What activities do your 4/5 year olds do?

[filchscat]

Dd is 4 and just started reception. I will be enrolling her in swimming lessons soon but other than that she doesn’t do any clubs or activities. We did lots of baby groups and toddler classes when she was younger but obviously she’s grown out of those.

The issue is that her older sibling has quite a full on hobby that often takes up a lot of our weekends. If she started a weekend activity dh and i would simply have to divide and conquer but we all actually really enjoy watching ds hobby as a family. It can involve a lot of travel and sometimes we make a day of it while we’re away.

That being said i’m aware she shouldn’t miss out because of her brothers hobby. I’m thinking of dance or gymnastics at the moment just to give her a chance to try them. Maybe brownies when she’s older.

30 years in Early Years education here.
Swimming is enough at 4.
There is no need to over schedule her.
She is so little and is coping with starting school.
Lots of organised clubs would just cause her and the whole family stress more than anything.
School, play dates and swimming lessons is plenty at her age

Ah thank you that’s kind of what i wanted to hear! Her brothers sport is really full on and we do all like to go watch (including dd). Swimming can be done during the week so that would be better. I just don’t want her to miss out on things.

Mine did swimming and martial arts. The martial arts was great as they’ve carried it on into tween/teen years and are almost black belts now. I couldn’t be more proud.

They did gymnastics for a bit but gave it up.

She could do rainbows or squirrels.

Personally I don't think it's fair if she has an older sibling that she doesn't get chance to do something because of this. When did he start his hobby? If he was in year 1 or upwards then I think fair enough to have that as a baseline of we won't do clubs til she is a bit older. However if brother was enrolled in football/rugby/gymnastics when he was the same age I think it's unfair she misses out.

What is the current situation when he has his club anyway? Is it not still a divide and conquer issue of one parents goes with him to that and the other stays home with DD? From how it sounds she gets dragged along to his hobby with the excuse of 'making a day of it after' which doesn't sound fair.

We have membership to a trampoline park so we go once every couple of weekends and will go in the school holidays (only just started reception)

Park run every Sunday.

no formal activities or classes at all, at this point. He’s honestly too fickle to show vested interest in one thing long term and I don’t want us both to be miserable ‘making’ him go to something I’ve paid for if he doesn’t fancy it one week or he’s tired etc.

The weekly park run has been consistent mind you! But that’s a great free activity and no one minds if we skip a week.

I taught him to swim over the summer but he will need proper lessons in that, they’re just so pricey.

At 4 they did a dance class Wednesday after nursey at 3 pm foran hour. And a music play group 45 minutes at the local church Saturday morning - you didn't commit to it. Ot was just join and paid

Swimming at 4 yo was too expensive we thought. They learn faster a bit older. We did go as a family to the local pools.

At 6 yo they were signed up for cubs.

We did swimming in the holidays from 7 yo. They did fast track courses. Worked brillant.

Swimming, dance and drama, gymnastics, horse riding

Squirrels (mixed) abd Rainbows (girls) bith start at 4

My 3 yo does ballet and swimming. Swimming at my instigating dance at hers.

I think you need to be careful that your younger child doesn't miss out because of their sibling.

Ours does swimming, dance and skating. The swimming is more focused on being physiotherapy, rather than hugely improving swimming skills. If her activity clashes with her older brothers we just do one parent one child that day, or the oldest is dropped off early to his and picked up a bit later while one of us takes your youngest to her activity.

Mine do beavers (6) squirrels (4) swimming and park run

The issue is that her older sibling has quite a full on hobby that often takes up a lot of our weekends. If she started a weekend activity dh and i would simply have to divide and conquer but we all actually really enjoy watching ds hobby as a family. It can involve a lot of travel and sometimes we make a day of it while we’re away.

This is really, really unfair on dd. I guarantee you, she does not always want to go watching him all weekend, or won't when shes a bit older. Yes you often do have to divide and conquer. She deserves opportunity as much as he does.

So your dd can't have a full on hobby at weekends?

She doesn't need this at 4 yo but you really need to sort how 1 child can have 100% and 1 child 0% at weekends.

I'm a reception teacher and 100% agree. If parents/friends ask me, I say "no clubs until at least Christmas". They've got enough on their little plates with starting school.
There's a time and a place to start clubs, and the first term of primary school isn't it.

Remember they're all different. I've known some small kids that get bored very easily and struggle to entertain themselves so they go to lots of activities. Others need more down time and either play at home or do activities more ad hoc. Ideally you do what suits your child.

At 4/5 she was in the last year of the wonderful Little Kickers first thing on a Saturday morning. It was a lovely special thing she did with DH, with a drink at the cafe afterwards.

She did Beginners Ballet after school one day.

She joined in with Mini Rugby at 5ish - her brother was playing with the Under 8s, so we were at the club anyway and she knew lots of the children + adults.

We had done a lot of baby swimming when she was 2/3/4 - we would swim as a family once a week when she was 5, but she didn’t do proper stroke training until she was 6ish.

Nothing school is tiring enough

Does she really want to watch her brother every week, i suggest rather than organised activities, every other weekend ish one of you takes dd to a drop in type activity and then you can see what she enjoys. She shouldn’t be dragged around after her brother every week