How many hobbies does a kindergarten child need?

Clara is five years old. She enjoys going to kindergarten, her favourite things to do are painting, arts and crafts and romping around in the playground. She attends a swimming course on Saturday mornings and a children's gymnastics class run by her kindergarten teacher on Wednesday afternoons. Her friend Ella goes to children's ballet on Mondays and wants to learn to play the violin.

She is also interested in tennis because her brother plays it and she already knows the clubhouse. She is also interested in scouting. And then there's horse riding! Clara tells her parents that Ella loves going to ballet. «I want to too!» she exclaims, «With Ella!» Her parents ask themselves: Is it necessary now? Clara is only five.

Although hobbies at kindergarten age are not a must, they are firmly institutionalised. Ballet courses from the age of three or four, apparatus gymnastics, football or hockey training, climbing courses, dance courses, judo, painting courses, drumming courses, swimming lessons - the range on offer is huge. Some call it a hobby, others call it early education.

Free play is the best early education.

Margrit Stamm, educational scientist

Basis for later success?

In recent years, early childhood development has become a favourite topic of neurobiology, developmental psychology, educational science and even politics. «Early education» is a socially recognised value. There is one main reason for this: the scientific community agrees that early support is beneficial to a child's later school career.

To put it bluntly, the message is that the foundation for whether a child goes to university or becomes unemployed later on is laid in the first four to six years. Special attention must be paid to those who are disadvantaged in their development, at risk or come from an educationally disadvantaged home: they must not miss the boat even before they are in kindergarten. The US Nobel Prize winner in economics James Heckman calls it: «Catch 'em young».

Unfortunately, families with little education often do not have the necessary resources to finance a hobby for their children. Other families, on the other hand, are very keen to offer their children the best possible leisure activities and education. Not only because they have read that music lessons promote mathematical intelligence and that sport provides a balance to the school day. They also want to give their child new social contacts and simply provide the best possible education.

The hobby as a status symbol

It is almost commonplace to send girls to violin lessons and ballet and boys to football training and piano lessons. «Being able to say «our child goes to ballet» has become a kind of status symbol. Because it's seen as proof that the parents are doing a good job,» explains Margrit Stamm.

The educationalist never tires of advising parents to give their children more space. Stamm is a vehement advocate of free play. Under normal circumstances, a child doesn't need any special courses, she says, «Free play is the best early education. Trips to the forest and other activities that stimulate all the senses are completely sufficient,» says Margrit Stamm.

The influence of support programmes is overestimated.

Margrit Stamm, educational scientist

In fact, some parents overdo it with the leisure activities on offer. Ella's weekly schedule resembles a packed agenda. Not all children can cope with this equally well. For example, a study conducted by Bielefeld University in 2015 showed that one in six children in Germany has clear symptoms of stress.

Family is the most important conveyor

The main reason for this stress is the fear of not fulfilling their parents' expectations. The second reason: over 80 per cent of stressed children have to attend appointments that they don't enjoy. 61.4 per cent of children with high levels of stress would like to have more time for precisely this: for things they enjoy. However, 87 per cent of parents do not believe that they overburden their children. 50 per cent even believe that they do not encourage their children enough.

Support programmes are good, says Stamm, but their influence is overestimated. It is far less important than that of the family. «The family itself is the most important support machine,» explains Margrit Stamm. No course programme can replace it. The family has by far the biggest influence on the rucksack a child starts their school career with. Their influence is «paramount», says Stamm.

Early educational support, according to Stamm, is therefore also family support and only makes sense «if it means the conscious stimulation of all children's senses by adults and not the bringing forward of school content into early childhood».

At least two free afternoons

However, if a child still feels like doing something else after long days at nursery and after-school care and unplanned afternoons playing with friends, a hobby without school content is perfectly fine. The decisive factor is the relationship between activity and free time.

«It all comes down to the scale of things,» explains Claudia Quaiser-Pohl, Professor of Developmental Psychology and Psychological Diagnostics at the University of Koblenz, in her book «Vorschulkinder angemessen fördern». She advises that a kindergarten child should have at least two free afternoons. In other words, two free afternoons without hobbies and after-school care. But with free, spontaneous play.

Hobbies are a very adult concept. Children usually just want to play.

Margrit Stamm, educational scientist

A look at the statistics shows that, in purely mathematical terms, many kindergarten children would have little or almost no time for a traditional hobby: Over 45 per cent of Swiss parents have to have their children under the age of six looked after by someone else two to three times a week. Assuming at least one afternoon of lessons, most children still have two free afternoons at home. According to Stamm's credo of letting the child «run wild» at home, these two free afternoons should remain unplanned and hobby-free.

What are the child's needs?

But children are different. Some manage a ten-hour day without any problems, others are so tired after just three days of kindergarten and without after-school care that the rest of the week is a huge effort for them. If your child belongs to the first group, it is important to find out which hobby suits them best. Parents can ask themselves the following questions: What is my child's favourite activity? What does he or she do independently and over a longer period of time? What is he or she good at?

It's not about what the parents want. Just because you like playing tennis yourself doesn't mean that your son or daughter will like it too. And sending an unmusical child to piano lessons makes just as little sense. Children of this age are often not interested in the hobby itself, but rather in spending time with friends. That's fine too.

It is crucial that there is no pressure or compulsion. And that the balance between hobby and free time is right. Margrit Stamm's comment may sound like a slap in the face to some committed parents: «Hobbies are a very adult concept anyway - children usually just want to play.»

Find the right hobby

This may be one reason why younger children in particular like to try out lots of things - and stop doing many of them again. They simply aren't quite sure what they want to do. If you ask them, they fancy a different hobby almost every day.

For example, a six-year-old really wants to go to ballet, but only realises in class that she would rather go rock climbing. Or a seven-year-old desperately wants to learn to play the piano because his best friend is doing the same, but after the first lesson he loses interest: it's too strenuous for him.

A hobby is also a commitment, you have to practise regularly or turn up for training.

In such situations, taster sessions are recommended, which can be attended one to three times. Parents should ask themselves how such hobbies can be organised (transport services!) - and also take into account the activities of any siblings.

Sports training in particular is based on voluntary work and therefore often takes place in the evenings and at weekends. Parents should therefore ask themselves: Can my child do it, can I do it? Is a time-consuming hobby possible if the parents have other commitments?

Set up a trial period

Once the «ultimate» hobby has been found, parents would do well to set a period of four to six weeks for the child to try out the new hobby. After this «trial period», the child can decide whether they want to continue. It must be made clear to them that a hobby is also a commitment: for example, that they must regularly attend training for a team sport and take part in a match.

There is often a huge gap between desire and reality. Many children would like to play or dance as perfectly as the football idol or prima ballerina straight away. Young children often don't realise that years of hard work, discipline and perseverance are behind this desired perfection and success. Apart from that, some children simply enjoy being at home and reading, drawing, doing handicrafts and relaxing.