Children need time to “Be”- to be “Idle”
- to be “Creative” and “Think” outside of the box. Gymnastics, karate, music, cooking and so on
are wonderful things to expose our children to.
However, when we fill every moment of everyday with scheduled activities
we rob our children of the opportunity to explore, discover and grow their
minds to achieve endless possibilities.
“Kids
need all kinds of extracurricular activities to “keep up”
with
their peers and to look good to prospective schools”
Kids, for the most part, need what kids
have always needed: love, support, limits, and responsibilities. In this respect, the kids that I treat now
are no different from the kids I treated thirty years ago. Child development simply does not change - it’s
biologically encoded - and no amount of extracurriculars makes up for a kid who
feels unloved, or entitled, both of which are poor predictors for success.
Taken
from: Teach Your Children Well
Why
Values and Coping Skills Matter More
Than
Grades, Trophies or “Fat Envelopes”
By: Madeline Levine, PhD
