Which Extracurricular Activities Are Right for Your Child?
There are many benefits that your children can gain from participating in one or more extracurricular activities. These activities contribute greatly to the personal development of each child and his or her growth. However, finding the activity that best suits your child can be more or less complicated. It depends on the child’s personality, physical condition, and age.
Team Sports
Soccer, basketball, baseball, etc., are part of the team sports category. These activities are especially beneficial for children who have excess energy and need to exercise. However, this does not mean that other children cannot play them. Practicing team sports from a young age teaches children the importance of team spirit, cohesion, and mutual aid. In addition, these types of sports help build physical capacity in children, namely endurance and stamina, and allow them to have confidence in themselves and learn to trust others.
Individual Sports
Unlike team sports, individual sports such as swimming, gymnastics, horseback riding, archery, golf, and dance are based on the child’s performance against the opponent. They also teach them to situate themselves about the goal to be achieved. In other words, this category of sports activities is mainly focused on motivation, precision, confidence, and self-esteem. So, whatever your child’s age, gender or personality, there can always be an activity that suits him or her.
Cultural Activities
Cultural activities are generally indispensable for the mental and cultural development of the child. Among others, we have different types of dance, such as classical dance, urban dance, and contemporary dance. The practice of various musical instruments (piano, guitar, flute, violin…), singing lessons, painting, and theater are also part of it. Each activity has its advantages. For example, dancing, singing, and acting allow the child to fight shyness and stage fright; playing a musical instrument and/or painting enable the child to express, what he/she feels through his/her paintings or music. Moreover, cultural activities allow them to know and deepen their artistic talents. For children with disabilities, singing, painting, and music are excellent extracurricular activities.
Martial Arts
Martial arts combine the two previous categories of activities. In other words, they fall into both sports and cultural activities. Indeed, their practice requires the use of the body (the physical), the spirit and the mind, and the knowledge of a culture other than one’s own. Moreover, the practice of martial art such as karate (Japanese), kung fu (Chinese), or taekwondo (South Korean) allows the child to adopt a new rule and hygiene of life that he could apply even in everyday life.
Self-control is one of the essential points to respect when practicing martial art. That is why this activity is perfect for children demanding children.
Besides, there are many equestrian centers, children’s sports clubs, music education centers, and martial arts academies where you can register your child. So, you can choose according to your budget, your address, the school… So, you don’t have to worry.