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I feel like I have to make an appointment to see my own grandkids. They have hip hop, ballet and singing lessons and tuition during the week. Then they have swimming on Saturday mornings and their weekends are filled with birthday parties and playdates.”
“Family life is hectic, my children have gym for 2 hours after school Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, then swimming and piano on Saturday mornings.”
There is no denying that family life is busy! As well as school and work commitments, it’s not unusual for tamariki to have multiple extra-curricular activities each week.
Understandably, parents want to give their off spring opportunities to try new things, pursue interests, develop their talents and find their passions. With these good intentions at heart, it’s easy for parents fall into the trap of over-scheduling their children’s after school and weekend hours with too many activities.
Everyone needs time to relax and decompress – including tamariki! Downtime gives your children time to rest and process the events of their day including learning and social interactions at school. Need a bit more convincing not to over fill your tamariki’s day? Here are our 4 best reasons why downtime is good for your family.
It encourages creativity
If your children are not used to entertaining themselves, it will probably not take long until you hear those dreaded words, “I’m bored”. Make sure you persevere! Unstructured free time is the perfect time for your children to exercise their naturally curious and creative minds. Let them discover their own interests and find new ways to fill their time.
Downtime helps your child learn vital life skills
Along with encouraging creativity, downtime also encourages the development of other essential soft skills in tamariki. These include problem-solving, time management, adaptability, decision making, resourcefulness and organisational skills. All vital life skills that will help your child in their future school and work lives.
You get more family time
Whanau time is a very important part of your child’s development and well-being. This is where your tamariki learn the foundations of trust, love, socialisation and communication skills. And spending time as a whanau is not only good for the kids. It boosts the confidence of all family members through reinforcing that they are respected and cherished by those they are closest to.
Bonus! It’s good for you too!
When your children are having downtime, you get downtime too! If you struggle to find time in the day for yourself, this is the perfect opportunity to have a cup of tea or read a few pages of that book you’ve been trying to get to. Remember, it’s not your job to entertain your kids and keep them happy 24/7. Taking some time for yourself is vital to ensure you can be a supportive and effective parent long term.
Exactly how much downtime do your tamariki need?
As with most things to do with parenting, unfortunately, there are no hard and fast rules. There’s no denying that extra-curricular activities provide tamariki with the opportunity to learn many valuable skills.
The key (like most things in life) is finding a good balance that works for your whanau. What works for your family will probably look different from your friends or neighbours. A bit of trial and error will help you discover the right balance.
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