Kids' activities and over-scheduling

[londoncitymum]

Having a paranoid moment about kids' activities - I tend to let mine play, run around and choose their own activities - we go to swimming lessons once a week and have regular playdates but other than that they don't do any other classes. I am hoping it will help them enjoy their own company and develop their imagination...but question myself after spending the afternoon with a mum whose kids do every activity under the sun - football, swimming, cooking, tennis, gym - you name it! They seem to be excelling too and it makes me wonder whether mine should be doing more...will it matter in the long run?

How old ?

I read on Mn sometimes, schedules that are just simply exhausting. Personally, I don't think that is good for dc.

OTOH, as they get older, I think dc benefit from having a wider circle of friends, and a lot of dc benefit from meetings and having relationships with all sort of people - adults / dc / people from different backgrounds / people with different ways of doing things or different opinions / etc and one way of expanding their 'community' is through being involved with a hobby of some kind.

Some dc also benefit from finding something they love, or something they are really good at, which they might not get to do at school.

So, overall, I think there's a balance.