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Every parents wants the best for their kids. Helping them to develop into well-rounded adults with an enthusiastic, positive approach to the world is something parents aim for. Encouraging your child to take up a hobby can really help with this. But the benefits of hobbies for kids don’t end there. There are many more advantages to be gained from encouraging your child to get a hobby. Here, we’ll run through some of the many benefits of kids having hobbies, and how to get them started.
Less Time Spent Using Screens
We’re all familiar with the common complaint that kids nowadays spend way too much time looking at screens and not enough time being active. This is certainly an issue that can’t be denied. There’s also a lot of evidence out there to suggest that lots of screen time each day can impact kids and their development in many different ways. So, it makes sense to find more constructive ways for kids to spend their time and to give screen time a rest every once in a while.
Encourages Resilience
Resilience is such an important quality for kids to build, and is something that they’ll need to use throughout their lives. Being resilient enables kids to develop their skills and keep trying even when things get tough.
Joining a club that enables kids to learn something new and work hard at it to develop their skill is an excellent way to build resilience. Starting a sport such as Brazilian jiu jitsu is a perfect choice for this; you can find out more about how this martial art can benefit kids at https://dominionbjj.com/kids-brazilian-jiu-jitsu/
The grading system used in martial arts gives kids something to work towards and they’ll be rewarded with a new belt each time. This helps them to feel a strong sense of achievement for sticking with the sport and not giving up.
Builds Confidence
Starting a hobby is an excellent way to start building your child’s confidence. Having an interest that they are passionate about provides kids with so many opportunities to develop and grow in confidence. Hobbies provide kids with the chance to meet new people, make new friends, spend their spare time in a positive way, and develop a host of new skills. This all stands kids in good stead for their adult lives.
How to Encourage Kids to Start a Hobby
Many kids would rather spend time playing video games than doing pretty much anything else. This can make it challenging to encourage them to start a hobby. However, you can overcome this with a little encouragement; here’s how:
- Find interests that incorporate topics they’re already interested in. For example, if they love animals, they may want to try horseback riding.
- Try a new interest as a family. Developing a hobby together is a helpful way to incorporate some extra bonding time into your schedule.
- Starting a new hobby with a friend can also give kids the confidence to try something different.
