Reply to Concerned about Lack of Interest in Extracurricular Activities: what did I do wrong?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I know kids like this. Their parents let them quit everything they try. They never ask them to see it through, finish what they start, or stick with it. At the first hint of "I don't feel like it" they quit and that's that. Their kids do nothing after school and hate everything they try. [/quote]
I’m the poster from 9:56. I didn’t let my kids drop activities they didn’t like. They had to attend the classes I paid for. They did some of these activities for multiple years. But they still never liked the activities and don’t miss them.[/quote]

I think that's fair. You tried, and later on they can only blame themselves for not making more of the opportunities provided. But my friends ask their kids "do you want to do this?" and the answer is always "NO!" so the kids never try much and the few things they do try they quit halfway through. I rarely ask my kids if they want to try something I just sign them up then hype it up and that's worked out pretty well so far.[/quote]

I'm glad that worked for you.  I asked my kids what they wanted to sign up for, got a lot of no's, respected those no's, and gradually got some yes's.  Over time they grew from kids who wanted to run around outside after school with each other and friends, to kids with strong interests, and now I'm about to post whining about how overwhelming their schedule is going to be next year when they're both in high school.  So, accepting my kid's "no's" and waiting for them to be ready worked well for us.  Well, other than the fact that my kids have too many hours of activities now, but I don't think "Oh, I should have forced them to do activities so they would be sick of them by now!"  [/quote]

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