Are you aware of the dangers of overscheduling children? In today’s world, all parents want their children to be multi-skilled. The children attended a variety of classes, including educational cost lessons, dance classes, and classes that they were interested in. Because of their frantic schedules, they do not get adequate rest or follow a healthy food regimen, and as a result, the children may face a variety of medical issues. The children also require adequate rest since, without it, they will become engrossed in their schedule and will be subjected to a great deal of stress and strain.
What Can Overscheduling And Overthinking Do?
Overworked children may see a decrease in their originality. They may lack the capacity to step up to the plate, and they may currently be unsure of how to manage any available energy.
On the other hand, children with unstructured free time have more opportunities to manage workouts and learning. “They are more innovative, self-assured, and liberated. “Unstructured playtime with friends can lead to improved friendly abilities,” as said by many child experts.
- Stress And Pressure Are Caused By Overscheduling
Overscheduling can put an unnecessary amount of stress on your child’s life. It’s a terrible idea to put your child under a lot of stress because it will affect his academic performance. Many parents overbook their children’s schedules with household chores, leaving the child with little time to think about his reading. This will undoubtedly have an impact on the youngster’s presentation.
When a child is concentrated, it can have a significant impact on his whole appearance.
- It Has The Potential To Cause Drastic Weight Loss
Overscheduling your children can result in weight loss. The repercussions are that many people who are aware of your child’s size may believe your child is suffering or being abused since they have lost a significant amount of weight.
Cerebral pains, stomach aches, cantankerousness, touchiness, and peevishness are all signs of exhaustion.
- Holding Time With The Family Is Being Squandered
As a family, stick together. It promotes domestic harmony and love. In any case, if your child is overscheduled to the point where he becomes incapacitated or pushed, he will not be able to participate in the family gathering or excursion. Because he will need time to rest or recuperate.
- Overscheduling Can Exhaust Your Child
“Wearing out” denotes a rapid depletion of resources. When your children’s resources are depleted, they will no longer be able to do or be interested in the things they once enjoyed.
- Their Public Activity Is Devalued
When you overschedule your children, it can affect their ability to participate in public activities. It would be completely pointless if your children were unable to socialize with their peers and elders.
Overscheduling limits their recreational time and prevents them from being a thoughtful individual.
Your schedule should ideally include as much blank space as possible for your child to rest, relax, and have plenty of energy for creative play.
Why Do Your Kids Need Downtime?
We forget that kids require downtime as well, allowing them to do whatever they want, tinker, and be alone.
Despite our best intentions, we risk depriving them of this crucial time if we schedule too many activities.
But why is it so important to have downtime? What are some strategies for avoiding the drawbacks of over-scheduling our calendars? Consider the following reasons why children require downtime:
- More time with the family
Kids don’t appreciate the impromptu but often enjoyable moments together at home when they have a full schedule. Siblings can invent a new game, or the family can decide to go to the park on an impromptu basis.
- Developing patience and the ability to tolerate boredom
Do you feel obligated to keep your child entertained at all times? Perhaps you get stressed out when you don’t have anything planned, as if weekends or after-school hours demand constant activity.
Don’t worry, boredom turns out to be beneficial for them. Yes, even when they are fidgeting or nagging you for something to do.
This isn’t to say they will relish the prospect of being bored. But they will learn to tolerate and cope with it, becoming inventive in their approach to overcoming the discomfort. They will use these “boring” moments to entertain themselves and practise patience in ways they wouldn’t be able to if they didn’t have the opportunity to do so otherwise.
- Playing on your own
The ability to play alone is one of the benefits of downtime that you won’t find anywhere else. That may sound awful, but independent play is an important skill for children to develop.
Key Takeaways
There are numerous advantages to enrolling children in activities and attending events, but there are also numerous advantages to having downtime.
You’ll spend quality time with your family as you get to know one another better. Your children develop the important skill of overcoming boredom and becoming more creative as a result.
They can amuse themselves, solve problems, and process their thoughts on their own. When they don’t have to follow specific directions or a set agenda, they can easily tinker and come up with new ideas.
This isn’t to say you should abandon all activities or events; after all, finding the right balance is crucial. At the very least, it’ll get you through another school pick-up and science class drop-off.
Also published on Medium.