Kids' Extracurricular Activities

Extracurricular activities are great for kids of all ages. Parents need to ensure their kids are busy, but not over-scheduled.

It's a great feeling when you child comes home from school and tells you he's excited about joining a club or a sport.

Perfect! He'll be involved, busy, he'll stay out of trouble, make new friends, learn some new skills.

It's not so great when you have a child who is "joiner," an overachiever who seems to want to join and conquer everything offered. Even if he can do it and still keep his grades up, spend family time and keep up with household chores, you worry about his stress, and how long he can keep up such a busy schedule. And is it good for him?

This is one of the times that parenting is difficult, when you look back on the newborn days and wish things were that easy, your decisions that black and white.

There are times kids need to be pushed into joining extracurricular activities, and there are times they need to be reined in. And then there are the kids who want to join things but then when it comes down to actually doing there, balk, complain, fake illness and refuse.

Experts say an over-scheduled child is an unhealthy child. And tough as it might be, it's your job to strike the perfect balance between bored and burned out.

Think of it as something else to put on your resume! If you can do this, you can certainly manage any group of people and negotiate business deals!