. Just give them a decent rest.

Can't kids just be kids anymore?

"was really resentful of my parents as they refused to take me to high jump on a Thursday night and Saturday afternoon as they felt I did enough already. "But I do nothing on a Thursday!" was my argument (guitar was during the day). I just loved doing different activities."

That's the trouble I have. We have a really busy schedule of activities (only Saturday is free). Yet I still have requests for more/new activities E.g. "Can't we fit in karate as we have two hours free here?" They want to do everything.

All children are different though and some thrive with lots of activities.
We have a local youth club that serves in excess of 7,00 children aged 8 -19. My dd does endless hours of music practice and lessons. Sat and sun apart from dancing lessons she goes here.
I said do what you want but no music, she does enough and friends are important. There are so many different activities there, it is truly unique.
She comes back with a letter for the final of a talent competition. I really didn't know whether to laugh or cry. It isn't always the dc being helicoptered.

Each to their own I suppose. I don't think there is an answer to this age old situation.

Sometimes these things spiral out of control and before you know it, the poor DC are rushing from one thing to another without even a rest in between sometimes.

It's a double edged sword. Sometimes a DC will truly be gifted at anything they try and will end up going higher and higher up the ladder in several different sporting and/or academic fields.

It's up to the parents to determine if the DC are loving everything they do or if the parents are living vicariously through their children.

I think it depends on the kid - mine gets bored easy. He has chill out time, but is also doing Spanish lessons which are in fact just playing in Spanish.

Also, we as a family don't want to commit to going to arranged play at the weekend as it seems like never ending party invites as it is and it will eat into our family time.

2-3 hrs of homework TBH at the weekend also sounds a nightmare - maybe we are not at that stage yet.

What Vinegar said on P1
^Aren't you basically just sneering at parents whose kids go to a different (?non selective) school but then choose to do some "academic" type extra curricular stuff?

I'd rather an hour or two of "scheduled activities" than no free time at all in the week due to excessive homework demands.

FWIW I went to a grammar and still had time for Scouts,dance, music etc after school.^

and what Stavy said on P2

I would FAR rather my dc have time to do Scouts, Football, rock climbing, etc., and be able to meet with their friends whilst doing so, getting fresh air and exercise, learning a much wider variety of skills, than be restricted by having to do so much homework every night plus weekends.

I guess it's horses for courses.

Italics fail