The Importance of Hobbies for Kids

Did you know that January is National Hobby Month? A hobby is defined by Miriam-Webster as “a pursuit outside one’s regular occupation engaged in especially for relaxation.”

As parents, we think so much about our kids’ learning and growth that we often try to base what they do on what will be most educational and accelerate their development. And, here at Wondrfly, we believe in promoting activities that enhance kids’ mental, physical, and social skills. But we also believe that fun is fundamental.

Kids who are pushed or pressured to pursue hobbies outside their natural range of interests will most likely not reap the benefits of said hobbies. After all, hobbies, by definition, are pursued for their relaxing benefits.

But just because hobbies prioritize fun and relaxation over the pressure to learn, it doesn’t mean they can’t stimulate learning and growth! Encouraging kids to pursue their personal inclinations and reaping the educational benefits is known as delight-directed learning. It follows the principle that kids are more motivated to develop skills and overcome challenges in their learning when they are passionate about what they’re pursuing.

So, you may be thinking, how do I know I’m encouraging my child to follow a hobby that is right for them? And how do I ensure that they get the most out of their individual interests?

 

Why You Should Encourage Your Child to Have a Hobby

According to Pam Myers of the Child Development Institute,

Hobbies benefit children in many ways. It gives a child an opportunity to express themselves, and it allows them to discover themselves and
build self-esteem. They are also great educational tools. (…) Hobbies teach children to set and achieve goals, solve problems, and make decisions. They can also set the course for what your child becomes later in life as they often turn into lifelong interests or careers.

Additionally, A 2020 study comparing the social benefits of hobbies versus organized activities on low-income urban adolescent girls concluded that hobbies offer social benefits comparable to those of organized activities while being more accessible to low-income families.

This means, in other words, that taking up a hobby is an affordable way to give your child the interpersonal education they might develop inexpensive day camps, overnight camps, workshops, and lessons. This is especially true when you encourage your child to make friends who share their hobbies!

Other benefits of hobbies for kids vary based on the hobby. Every interest under the sun has its own range of perks.

 

How to Find the Right Hobby for Your Child

Finding your child’s ideal hobby is a collaborative process between you and the child. It begins with the way you provide opportunities for your child to learn new things. It also doesn’t stop once they’ve taken up the hobby of their choice. To help you remember the steps involved in choosing and maintaining the perfect hobby for your kid, we’ve invented a clever little pneumonic device, if we do say so ourselves. It’s called EAGLE, and it stands for Expand, Ask, Give it a Try, Listen, and Evaluate.

 

Expand your child’s worldview and perception of what is possible for them. How do you do this? By constantly exposing them to new ideas and experiences. Your child might never know they have a possible interest in chess, ecological conservation, knitting, or badminton if they don’t know anything at all about those topics.

Here are a few handy ways to expand your child’s knowledge of what kind of hobbies they can pursue.

• Introduce a family-friendly documentary or two to your family movie nights. Pick exciting and unconventional topics that are accessible to kids!

• Take kids to the library once a week to pick out books on a new topic of their choice.

• Get kids helping in the kitchen, experimenting with a variety of cuisines, and exploring the cultures related to each one.

• Find kid-friendly podcasts on various topics to listen to.

• Switch up your physical activities! Commit to participating in one physical activity with your child per week and pick a new activity every week. Try a bike ride one week, yoga the next, and so on.

 

Ask your child what their interests are. Sit down and make a list together if you’d like. If they’re shy about telling you what they’re into, or just aren’t sure, you can ascertain what they might be interested in other ways. These include paying close attention to:

• what they most enjoy watching on television or YouTube.

• which books they read over and over.

• what musical tastes they develop.

• the games and activities they most enjoy.

• what they like to do with their friends.

• which celebrities make an impression on them.

• what parts of school do they like and dislike.

All these points can inform your and your child’s mutual decision of which hobbies to pursue.

 

Give it a try. There are tons of low-commitment ways to gauge whether your child is ready to pursue a certain hobby without commitment. These include:

• online tutorials

• community workshops

• drop-in classes

It’s important to try a hobby before committing because you never want your child to feel pressured into a hobby. This will lead to burnout, eventually. A hobby is supposed to lift the burden of everyday life, not compound it.

Depending on your choice of hobby, you may have an easier or harder time trying it out. This is because some hobbies have little to no financial investment required upfront. For activities such as drawing, writing, coding, graphic design, birdwatching, dance, yoga, and many, many more, almost no special equipment is required beyond what you’d already have around the house. At least, not in the experimental stage, when you’re just giving it a test run.

Other hobbies such as golf, guitar, painting, and more require purchasing or renting specific equipment to even attempt. Unless, of course, you can borrow this equipment from someone you know.

 

Listen to what your child has to say about the test drive. Remember, it’s their hobby, not yours, and the final decision should be theirs barring any financial limitations or extenuating circumstances. If they decide to continue, listen to what they have to say about their experience all along the way. Watch for signs of burnout, like decreased enthusiasm, fatigue, asking to skip lessons, or practicing the hobby less frequently.

 

Evaluate whether your child’s hobbies are serving them as they continue to participate in them. If your child shows signs of not enjoying their hobby anymore, it’s important that they take a break, or they’ll burn out any possibility of future interest in the hobby.

Remember, the priority in choosing a hobby for your child should always be their happiness. Even if there was a hobby that did absolutely nothing for your child’s cognitive, physical, and social development (there isn’t), that hobby would still be worthwhile. That’s because relaxation and pleasure are such important parts of life, that we often take for granted.

If you want to take your child’s hobbies to the next level, explore Wondrfly for the best kids’ activities in Jersey City and Hoboken!