Not enough time, too many kids' activities

Dawn McMullan poses this million-dollar question in this month's Dallas Child: "Should you unschedule your overscheduled child?" An entertaining read told from the perspective of the author who's clearly wrestling with the activity creep overtaking the lives of her own sons, 8-year-old Sawyer and Noah. age 11.

She writes of being "taken aback when my calendar looks like this:
Monday: 4-9pm, rock climbing for Noah.
Tuesday: 5-8pm, rock climbing for Noah.
Wednesday: 5-6pm, guitar lessons for both boys; 6-8pm, football practice for Noah; 6-7:30pm, baseball practice for Sawyer.
Thursday: 5-8pm, rock climbing for Noah.
Friday: Third-grade lock-in at church.
Saturday: 10am-1pm, rock climbing for Noah; noon, Noah’s football game (conflict!).
Sunday: 1:30-3:30pm, football practice for Noah; 3:40pm, Sawyer’s baseball game; 6:45pm, cotillion."

Been there. Except for rock climbing lessons and one or two others on Dawn's list - done that.

I am quoted on the growing divide between what kids need/want from their youth sports experience - fun, making friends, improving at their sport - and what adults increasingly are focused on; winning, championships, advancing, college scholarships, building a youth sports resume, whatever that means.

Thanks to Dawn for mentioning the Youth Sports Parents blog and Until It Hurts in her piece.

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