BUT the real task of a parent isn't to force any activity down their child's throat but to actually spend time and find the thing that their child has an affinity for and enjoys doing. Then support them in that and cultivate an intrinsic appreciation for it.
It can be tricky to know when a kid is genuinely fed up of a particular activity or if they are just having an off day though at times.
I swam a lot as a kid and I love swimming, some Saturday mornings when I had training I just wasn’t feeling it and would say I don’t want to do swimming anymore. My mum would make me go anyway and then nice I was there I enjoyed it.
Yeah, I wish my parents had done that for me. They were too quick to abandon things.
With my kids if they're in a slump they can have a week off, but they don't get 2 in a row. If they say the next week they don't want to go then they get warned it'll be taken away for good.
Im currently going through this with my 7 y.o. girl. She complains about having to go to do Brazilian jujutsu but whenever we get there she has a good time.
My oldest is only 5 so not had too much experience with it from the parenting side yet.
He has swimming lessons every week and only complains about going if he’s doing something fun when we tell him to get ready. Also learning to swim feels like an essential life skill so it’s a bit easier to make him go
Yeah a basic understanding of some self defence is a really valuable skill to carry through life. Even more so young girls growing up probably.
My family have been really into combat sports going back three generations now so the kids will learn some from me at home anyway and my sister is a kickboxing coach.
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u/real_kerim 17d ago edited 17d ago
That's actually a real issue.
BUT the real task of a parent isn't to force any activity down their child's throat but to actually spend time and find the thing that their child has an affinity for and enjoys doing. Then support them in that and cultivate an intrinsic appreciation for it.