Five Ways to Encourage Children to Pursue Hobbies
Hobbies can benefit children in all kinds of ways, from building their confidence and helping them make friends, to developing their skills and encouraging creativity. They’re never too young to develop a hobby. Whether you’re a parent, an aunt or an uncle, there are ways to encourage the children in your life to spend time on hobbies.
The gifts you buy them
Encouraging a child to pursue a hobby can actually make gift buying easier. If they’ve already shown an interest in something, you can buy a gift which matches this. At Wicked Uncle, you can find suggestions based on the child’s age and interest. For example, if you search for gifts for 4 year old girls, then narrow down the category to science and nature, you’ll get tailored suggestions. These include the Edible Chemistry Kit, and a cherry tree which the recipient can grow themselves, with a little help from you.
Days out and experiences
Days and experiences can also help children develop hobbies and interests. This might be a love of travel and seeing different places. Alternatively, it might be a sport or a subject such as history. There are lots of sports clubs they can join or history museums which they can visit to learn more.
Be supportive
Even if you don’t understand the hobby your child has taken an interest in, you can encourage them by being supportive. The hobbies they develop now may help them later in life, either to socialize and fit in or to pursue a career they love. Hobbies can also be good for a child’s mental health.
Don’t try to make your hobbies theirs
If you’re really passionate about something, like sports, for example, don’t try to make your child watch or take part in your favourite sport. You can encourage them to try these, but if they don’t like them, that’s okay too. Suggest other things they might like based on the things they already enjoy. It doesn’t have to be something which interests you. Just help them discover their own hobbies. This can give you something to talk about when you ask them to explain activities you have little knowledge of.
Let them try different things without any pressure
You probably have memories of your own childhood and the things you loved doing back then. You might want to experience these through the eyes of your child, watching their reactions to these, However, don’t be disappointed if their reaction isn’t what you were hoping for. It’s great to give children the chance to try out potential new hobbies, but you need to make sure they know they don’t have to play a sport, learn an instrument or go visiting history museums at the weekend if they really don’t enjoy it.
Childhood is a time for being worry-free and having the freedom to try different activities, see new places and discover what they enjoy doing. You can help your child by supporting them as they learn more about themselves and what they want to spend their time doing.
