Your child may share your eyes, but will they share your interests? Many parents dream of their children following in their footsteps and sharing hobbies with them, but how do you facilitate an environment where their love for your hobbies can grow? We reached out to our readers for advice about introducing kids to our hobbies, and we compiled the best answers below. Read on to see what they suggest.
Ashley Parker
Ashley is a Canadian mother of two and crochet blogger, designer, and teacher. Find her at theloopylamb.com.
Don’t Force Them to Like It
Share your enthusiasm, but don’t force anything. Gauge their interest and start there, keeping it simple. For me, that meant letting my daughter play with yarn and her using it to make jewelry. Then she started wanting to make more with it, and I started showing her how to crochet. Keep it simple and fun or else they’ll lose interest.
Introduce it in a Fun Way
The best way to introduce a child to anything new and unfamiliar is with patience and positivity. If my hobby is collecting pens, I would go about introducing my child to the pens that are most meaningful to me - ones with exciting backgrounds. Perhaps show pens of various colors and initiate a drawing contest with a multitude of pens. Make the introduction fun! Children love excitement, and your passion for your hobby will undoubtedly transfer to your child.
Be Their Guide to Explore
Gardening is a huge part of my life, and I've introduced several of my family and friends' children to the hobby. Not all of them took to it, but some enjoyed it and stuck with their gardens. The trick is not forcing it. If they show an interest, do it with them, show them what's involved in the hobby, and share why you love it. Let them do things on their own and just help guide them.
If they show interest outside of these moments, support it. Let them take charge of the hobby if it's something they want to do. But you should never make a child feel obligated to engage in your hobby if they don't want to.
Introduce a Hobby at an Early Age
Generally, children will show interest in everything, and it is upon you to guide them accordingly. Since they are inquisitive, you can introduce them to various hobbies early on in their life. It is good to notice that children like running and jumping around.
You can introduce them to a hobby by making them perform an activity while running or jumping. It is a great way to introduce your child to sports, and they can play games like soccer, basketball, and many others. It will make them happy, and they will learn about teamwork and sportsmanship.
Observe What They Like and Support It
As a mom, it’s a delight knowing that my kids enjoy something and develop a hobby. To introduce children to a hobby, you have to pay attention to what they are interested in. Observe them and see what activities are taking their time and interests. Check on what things they enjoy doing.
I do the same and give them options related to the activities they enjoy doing. When I see how they respond, I give them the materials and tools needed. In my case, my children love drawing so I provided the tools and materials which can further their interest in that field. Maybe they were somewhat influenced by me as I make nail designs. But I never pushed them to do the same. I let them explore and develop their passion as I support them with it.
Let Them Learn
The best way to introduce children to a hobby is to allow them to learn about the topic themselves. They will develop an interest in their own accord if they are permitted to explore it on their terms.
This is why museums offer instructive tours for children, rather than just adults. These educational tours are tailored specifically towards this age group, and they tend to have more activities set up and less strict structured guidelines than those for adults.
Informal learning spaces like this one provide youngsters with the opportunity and flexibility to explore at their own pace while being encouraged by specialists who are knowledgeable about all areas of the topic. The presentation is most often geared towards what would work best from a developmental perspective.
Try New Things with Them
The question of how to introduce your children to your hobby is a common one, and it often goes unanswered. The best way to introduce children to a hobby is to let them take part in it alongside you.
Hobby introductions could be as simple as taking them along for the ride at first. You can show them around and find out what they like or want to do and see if anything excites them about your hobby.
If you are not sure about what would interest your kids, it could be helpful to have some activities on hand before you go on the trip. These could be coloring pages, model cars, or even playing with a new toy or game together before going out and playing with the real thing for the first time.
Have Them Participate
Children have a limited attention span. Instead of letting them watch when you’re practicing your hobby, have them participate. Give them small tasks to do.
When involving them, describe what you’re doing now and the upcoming steps. It will help if you turn it into a fun game. Break down small and simple tasks for them to help you.
For example, if you collect stamps and you’re in the process of sorting them out, you could ask them to help you retrieve specific colors of stamps or particular figures. The most important part is that they feel involved in the process.
Expose Children to the Hobby
Exposure is the best way to introduce your children to any hobby. They should acquire first-hand experience in order to understand the whole purpose of a certain hobby. Experience is the best kind of explanation for children who are still unfamiliar with many things.
Do the Hobby Together
Your children liking the hobby you want is a fun scenario. However, to let them like your hobby, you must open their eyes to the benefits of doing it. Involve them while doing your hobby to make them experience it, and with that, you’ll be able to assess whether they will like your hobby or not. Moreover, if you see that they are interested, support them by buying their own materials so they can enjoy your hobby more.
Have Them Try It
Introducing children to your hobbies depends on what they are, firstly. Gauging their interests and finding a way to tie them in is a way to bond over having similar interests. If they are not the same, it can be a way to teach them about other people’s interests and expose them to different opportunities and opinions.
Getting them involved in your hobby can also be a bonding moment between you and your child. For example, if you are a collector, taking them with you while you shop can also be a good idea, so they get an understanding of what you do.
Begin with Baby Steps
The best way to introduce your children to new and exciting hobbies is to show them by starting in small amounts. Let’s talk about collecting pens. Show your children why something as ordinary as pens can be interesting. Pens are found in various colors and patterns. Visually pleasing elements like this can spark an interest in the kids.
We see pens almost everywhere. They can be found easily in a lot of places. Their availability is not rare and hence, it can encourage them to start collecting. All such tiny steps can gradually grow their interest in hobbies.
Feed their Curiosity
The best way to introduce children to your hobby is by allowing them to ask questions about it. Your child is naturally curious and will likely ask questions if you let them. If they don’t have a lot of questions, you can talk them through your hobby and what it means to you. They may just have questions as they come up.
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