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Children need healthy hobbies Submitted by: Kevin Chertkow 
Hobbies can be very intrumental to children in many ways. It gives a child an opportunity to express themselves, and it allows them to discover themselves and build self-esteem. They are also great educational tools. A child interested in rock collecting learns about geology and science, and a child in writing stories learns about sentence structure and proper grammar. Hobbies teach children to set and achieve goals, solve problems and make decisions. They can also set the course for what your child becomes later in life as they often turn into lifelong interests or careers. Children who have hobbies are usually following in their parents footsteps, so set a good example by pursuing your own hobby. Your child will need space for their hobby, so find an area designated specifically for his hobby so he can work on it. Realize that hobbies can sometimes be quite messy, so be at the ready for messes as they come with the territory. Be available to your child to provide guidance, support and encouragement. This is a great time to teach your child strong work habits, such as following directions closely, setting goals, and proper planning and organization. Show them that nothing worthwhile is ever easy, especially when they begin to become frustrated with their progress. It's also a good time to teach them about personal responsibility and show them how important it is to properly care for their work area and their 'tools of the trade.' Children will be more encouraged to work on their hobbies if activities like watching television or playing video games are limited. It's been noted by experts that by age 15, the average child has spent more time watching television than sitting in a classroom. Again, here's where setting a good example is crucial. Instead of watching that four-hour football game on Saturday, turn the TV off and work on your own hobby. Your child may want to join in or work on their own as a result. Hobbies are rewarding and enriching parts of our lives, so encourage your child to explore his own interests and find a hobby of their very own.  
written by: Kevin Chertkow
website: www.dadtothebone.com Dennis,
With younger children, I would approach it as... hobby discovery or hobby development. I would just start introducing new experiences to him/her. You can't expect to get a model of a GT-F50 and some glue and hand them a hobby. You also don't know if they will have any interest in model building. What you could do is introduce age appropriate hobbies that become the building blocks for more advanced hobbies later. Grab a kids puzzle and sit on the floor with it. See if she/he wants to help you put it together. If they show an aptitude to putting things together maybe later they will want to put together that GT-F50 model. They will probably want to put it together with you because they remember how great putting a puzzle together with you was when they were younger. Hobbies are a great bonding experience between child and parent. Keep in mind most youngsters don't have a long attention span so be prepared to put the project on hold and come back to it later. It is also a good idea to try to not to force feed them any hobby. If you do, you and your child could get frustrated and they may never want to go near that hobby again. If they do not show interest in a particular hobby now, doesn't mean they won't have interest later in life if you re-introduce it to them at a different time. My daughter loves coloring and painting ever since she could hold a crayon. Her brother could careless most times. As he has gotten older he has found some interest in art; however, it holds his attention way less than his older sister. On the other hand he likes anything to do with sports. So I try to find hobbies that have things to do with sports or pictures of sports. What ever you decide remember to have fun with them because they will remember it for a life time.
written by: Dennis P
website: sydanddensdad.blogspot.com/ My question to this is, how old is too young to start a hobby? I'm not sure my four year old would be ready to stick to it when it comes to something like what you have mentioned. When is the right age?
written by: Doug Warburton
website: www.dadtothebone.com I have a very good family friend that has one of the most amazing Butterfly Collections I and many others have ever seen. There have been stories written about his collection. He has and continues to travel the world to collect these butterflies.
He told me once, that when he dies, he wants the Smithsonian to have it, and from what I understand, they would be very agreeable to his donation. Yes, it really is that impressive. My children have seen it more than once and it is truly amazing. Hobbies are great and one does not have to travel around the world to have a great hobbie, anyone can do it from home! Oh, and he also collects stamps, but he doesn't have to travel far unless he wants to, to accomplish it.. Great thing about hobbies is in the fact that you can choose to travel the world or simply walk out your back door. Things are always within your reach, you just have to simply have the desire.
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