Is your child too busy? Here’s a checklist that can help ease up their schedule

Every parent wants the best for their child. They want to introduce their child to new experiences and activities in order to aid their overall development. As a result of that, most children participate in multiple extracurricular activities after school, and it helps them immensely. 

All these activities demand a lot of energy from children. However, like adults, children need downtime too. It is difficult for a parent to understand if they are overscheduling their children under the guise of hard work. 

That is why, in this article, we will cover questions that will help parents understand if their child is overscheduled and could use a bit of downtime. 

Checklist to understand if the child is overscheduled

Dr. Magdalena Battles’s book, 10 Time-Saving Tips for Busy Parents, published in 2021 lists questions that parents should ask themselves to understand if their child is overscheduled. She has a doctorate in psychology, a master’s degree in professional counseling, and a bachelor’s degree in child psychology.

Here are some of the questions mentioned in the book: 

• Is the child expressing unwillingness to participate in these extracurricular activities? Is the child reluctant to head out of the door for these activities? 
• Is the child finding it difficult to remember which activities are on what days? For example: Monday for swimming and Tuesdays for tennis classes. Are the parents finding the child zoned out in front of electronic devices such as television?
• Can parents remember the last time the child had a free day with nothing to do? Do parents know how a child would react to a day without scheduled activities? Can the child keep themselves occupied or entertain themselves? 
• Has the child expressed that the extracurricular activities bring no joy to them?
• Does the child seem disconnected from friends and family? Is the child anxious? Are the child’s grades declining? 
• Do you as a parent find it tough to keep up with your child’s schedule? Is it draining your energy?

If the answer to most of these questions is a yes, then parents need to assess the child’s schedule. The primary solution to this is simple – ‘Do less’. Keep the child’s schedule relaxed and add some downtime for them to recuperate. Parents should expose their children to different extracurricular activities and let the children choose what they want to pursue. 

Parents need to remember that children cannot focus on all extracurricular activities at once. Also, backing out of an activity doesn’t have to be forever. It can be a timely break that your child needs to recharge and focus. The child can pick it up later. 

As always, balance is the key to not overscheduling the children. It may take a while for parents to get it right but keep at it and soon you will discover precisely what works for your child. 

Did you find this article useful? Have you ever felt that your child needs a break from all the extracurricular activities? How did you handle it? Do you have any tips and tricks that you would like to share with other parents? Let us know in the comments below. 

Reference:

Battles, M. (2021). 10 Time-Saving Tips for Busy Parents. (n.p.): Whitaker House. 

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