To ask what you normally do after school with primary aged kids

[Janeaustenaddict]

What do you/your kids ds do after school? Reading the playdate thread earlier today with people having weekly playdates I feel I am not doing enough with the kids after school. But I'm not sure how others fit it all in alongside homework, time to relax etc.

So our week looks like this
Mon - DD1 has a maths tutor (as really struggling with this)
Tues - both DC do ballet (consecutive classes so takes up most of the evening)
Weds/thurs- snack, play at home, homework, watch TV
Fri - film and pizza 🍕 night at home

We also have one or two playdates a term, the odd trip to the shops and/or library. Saturday both DC have swimming and dance classes so quite a hectic day.

What do you get up too? And if you do more fun stuff how do you fit homework/reading/spellings in etc?

We are busy but the kids seem to like it. It's a constant juggle as I'm separated from their Dad so as well as clubs, activities and play dates they have 2 different houses.

Monday - relax and play at home then martial arts back to back from 5-7. Each child does 20 mins of homework or reading whole their sibling is doing the activity.
Tuesday- swimming after school then homework, reading, playing
Wednesday - sometimes a play date but they are at their dads EOW and he doesn't do play dates so I have to get them in on my weeks.
Thursday - sport straight after school and then a quick tea and back out to more sports until late.
Friday - again sometimes a play date but they are at their dads half the time. Homework.
Saturday - we keep this free for visiting family or day trips but often they have a party to go to or we will go for a family swim.
Sunday - DS has a match nearly every week.

DS is only 4 but we could absolutely not manage all these activities. He has a club 6-7 on a Monday and the rest of the time we walk our friend home and occasionally end up at the park, mostly just at home where its tea bath bed in quick succession!

After school is for chilling out.
Tuesday DD2 does a cookery club, Wednesday DD1 does a different club. Rest of the week is our own.

They have friends over half terms of the odd weekends.

Monday: do home work, play till dinner
Tuesday: finish homework work, play til dinner
Wednesday : swimming lessons
Thursday: play with cousin at grandparents house
Friday: play at the park then it’s movie night

Mon: dance class
Tue: swimming
Wed: chill at home
Thu: school club so pick up at 4.15
Fri: chill at home
Weekend: no fixed plans. See family every 2/3 weeks.

DD is 5 and I reckon this is possibly one club too many. Discussing what to maybe pause. She benefits from chilling out at home and playing with her little brother.

How does everyone manage pretty much every pick up?

Mine is 7. He refuses to do any any non-school clubs. It frustrates me a bit as I grew up in the middle of nowhere with very little going on but it’s pointless making him.

Monday- after school club until 4, then homework.
Tuesday- after school club then the rest of his homework.
Wednesday and Thursday- at MIL’s until after supper, then home for a short play and bed.
Friday- nothing in particular.

@OnceuponaRainbow18

How does everyone manage pretty much every pick up?

I work in a school although I have 10 minutes between the time I (am meant to) finish and when dd2 comes out so it's a stressful rush each day praying there is no traffic and that I can find a parking space. I'm invariably late. Dd1 is big enough to not need picked up

DS yr2, DS2 preschool:

Mon: take eldest to his sports lesson, home at 5, dinner and TV
Tues: TV
Weds: DS1 sports after school club so just go get him after and he has tv
Thurs: tv, go get DS2 from nursery’s
Friday: see Thursday

😄 so a lot of TV. Obviously he plays, does Lego, changes his clothes, has a snack, plays with a balloon, does some drawing, plays football in the garden (most days after dinner actually). But with a background of TV 😄 it’s important to chill!

Mine come home and watch tv or play games, they dont want to do clubs and their school doesnt have any either as its such a small school

No clubs during the week. Mostly me trying not to lose the will to live.

They’ll mostly play with friends and if it’s nice weather go fishing or out on the boat to haul lobster.

@AlphabetAerobics wow that’s cool!

Mine are young - KS1/preschool. By the time we are home around 4.15, it’s snack, then runaround in the garden or village park before eating tea, followed by a bit of playtime then bath and bed! Swimming lessons at the weekend, and play dates definitely also at weekends. They’re way too tired to do anything else after school on a weekday at the moment, plus we live rurally so play dates involve more time/logistical effort.

Meant to say, your week sounds good, don’t worry!

After school club every day, TV or Nintendo Switch while i make dinner, a couple of nights 45ish mins homework/reading other nights card games, then story/audiobook in bed. Can't manage any hobbies/clubs as they'd be too tired on weekdays and weekends they need the down time. Last time there was a birthday party on a Saturday, 7 year old said it was fun but weekend he needs a break from his friends!

On the days I work, dh wfh and picks them up ut has to carry on working so they have a snack and get changed then just play/watch TV for a bit. They need the downtime though so not a problem. I get home about 5, we have tea then we do spellings, reading books etc and usually play some games like Uno or build some Lego or read some stories together.
2 days a week I don't work so oick them up. They have swimming straight after school on one of those days which is a mad rush and on the other day if it's nice we might go for a walk/have half an hour at the park. Otherwise it's home for snacks and TV.

Also, I anticipate them doing perhaps two after school clubs as they get older, but no more as they’ll surely need homework time and decompression time?

@WakeUpLockie you’d think… but sometimes you’d rather just stick a potato in the oven than be gutting fish and cleaning shellfish!

I always feel like we should be doing more after school too but then I see the kids and think they need time to chill. We have clubs after school 1 day a week, occasionally after school club if I need to be in the office, a day where they go to tea with grandparents. On the other days they just watch TV, listen to audio books, do colouring etc and homework. Occasional play date (a couple a term max) or library trip.

Monday - chill, TV, toys
Tuesday - with childminder until 5
Wednesday - gymnastics
Thursday and Friday - with grandparents at home but more of Monday really

3x nights after school club until 6. Come home and watch tv, have some dinner then bedtimes and reading practice
1x night after school club and then music lesson
1x night an activity then home, do a bit of homework then tv and bed

I feel bad that there isn’t more scope for play dates etc. we’re largely limited to the weekend. Also quite conscious that we struggle to get out on bikes etc after school. My ideal would be to drop a day tbh.

Years ago now but at primary was Monday after school sports club until 4.15, home to relax/homework. Tuesday choir 6-8 Wednesday swimming lessons 4.30-5.30 (2 different 30 min slots one each) Thursday street dancing after school until 4.15 then home, Friday church choir 6-8.30, Saturday morning orchestra for one, football for the other, Sunday church morning and evening. Exhausting

We are exhausted. I have refused play dates because I need a break and half term has been welcomed!

We have two nights a week where we don’t have activities and that’s spent doing bloody homework which I think we shouldn’t have because they’re KiDS who have spend all darned day at school. The other 3 nights we have after school activities - dance, swimming, scouts etc.

You think you aren't ding enough? Sounds like you are busy enough to me, there's only so many hours in a day. Our children go to breakfast club at school so are up at 6.30am. We don't get back from school until just after 4 (I'm on mat leave if I wasn't they go to my parents and are collected usually around 6 unless it's a night there's swimming or dance). Our children need to go to bed at 7. The nights they do things are hectic and tiring as there's a lot of dashing about. Even on a normal night fitting in Reading and getting everyone fed and bathed feels hectic. I hate it when we have afterschool bday party's too as I think 2 afterschool activities a week are more than enough at 4 and 5 years old. They need time to relax. On the nights we've nothing on they'll do some drawing, play or watch a bit of TV. They are tired after a long day.

My DC go childminder 3xweek after school where they have friends there.

Swimming and rainbows 1 night.

So we have one free after school a week where we either play on the park with school friends or have a playdate.

Weekends are football and maybe another playdate..

That is as much as me or the kids can manage and I feel like life is busier than I would ideally like.