extracurricular activities

[agentpleakley]

What do your kids do? At what age did they start? And what is average cost?

I want DD to start piano lessons. She's 5; I started at 5, but she does not seem interested at all. She also does not want dance or gymnastics lessons. Should I just wait and not worry about it?

 

[mnasmom3]

Girls started scouts in K. The also play soccer. Oldest started when she was 7, youngest at 5. Oldest tried dance at 5 but hated it. My son played 2 years of soccer at 6 and 7 and 3 years of tball at 5, 6, and 7. This year, the girls are still in scouts and will continue with soccer. Ds will start coach pitch ball in another couple of months. Baseball is about $75 and soccer is about $100 for both girls. Scouts is $5/month per girl.

I'd ask your dd if there's anything she thinks she'd enjoy. Show her what's available in your area and see if anything appeals to her.

 

[ninety-seven]

DS6 plays football at $245 a season. He played soccer and tball last year, but hasn't this year.

DD4 is in dance and gymnastics. I think these are about $60 a session.

DS2 is in Sports Tykes. I -think- this is $60 a session as well.

DS6 wants to take guitar lessons, too.

 

[CTmommyx3]

My 6 year old has done dance since maybe 3. She just does the basic ballet class.
This year she asked to also do gymnastics.
The dance is 45 and gymnastics is 57
DS has not asked yet to do anything, I think maybe when he starts kindergarten he may want to once he makes more friends in town.

 

[Rylee]

What do your kids do? At what age did they start? And what is average cost?

I want DD to start piano lessons. She's 5; I started at 5, but she does not seem interested at all. She also does not want dance or gymnastics lessons. Should I just wait and not worry about it?

I have 5 children, ages 6, 9, 16, 22, & 26. I listed the youngest age any of them started.

Dance @ 3 - All 3 DD's
Gymnastics @ 3 - DD #1
Girl Scouts @ 6 - DD's #1 & 2
Art Lessons @ 6 - DD #1
Vocal Lessons @ 8 - DD's #1 & 2
Performing in theater... acting, singing, dancing @ 4 - All 5 kids
Baseball @ 4 - both boys
Soccer @ 5 - DS #2
Pop Warner Football @ 6 - DS # 1
Basketball @ 7 DS #1

In school...
Track
Volleyball
Cheerleading
Drama Club
Cross Country
Choir
Band
Cost... Big $$$

 

[TexasBee]

Swim lessons started at 4, $13/week for 1/2 hour lesson each week.
Ballet through daycare, $28 month for weekly half hour lessons.

I'm hoping to start her in horseback riding lessons this summer; ballet will cease Memorial Day.

 

[tinkerjess]

son 8yo started baseball at 5! now he is playing select baseball which cost$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$! hotels, travel money, lessons from pro players, the best bats $250-$350 my 2yo daughter just started ballet this year which was free,butim sure next year when she takes ballet and tap will cost plus the cost for costumes!!

 

[mickeylove2]

DD7
-piano since she turned 6 (1 year)
-Girl Scouts since Pre-K (3rd year, 2 as a Daisy, 1st as a Brownie)
-Dance 1 year, tap and ballet, will start hip hop in the fall
-Baton Twirling 1st year, doing team and individual competitions
-tried soccer and t-ball- hated both of them
-tried gymnastics and wants to go back, we just can't find a good place to take her
-wants to try figure skating
-swims ALL summer long, but will start actual swimming lessons in a few weeks

DD4(5 next month)
-Baton Twirling, 2 years both doing team and individual competitions
-Dance, 1st year, tap and ballet
-tried t-ball and hated it
-tried gymnastics and hated it
-wants to try figure skating
-swims even more than her sister and will start swimming lessons at the same time
-tried horseback riding and wants to do it this summer

 

[JacobsMommy11002]

Both kids started swimming at about 2 years old. $30 for 8 weeks, the lessons vary from 1/2 to 3/4 of an hour. DS play t-ball at $55 a season. DD does dance at $40 a month. She wants to do soccer, but unfortunately, it conflicts with speech therapy, so its a no go for now. DS also did basketball, I think it was like $10, we only had to pay for the shirt.

 

[DevilDuckie]

My 10 year old son does Karate and is in the school band. Band is free, but we had to provide his trumpet. Karate 2 times a week is $230 every 3 months plus promotion feess, equipment, uniforms... Ends up being about $100 a month. Yoga (which he no longer does) was $10 a session.

 

[grlpwrd]

We have 5 children, too. Our kids have cut back a lot on their activities and now we do more things together and they enroll in school clubs and parks and rec activities which are cheaper or at minimal cost.

Hula and sewing - all of my kids because I teach them

Girl Scouts for our oldest 3 - I am also leader/ registration fee is $10 and our troop uses our fundraising money for most activities and supplies so the cost is minimal

Art club and other afterschool clubs and drama for our 2 oldest girls - just cost of supplies mostly because these are school activities

Gymnastics for our 4 yo son - started at age 3 / 8 weeks of classes is $46 - I will be enrolling him in a sport this summer after he turns 5

Our 3 older daughters all took dance and gymnastics from the ages of 4 to about 9. The older 2 also already took swimming and became proficient swimmers, but they did not want to swim competitively.

Our kids are aged 16, 13, 9, 4, and 2.5. We all cook together, garden, exercise, play, and have game nights, too. Our 3 oldest daughters also always make time to enter various contests and they win or at least place pretty high. Not a brag, but I cannot force them to be interested in things I wish they would be - like sports, kwim? They only do what they want to do, really.

I think we were getting burnt out with all that running around before.

 

[taximomfor4]

Mine mostly started tball or softball at about 5 (except my youngest). It was cheap, like $30 for the season.

Other than that, oldest dd did gymnastics at the YMCA (free, with family membership) from 5-8, then figure skating (group sessions at out civic center for about $25 per 8-week session). At 9 she began viola at school, adding private lessons at 10 ($12/half-hour). At 11, she left skating for Irish Dance ($260 per year). I always let her change activities, after finishing the term/session/quarter...only one at a time.

My second dd started Irish Dance at 6 because she really wanted to ($260 per year) except this year, she is in 2 levels at once so I pay double.

My son did Irish Dance at 6 (3rd child discount made it $240 for the year). He finished his year, but it wasn't his thing. He has switched to baseball ($50 for the season...starting at age 7).

My youngest dd started Irish Dance at 5. She really, REALLY wanted to. Because I am paying tuition x 4 this year, she costs $220 for the year.

We pretty much let the kids each have ONE activity at a time. For $ reasons as well as to prevent scheduling issues.

I personally wouldn't put a child in dance or gymnastics or music lessons till they want it. OPtherwise, it could backfire, and they could hate it automatically.

 

[Cloudwatcher]

DD3 1/2 started dance this past year when she was almost 3 it is $35 a month for weekly hour long sessions plus recital costumes and fees which were roughly $200.
She also takes music/paino lessons which are $50 a month for hour and half weekly lesson. She does paino for most of the lesson but also does just some site reading.
She starts t-ball in a week and it was $45 for the season.

Now that I look at it, it seems she has a lot going on, but dance will in on the 12 and then t-ball will start. The only thing that never stops is the music. Oh and this coming school year she will be taking sign laungage at the local college.

 

[DawnM]

My boys do cubscouts. VERY reasonable cost involved and we do 1 week of camp per summer for $90 per kid and then my pre-scout age son goes to Pixie camp for free there when I volunteer for the week. There are so many other activities they can do through scouting too that are very inexpensive.

My older boys both golf. I think we spend currently about $500/year on that. They take lessons for $5/hour (2 hrs wk) and then get to play for free after the lesson.

Some years we do Upward BasketBall for $100 for 10 weeks.

It just depends, but we don't do anything expensive right now. I figure if they want to start competing, we will then have the money to pay for it, but I don't want to pour thousands into something they really aren't passionate about.

Dawn

 

[kellermomof3]

DS 13 started football at 9 cost 100.00, started baseball at 10 cost 100.00.

DS 10 started football at 6 cost 100.00, started baseball at 5 cost 100.00.

They still play...but DS 13 is in middle school so it doesnt cost for football but he plays on a select baseball team and that cost around 200.00 a season. DS 10 still plays organized football and baseball for the same price.

DD 8 did dance for a while which cost 85.00 a month started at age 6. Then we switched to gymnastics at age 7 that is 70.00 a month, however we are taking a break from that to do softball that was 100.00....this is her first year.

We only do one activity a season spring is baseball/softball. Fall and winter is football and gymnastics/cheer. We take a break November thru Feburary were we do NOTHING

 

[agentpleakley]

I personally wouldn't put a child in dance or gymnastics or music lessons till they want it. OPtherwise, it could backfire, and they could hate it automatically.

OP here --this is exactly why I asked this question -- when I ask her about anything she just says no -- our conversation yesterday afternoon:

ME: Do you want to take dance lessons
DD: No
Me: How about gymnastics -- would you like to take gymnastics lessons?
DD: No
Me: How about piano lessons - do you want to learn to play the piano like mommy does?
DD: No
ME: Do you want to take horseback riding lessons?
DD: No
ME: Well, what would you like to do?
DD: I just want to be me

DS(11) started t ball at 5 and has played baseball every year since. He did boy scouts for a while - but lost interest. He also takes guitar lessons and rock band. And, he is in 4-H.

It seems that if your child doesn't start early (especially in some of these activities) they will be left behind. I am concerned that she will hate it but I'm wondering if I should just take her to see if she might like it.

 

[Mickey and PSU]

Our boys are older now so they participate in school sports. However, they still participate in activities outside of the school environment. The oldest one plays varsity football and baseball in school. He also has a USSSA travel baseball team that costs $400 for the summer along with 4 football camps at $295 for PSU senior camp, $350 for Manning Passing Academy, $60 for his HS team camp and Air 7 Camp for $525. He has 1 baseball showcase at $495 for the day. (This doesn't include lodging for us when we go along and fuel/food costs) Our youngest son plays football for the middle school and is on the track team. He plays baseball at $65 for his local team and $625 for his USSSA travel baseball team. Then, it costs $65 a month for karate class for his as well. He will go to one football camp that costs $175. Both boys play drums, but they do not take lessons at this time. The older one is no longer in the band due to football and we only have 1 more year for the younger one becuase of football at high school. both boys are in Boy Scouts as well. The summer camps have been a great experience for each boy. They have had to live in dorms at colleges and are able to see what life will be like after they leave home for college.

 

[scrapquitler]

My 5 year old son does dance. This is his third year (would have been his 4th, but he decided not to do t last year). He does a combo class (tap/ballet) one hour per week. The class costs $360 per year plus $70 for the costume, and $15 registration fee. I do get a bit of a discount off the tutition because I have 3 students at the studio (DH, DD and DS).

DD 11 also dance (her 9th year). She does 50 minute classes once per week each of tap, jazz, ballet, hip hop, street tap and modern, and she does a private class (duo), 30 minutes per week, this year he partner is her Dad Generally tuition for each class is $90 every quarter, but the more classes you take, the more discount you get, so that 6th class only ends up costing like $40 per quarter. Her private class is $20 per week (plus the $20 per week for DH). I think her classes end up close to $500 per quarter. Her costumes this year added up to about $500.

Additionally, there are photo sitting fees (that is optional). I think including the recital tickets, photos, costumes, tution etc. that the dance studio cost about $3000 this year for DH, DD and DS.

DD has also been in Girl Scouts. It is only $10 to register for the year, but there are extras that get added onto that...most of the activities have some small additional charge, ($5 here, $18 for that, cookie sales on top of that, etc). Really nominal $$ amounts, and girl scouts offers financial aid if you need it.

DD main outside activity beyond dance is Girl Scout Day camp in the summer. That costs about $150 for a week, 8-4 and the bus transportation is included.

 

[ObsessedwiththeMouse]

My daughter started ballet and tap at 4 years old..(she's not 6) Classes run $50/mo plus costume ($200). In the fall, she's going to start vocal/singing lessons. (Not too sure the cost of that yet)

My son is only 2, so no extras yet. Probably soccer or football or baseball....whatever interests him.

 

[cruizie]

DD6 has done a few different things.

Ballet/Tap - started age 3 $55/month at the time
Gymnastics - started age 2 w/ Mom & Me and still going strong in Kindergarten. $65/mon
Girl Scouts - super cheap! Probably not more than $20 for the whole school year.
Swim lessons last 2 summers - $20/week for 2-30 minute private lessons.
Swim team this year (registration tonight) - $85 for 2 mo.

Personally, I would rather her NOT do swim team b/c it is a huge time commitment but she is so excited about it.

She has asked to do lots of other things like soccer, t-ball & vollyball. I am not sure she even knows what vollyball IS so needless to say, we haven't done any of these other sports. She really likes gymnastics and wants to do dance again but it just wasn't in the budget this year.