Hurling, rugby, Irish dancing, speech and drama, swimming, hip-hop, tennis, gymnastics, soccer, piano, French … the list is endless. There are so many extra-curricular activities available to children that sometimes, we simply don’t know when to opt out.

But is the “filling up” of children’s lives with out-of-school activities an advantage or a disadvantage to children in the long run?

Parents spend hours travelling to and from extra-curricular activities with their children every day, offering them cultural and sporting choices that they themselves might not have had the opportunity to partake in as children. Some children spend almost every day engaged in scheduled activities, leaving little or no time for free play, which has been documented as being the most important dimension of a child’s development.

Free play is time for the child to play with other children outdoors or indoors, when they use their imagination – not their electronics – and when they interact and converse through games.

Research shows that children require time every day for free-play. However, when you compare your kids “playing shop” with learning the piano or taking a drama class, it is difficult to see how it might stand up. Surely, we are better off teaching children a life skill rather than letting them play in an unstructured manner?

a taste of everything

Mary *, who has three children, aged five, nine and 12, explains why she has a full schedule of activities laid on for her children six days of the week.

“I really just want to give my kids every opportunity,” she says.

“They do speech and drama, tennis, hurling, swimming and horse-riding. Most of these activities are just one hour after school, but with sports you can have matches at the weekend or in the evenings and shows with the horses at the weekend. We really are very busy, I suppose, but the children enjoy it. If they didn’t want to participate in any of these activities, I wouldn’t force them.

“But I am glad they are experimenting with different activities, so they will know which ones they want to pursue as they get older and which ones they will drop. They appear to have a natural talent for some sports. I presume, into the future, these sports will take up most of their time and some of the other activities will be dropped, but while they are still young this is their time to find out.”

time to “Be”

Dr Maeve O’Brien coordinator of human development and senior lecturer in sociology at St Patrick’s College/DCU is adamant, however, that children these days need more time to just “be”.

“I’m not of the opinion that children’s lives should be heavily time-tabled,” she says.

“Of course there is some value in taking part in activities outside of school, but not to the point that the child has no time to simply play with friends or with toys. Children also need to learn to occupy themselves.

“When they grow up, they will not have someone scheduling their lives and they might find they have a lot of time on their hands. They need to be able to spend time alone and just be. This is an important life lesson for every child, but if there is a tight schedule of events this isn’t allowed to happen.”

Dr O’Brien suggests that certain parents are mostly interested in the “networking aspect” of the set activity and what advantages the activity can bring to the fore for the child in the future.

“Parents these days want their children to do well in society, and many insist that their children attend all the appropriate activities in order to see this to fruition. But whose needs are being served?” she asks.

“For example, a boy might be sent to a rugby school, as he will be seen to be ‘mixing in the right circles’, even though he has no interest in playing rugby. Girls might be sent to speech and drama in order to improve their accent. Children might be encouraged to do piano as it is considered good ‘cultural capital’.

“However, unless the child is interested in these specific activities, you may well be wasting your time and your money, as the children are simply better off spending time doing something they are interested in.”

Happy medium

However, there must be a happy medium, and Dr O’ Brien agrees that some extra-curricular activities are a wonderful addition to children’s lives and complement their development and wellbeing.

Anne * insists that nurturing just one activity in her children gives them focus and has instilled a sense of responsibility and discipline in her girls from a young age.

“My children, age nine and 12, are both into gymnastics,” she explains.

“They have both attended from the age of three, and I have nurtured this pastime, as I think it is great for core strength and will be advantageous for any sport. And they both enjoy it. Now they are older, we spend lots of time travelling to events at the weekends and competing nationally and even internationally.

“They don’t do any other activity, so we spend our money and time on gymnastics. They train several times a week and they know they have to be turned out in a specific way, in the right clothes and they need to work hard to keep up with their competitors. I think it is a good life lesson for them to learn this discipline from a young age. They are part of a team and they depend on each other and are depended upon. I can’t see any disadvantages. We spend lots of time together as a result, as I am the chauffeur of course, and they are not hanging around the streets. I don’t know how long they will stay enjoying it, but I am there to support them until they decide to give up.”

Of course, the time children spend learning new skills through extra-curricular activities is well spent if they are partaking for all the right reasons.

Children learn confidence and social skills when they play team sports or attend acting classes. They are at an advantage if they can speak French before they attend secondary school – already one step ahead. They are comfortable in their own skin when they are “good” at something and nothing can rival this inner confidence.

It is also important for children to have friends outside of school, as there are times when school can be a tough environment for some children who feel they don’t fit in.

“It really is down to having the correct balance,” says Dr O’Brien.

“When planning a schedule of activities, make a judgement on how eager the child is to partake in the activity. Does the activity suit their disposition? How tired is your child each day? Is the activity right for them, and will they benefit from taking part?

“If your child is complaining about the lack of time he/she has left to spend playing with friends, relaxing after school or just playing with toys, maybe it’s time to listen. Children should be listened to and treated with respect.

“Parents need to be less controlling and let the child be a part of the decision-making when it comes to choosing extra-curricular activities. Remember, these are supposed to be fun, and many cost a lot of money that could be better spent on more inclusive family entertainment.”

Children need exercise, socialisation, skills, free-playtime and sleep. We as parents need to look at the schedule of activities we have them involved in and decide, whether we are meeting these needs in their daily lives. If not, maybe it’s time to make some changes.