Do 4.5 year olds need/benefit from extra curricular activities?

[bodiddly]

Bit of a follow on from someone elses thread about football ... just wondered what age your dcs started doing weekend and after school activities. Ds is 4.5 and started school today - just wondered whether it is time to consider something else now by way of sports etc?

DD will be doing swimming lessons after school one night and ballet on a Saturday.
When DS started school he just did swimming in reception, but then he was a younger one and things like football didn't start til age 5, and Beavers not til age 6

I would leave it at least a term IIWY. Then it depends if there is something he wants to do, and how tired he is from school.

My DS started a couple of things when he was in reception (mostly through school) but the school has since decided that YR children should only do one school-organised after school activity a week as too many were getting too tired (obviously they can't regulate what else they do outside of school).

he has been at nursery full time since he was 6 months old so although school will be different the days will be much shorter for him - I am somewhat naively hoping that will mean he won't be desperately tired at the end of each day. I don't think the school do anything until they are older so it would be outside school activities. Swimming is a possibility though I am not sure I could convince him to get in to a pool without me for lessons with someone else. What other activities do you boys do?

You're probably right - my DS went from 8-6 nursery days so 9-3 school days were a doddle.

At various times, through school and otherwise, DS has done:

Tennis
Climbing
Judo
Riding
Golf
Ballet
Football
Beavers (can't start until the term in which they turn 6)
Trampolining

(Disclaimer - not all at once, although it does look like a scary pushy parent list when I write it down like that - honestly he only does things because he wants to)

what did he do when he was 4/5 stealth? not sure what to start with

(he's only 6.10 now, you'd think I would remember )

He did riding and ballet when he was in reception, and started Judo later in the year.

thanks ... just trying to work out what to try him with! Will leave it a few weeks anyway - I think he could do with something physical to burn off some energy - he gets a stitch really easily so think he needs to get fit!