maize Posted April 22, 2016 Share Posted April 22, 2016 (edited) What activities have you and your children loved? What did you love about them? I feel like it is important for each of my kids to have something to call their own, something they do for the love of doing and not because they are supposed to. My oldest has found hers in Irish dance; my youngers have tried a variety of things but so far I don't feel like we have found any true loves. It doesn't have to be a passionate-want-to-participate-60-hours-per-week, but something that sparks enthusiasm and enjoyment and can carry through for a number of years. If your child has a more academic passion I would love to hear about that as well! Edited April 22, 2016 by maize 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ali in OR Posted April 22, 2016 Share Posted April 22, 2016 (edited) ballet for 15 yo soccer and running for 13 yo Both do band--15 yo likes it a lot more than 13 yo (who I think will quit after middle school). For older dd, it provides a lot of her social network in the high school. I expect younger will get that through sports. Edited April 22, 2016 by Ali in OR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustEm Posted April 22, 2016 Share Posted April 22, 2016 My 7 year old is into martial arts. He absolutely loves it and wants to take advantage of all the classes the school offers. So far he takes normal kung fu class, a martial arts tricking class, and fight club. He is eager to join the demonstration team but I'm not ready to commit even more time to his activity. He also wants to join leadership but he needs to be a certain belt to start that class. DD, almost 6, doesn't have a thing she loves yet. She tolerates kung fu. She wants to try ballet so I'm doing research on how I can make that happen. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heathermomster Posted April 22, 2016 Share Posted April 22, 2016 DD -- violin DS -- computer graphics and football 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted April 22, 2016 Share Posted April 22, 2016 Both my kids are avid ice skaters (started when they were around 6 and 10, now 16 and 19) Ceramics 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted April 22, 2016 Share Posted April 22, 2016 Oldest did TKD for several years. He also played drums and guitar. He also pursued chess for awhile. Dd ballet. Animals were another passion. For that she did two different 4H clubs, had a pet sitting business, volunteered with more than one rescue. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UCF612 Posted April 22, 2016 Share Posted April 22, 2016 (edited) My youngest is currently taking piano (just started) and playing soccer (since he was 3). He's tried baseball, swim team,golf and tennis. He'll do golf again in the summer. Tennis cost too much although he did enjoy it. Swim just wasn't his thing. He loves piano and soccer. He wants to try basketball next season. We're going to try 4H next year if our co op does a group. Oldest is currently rocking swim team. He's always been a fish and just loves the water. He started swimming at 1 and has been on the swim team since 5 or 6. Basketball just ended but he loves it too. He'll do golf in the summer although it isn't his favorite (he doesn't dislike it at all). The program is free so I have him participate since his brother already is. He's tried baseball and tennis. He had no interest in piano or the sailing camp I wanted him to try. He is going to try art camp because he enjoys drawing. Edited April 22, 2016 by UCF612 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Both love their drama classes and have been involved with that for several years. My younger kid is enjoying choir, and is about to finish his second year with that. If he continues to want to do that they take kids up to 18 years old. The older kid enjoys going to this game programming club (or whatever it is called). It's not specifically for kids or teens, but there are various ages there. They have been welcoming. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sk8ermaiden Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Aerial (silks and lyra), Gymnastics, Figure skating (but I kaiboshed that because it was too far away), American Ninja Warrior mini ninja classes, Girl Scouts. She just started swimteam and really loves that as well She's a sporty kid. Never met a sport she didn't love. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 All three: Boy Scouts Oldest: Art and Robotics Middle: Soccer and drama/theater Youngest: Football 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Cheer team/tumbling classes (and dance when it was the fun combo classes, but one year on pre-team burned that out of her), piano lessons. She also is actively involved in animal advocacy, education and research, but I'm not sure where to draw the line between curricular and extracurricular. We've also had social/academic groups for math and mythology competitions she enjoys. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theelfqueen Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 (edited) My oldest (20) was a wrestler from the time he was 12 til he graduated high school... now he coaches wrestling! Scouts, also. And he was the founding president of an Aerospace Explorers Post. Middle loved robotics in middle school, and band...he did about a year of archery... now he's only interested in Magic the Gathering LOL and scouts. And a bit in drama, but mostly Magic. Youngest is a wrestler, too and an archer. But he severely broke his wrist and elbow requiring rather extensive surgery in the Fall and was benched for the full year for wrestling and til February for archery. He's into coding and making stop motion videos. By February he'd gotten involved with Drama club so he hasn't had time to return to archery yet. And scouts. They've all dabbled in other things -- Karate, Soccer, Golf, Computer classes, writing clubs etc. but the above are the ones that stuck. And scouts. Always and Scouts. Edited April 23, 2016 by theelfqueen 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan in SC Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Theatre- my dc like all the things that go with it- acting lessons, voice lesson, dance, travel Opera Baseball Football Swim team - when they were younger 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daria Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 (edited) I just have the one DS. When he was younger: TKD, rec soccer, rec ice hockey, tech theater In middle school: Tech theater, school TV station, football, election volunteer, museum volunteer In high school: Tech theater, football, filmmaking, discus/shot put, teen court Eta: snowboarding all the way through Edited April 23, 2016 by Daria 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 (edited) My eldest loves sports. Her favorite is probably gymnastics. She also lights up over soccer. She enjoys theater also. Running is big for her, but she hasn't done it in an organized way yet. My youngest likes horse riding. She is also a book maniac. She enjoys soccer but doesn't mind missing a game. They both like animals and play music, but I don't see them being really passionate about those pursuits thus far. Edited April 23, 2016 by SKL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Ballet was IT for DD for many years. I liked that it was something active, not horribly expensive at the pre-pointe level (show costumes were a little expensive but doable in installments), helped with grace/posture/flexibility/leg strength, and not a terrible commitment on our part. Currently, three of them take and love martial arts. I like this because it's a measured challenge at every level and stays fresh, but it's not competitive with other people, just with their own selves. I like that they're learning self defense (and those ballet years paid off), and I like that the levels show their commitment to something. My daughter loves learning languages. Mostly she uses DuoLingo and has a bunch going, only one of which is actually required for school, but she's motivated by her interest. Music has become a big EC around here. They love playing guitar, and DD wants to learn more keyboard and more singing skills too, plus a host of other instruments. I did Odyssey of the Mind as a kid, and I loved it! I'm one of those people who has tons of random ideas, and OM was such a great outlet for that. I wish we had a group nearby for it, but last I looked, we did not. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamiof5 Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 (edited) American Heritage Girls (a Christian centered scouting group), baseball (DS), volleyball, piano lessons, swimming. They all love singing in the Christmas choir at church, and girls love a musical camp in the summer. The kids love tons of things, we just can't do it all Edited April 23, 2016 by mamiof5 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamee Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 My boys have fallen in love with waterpolo. Not organized, but their friends do Nerf warfare every weekend with their own weapon creations---this has been a favorite of theirs for years. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heatherwith4 Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Scouts and gymnastics at the Little Gym. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Horseback riding 4-H Soccer Chicken raising and egg harvesting. :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 OP you are trying to find stuff for your dc. I took the approach of try anything we could afford, that we could drive to and had time for. Partly I did that because I didn't do many activities as a child and one activity I did do would have really benefitted me if I gone beyond a couple of years of dabbling, but there was no encouragement. Basically, we started with going through things listed in various rec center catalogues and stuff we saw in our community. Unlucky for me, there's a lot. One year we were on the go daily. It was stressful. BUT my dd requested that schedule and learned about both her interests and her need for time alone. So it was useful. I have a younger ds who has disabilities. For him there isn't choice. So we do just about anything that's out there for him. There was a kayaking program for persons with disabilities last year. Kayaking was not on our radar at all, but we tried it. He liked it. A friend said to me it can be a bit like throwing darts randomly. I think you just keep your eyes open for stuff and let the kids try. My big rule was if a child requested an activity and we signed up, child had to finish the term of the activity. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah CB Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 For my kids, it's music. My eldest is very passionate about violin. He loves listening to music and playing music. However, I think the social side of the instrument was a big factor. There are tons of social opportunities with the instrument and ds has tons of friends who play. Both of my older boys are in the youth symphony - they had a youth symphony camp last September that they had a great time at and their symphony is about to take a five day trip - again, much excitement. All of my boys love performing in chamber groups as well. My youngest is in a group with three other boys his age and we make sure that each rehearsal leaves time for them to just run around and play as well. Youngest also loves performing in orchestra and he loves fiddle music. He's not as driven (usually) as the eldest, but he could have chosen anything as a topic for his speech and he chose to write about violin. Middle guy isn't passionate about anything, but he does love playing in the groups he's in. When given the chance to give some of them up he refused. We also go to a music camp that we've been going to now for 11 years. Every summer. It's a family-oriented experience and we all love going. The kids have tons of friends there so it's as much about the friendships as it is about the music. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 For my oldest, it was always music. He's a music major now. 2nd kid: Theater, Environmental Science, Softball. And now she wants to learn Japanese and join the fire department. We'll see how those go. She REALLY enjoyed taking a cc fencing class, but there aren't year-round offerings with skill progression. 3rd kid: Theater (big time), Environmental Science, Softball, and Drawing. She wants to get into quarter midget racing, and we'd love to do that for her, but it's just not in the budget. 4th kid: Loves all physical activities. Not so great at them, lol. We'll see what happens. He's very into "hacking" Minecraft. 5th kid: Is 5 and adventurous. Also wants to race cars. Settles for Lego Club for now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wintermom Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Music - especially ensembles (violin, classical guitar), band and choir Theatre Soccer Taekwon-Do Hockey Swimming Junior Achievement Business Entrepreneur program 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UCF612 Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 I did Odyssey of the Mind as a kid, and I loved it! I'm one of those people who has tons of random ideas, and OM was such a great outlet for that. I wish we had a group nearby for it, but last I looked, we did not. I did Odyssey of the Mind as a kid too. It was my favorite! I'm trying to see how to get a team started locally. Such fun! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8circles Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 DS12 - piano, making videos, minecraft, drama, philosophy DS10 - baseball, art DS8 - art, making videos They all do martial arts, including DS5 but I'm not sure any of them *love* it anymore. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheres Toto Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 For oldest dd it was always dance. Still is so I'm hoping she finds an opportunity to at least practice after graduation. For ds it's - Minecraft, Pokémon, D&D, game design For dd it's - drawing/art, Pokémon, Minecraft Both of them do swimming lessons and TKD. They are definitely more of a love for dd than they are for ds. He likes them but if I didn't require physical activity, he would probably choose to quit. Both of them also like our 4-H STEM club but I think they like the social aspects of it the most. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 My kids love 4-H, swimming, and piano. My son does dog agility and LOVES it. My daughter is looking forward to starting that with her dog this next year. I don't push for separate interests, but have tried to encourage things we can do as a family. While I anticipate more varied interest as they get older, this works for us for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Theater, Music (choir, instrumental), Art (drawing, painting) and Sports (swimming, diving and ballet were most popular in our family). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Florida Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 (edited) Although each of them did a variety of things for certain lengths of time, for both of my kids, it was performing arts that really stuck. My daughter, for example, was a member of the local anthropology club for a few years, She attended meetings and field trips and did a couple of presentations, but her ability to be really involved in a hands-on way was limited by her age, and she eventually drifted away. She played guitar for a while, edited the newsletter for our homeschool group and was very involved at church, especially in youth group. She found her real passion in music and theatre. She sang with two choirs, took drama classes and did a ton of community theatre. My son participated in a robotics club for a while, did model rocketry for a couple of years, took pipe organ lessons, participated in church activities, sang with a choir and put in a lot of volunteer hours at the science museum and with a local children's theatre, but he focused most of his extracurricular passion on dance. By his last couple of years of high school, he was spending a good 15-20 hours a week at the dance studio, taking class, rehearsing for competitions and assisting with/teaching classes for younger kids. He did a lot of theatre, too, but gravitated towards dance-heavy productions. Each of them went on to pursue those interests in college. My daughter has a degree in theatre with a minor in music, and my son is dual majoring in dance and musical theatre (while working towards a certificate in entertainment technology during the summers). So, those "extras" turned out to be true passions for both of them. Edited April 23, 2016 by Jenny in Florida Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Governess Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Ballet and gymnastics. They also play piano, but my youngest only tolerates it. ;). My oldest is enjoying it more now that she is good enough to play songs from Les Mis. In the future, oldest wants to try computer programming and maybe math competition. Youngest wants to take drawing classes. She also loves anything that involves caring for animals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldberry Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 From the time DD was 4, we tried a new activity every year. None stuck. In 7th grade, she joined a homeschool Science Olympiad team. WOW! She became committed to her team, self-motivated, learned to push herself and work hard for something. It boosted her confidence like nothing else could. Without it, she would not be the kid she is today. She just finished her fourth year and came home with 4 medals from the state competition. It's an amazing experience because although it's academic, you work with partners on each different event, and then work as a team to advance. Many public schools have teams, not all states have homeschool teams. Check out your state! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 From the time DD was 4, we tried a new activity every year. None stuck. In 7th grade, she joined a homeschool Science Olympiad team. WOW! She became committed to her team, self-motivated, learned to push herself and work hard for something. It boosted her confidence like nothing else could. Without it, she would not be the kid she is today. She just finished her fourth year and came home with 4 medals from the state competition. It's an amazing experience because although it's academic, you work with partners on each different event, and then work as a team to advance. Many public schools have teams, not all states have homeschool teams. Check out your state! Science Olympiad (and I lived in a tiny state, so it wasn't too hard to bring home some medals every year) was the only time I liked science. So cool that your daughter has a homeschool team! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparrow Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 DD-music (piano, violin, guitar) and art (drawing and digital) DS-Civil Air Patrol and scouts Ds just joined CAP this year and it is the perfect fit we had been searching for. I wish we would have found it sooner. Some scout troops are very active. His was/is not and will likely dissolve this summer. It is sad, because ds put a lot of time and work into scouts, but his scout master is stepping down, no one is stepping up, and they are not actively looking to merge interested scouts with another troop. It would also be awkward for 16 yos to start over with an established troop. His CAP squadron is AMAZING. Super active and right up ds' alley. I can see him remaining active in CAP as an adult, unless he ends up in the military. He's actually flying gliders today :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wintermom Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 (edited) My son does dog agility and LOVES it. My daughter is looking forward to starting that with her dog this next year. I don't push for separate interests, but have tried to encourage things we can do as a family. While I anticipate more varied interest as they get older, this works for us for now. I don't either. In fact, I support and encourage doing the same activity so that I can be more efficient with driving and time. Luckily, I've been able to have at least 2 dc doing an activity at the same time and place. It really cuts down on driving, especially when there are 4 kids who love doing things outside the house. In our area, activities organized for homeschoolers often span multiple ages and include both genders, so all my dc can do the same soccer group and homeschool concert band, and they have swimming and hockey at the same location on the same afternoon. Also, I've got 2 dc doing classical guitar and 2 doing violin, so their lessons are back-to-back and they play in the same ensembles. This year theatre was for only one child at a time (for 2 dc), and the only way we could organize getting them there was that they could walk. Having only 1 vehicle makes scheduling activities a challenge. Dd does some riding, though the cost and transportation make this a limited thing (though she'd love to do more). Edited April 23, 2016 by wintermom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maize Posted April 23, 2016 Author Share Posted April 23, 2016 For my own sake, I would prefer they all do the same activities. BUT I came from a large family where we weren't given much choice in activities. My big sister loved violin, so I was pushed into violin as well. I like music well enough, but was never particularly motivated by it; I always felt like a failure for not practicing all the hours my sister did, and I always felt in her shadow. I really want for my own kids to have their own things. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corraleno Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 (edited) DD has done music (6 yrs Suzuki violin + 2 yrs Youth Orchestra), rock climbing, TKD, and gymnastics. She liked but didn't love the first three, and now she just does gymnastics. DS tried rock climbing and TKD before he discovered fencing, which he immediately knew was "The One." Now he's a national medalist and trains 20-30 hrs/wk. He also does throat singing and plays the digeridoo. Oh, and he does chess club once/wk. Edited April 23, 2016 by Corraleno 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 I forgot about Science bowl Odyssey of the Mind Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wintermom Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 (edited) For my own sake, I would prefer they all do the same activities. BUT I came from a large family where we weren't given much choice in activities. My big sister loved violin, so I was pushed into violin as well. I like music well enough, but was never particularly motivated by it; I always felt like a failure for not practicing all the hours my sister did, and I always felt in her shadow. I really want for my own kids to have their own things. I've been very fortunate that my dc have chosen similar instruments and physical activities. If this wasn't the case, they would be doing a lot fewer activities, that's for sure. Though I did help orchestrate this by limiting their choices. They could go with piano, violin or guitar. Swimming, taekwon-do and choir was mandatory for all the dc. They've all tried various physical activities over the years, and thankfully have narrowed their collective interest to soccer. :hurray: Edited April 23, 2016 by wintermom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G5052 Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Martial arts. My younger one was so-so, but now that she's in late high school and is teaching, she loves it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alice Posted April 23, 2016 Share Posted April 23, 2016 Oldest: Swimming, Scouts, Odyssey of the Mind, Drama at our co-op- this year he was in an improv group and loved it. Middle son: Odyssey of the Mind. Summer swim. He does other things but he doesn't really like organized activities so prefers to spend his free time doing other stuff. He will get really into one thing for awhile and then switch. He likes art, basketball, biking, tennis. Recent interests have been golf and magic tricks. Youngest is only 6 and has never met an extracurricular activity she didn't like. She would like to be doing stuff all day every day. She dances and loves that. She also really likes to sing and I think she will like drama. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runningmom80 Posted April 24, 2016 Share Posted April 24, 2016 DS 9 loves music, so he has loved music lessons. He plays baseball as well. Hated soccer and swimming, but we make him take swimming anyways. (Until he shows us he knows how well enough.) DD 5 loves soccer and swimming. Does Gymnastics and tee ball too. (only 2 at a time) DS5 loves Tee ball. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxbridgeacademy Posted April 24, 2016 Share Posted April 24, 2016 DD is really enjoying being stage crew for local children's theater company. DS loves being the DM for D&D games, in fact he's hoping to add more days/groups to his responsibilities but not sure if that counts as extracurricular. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scoutingmom Posted April 24, 2016 Share Posted April 24, 2016 DD is really enjoying being stage crew for local children's theater company. DS loves being the DM for D&D games, in fact he's hoping to add more days/groups to his responsibilities but not sure if that counts as extracurricular.Absolutely does. Heck, I've heard of a DM that got credit for something like creative writing in school.... Sent from my SM-T530NU using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaz Posted April 24, 2016 Share Posted April 24, 2016 ds: Computer gaming and programming dd: Competitive speech and worship band (plays keyboard) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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