How to Pick Activities for a Preschooler

Three- and 4-year-old children are often ready to participate in some structured activities. Many children in this age group attend preschool and some are ready for additional after school activities. It is important that you balance your child's need for activities with your child's need for downtime. It is also important to pick activities based on your child's interests and that will help with your child's development.

Things You'll Need

• Preschool-aged child
• Internet or telephone
• Money
• Transportation

Instructions

1. Determine what activities are offered in your area for preschool aged children. Some good places to look for activities include your town or city Park and Recreation Department, the YMCA, JCC or other community center and private businesses that specialize in art, karate, gymnastics, swimming, dancing or other activities.

2. Speak with your child about what he or she would like to do and what their interests are.

3. Think about what your child is already getting in school. If the child gets a lot of art time, then maybe swimming would be a good out-of-school activity, for example.

4. Think about what areas of development your child needs to work on the most. For example, if your child needs to build more confidence with his or her gross motor skills, then maybe an activity like gymnastics, dance or soccer would be a good activity. If your child needs more work in the academic or cognitive areas, then perhaps an activity at your local library or an art, science or cooking activity might be a good fit.

5. Think about your child's needs. Some children still need a nap or quiet time each day. Try not to over-schedule your child, but at the same, time try to keep your child from getting bored. At this age, one or two activities a week is usually plenty. Of course, some children many need more or less depending on their personalities, time in school and other commitments.

Tips & Warnings

• Talk to other parents about which programs are well run and enjoyed by the children.

• It might be useful to sign up for short (8-10 week) sessions rather than full year commitments. Then you child can try a few different things over the course of the year.

• Listen to your child and, within reason, try to respect his or her wishes with regard to activities.