How to motivate a child to sport psychologist's advice. What to do if the child does not want to play sports: advice from a psychologist. Support the child when he loses

Only the lazy did not write about the benefits of physical education and sports. We will not be lazy either. Sport is movement, and movement is life. No pill can replace physical exercise, but exercise can replace a lot of pills. For people involved in physical education and sports, old age does not come for a long time, painful old age is the lot of lazy and low-mobility people.

This is only a small part of what can motivate an adult to play sports. With children it's a little different. We, adults, understand that sports are as necessary for a child as literacy and the ability to count in a column. Sport develops children physically, helps prevent the development of many diseases and releases the child into adult life healthy, strong person.

Sports harden the character, bring up such qualities as purposefulness, psychological stability, stress resistance, team spirit and the will to win. These qualities are especially important in modern world requiring maximum concentration and dedication.

Knowing all this, adults try to send their child to the sports section. And at first, the child usually attends training with pleasure. And after a while, he categorically refuses to go there. Usually withdrawal from sports occurs within the first six months of training. The reason is the lack of motivation of the child.

Not having received desired settings, a child, faced with difficulties (and sport is always difficult), is not ready to overcome them, and therefore follows the path of least resistance, leaves all difficulties, and at the same time the opportunity to grow up healthy, harmoniously developed person. What to do? Motivate your child to play sports.

Scientific approach

Psychologists have identified four main motives for playing sports in children: communication in a team, attitude towards a coach, actually playing sports, and extra-training activities.

For children of any age, communication and a positive attitude of the team towards him is extremely important. If in the sports section a child quickly makes friends with peers, finds guys close to him in spirit, then with a high degree of probability it can be predicted that the child will stay in the sports section for a long time. The psychological climate in the team is also very important. Where there is respect, support, where there is no mockery of the weak, children achieve great results.

Relationship with the coach is important. For a child, the coach is the personification of the parent in the gym. And if the coach is deeply respected, his child listens with pleasure, obeys, then this is a good motivating motive. And, on the contrary, an overly tough coach who is not familiar with the peculiarities of child psychology, trying to achieve results in any way, can kill the desire to play sports in a child. Sometimes - for life will close the road to any gym.

Of course, the child should like the sport he does. Although, there are exceptions when an unloved sport is replaced by another - and the child achieves great results. There are frequent cases when, for example, a little-known unpromising hockey player became a successful figure skater. Or an athlete - an all-around.

In general, all activities related to sports should evoke positive emotions in the child. Trips to competitions, excursions, participation in events, for example, at city holidays with demonstration performances - all this helps to keep many children in the sports sections.

Everything you need to know about sports

You need to be motivated to exercise from an early age, tell what benefits sports bring to people, learn from other people's positive and negative examples: “Uncle Kolya plays sports, that's why he is so strong. And Uncle Vasya drank vodka, so he had already died.

It is necessary not only to tell, but also to show, watch on TV and go to sports competitions, even of the smallest level. In this sense, even yard football is good - the boy will see what strong emotions boil on the field, and will strive to experience them in the future.

Kind word and the cat is pleased

When the child has already been sent to the sports section, be sure to take an interest in his success. Everything works out - do not be afraid to overpraise! Admire him and tell everyone around you what an outstanding athlete is growing in your home. Knowing about his sports "glory", the child will be embarrassed to quit the sport.

It does not work - support with a kind word. Tell us that "Moscow was not built right away" and "patience and work will grind everything." It is necessary to explain to the child that only with the help of labor can results be achieved, which means that one should not feel sorry for oneself in training.

Participation in competitions is an important part of playing sports. Without them, it is not only impossible to evaluate your results, but also to grow up as a real athlete. It is necessary to prepare the child for the fact that in competitions you need to give all your best, try to win. And at the same time prepare for the fact that losing is far from always an indicator of worthlessness. This fine line between the desire for victory and the probability of defeat, you need to feel very accurately and prepare the child for it so that the first defeat in the competition does not become a reason for a complete refusal to continue playing sports.

All classes need to be emotionally colored so that everything related to sports, even defeats in competitions, is accompanied by positive emotions. Lost in competitions - you need to do more and better. This is no reason to get sloppy. All famous athletes, even Olympic champions, sometimes lose!

Personal example

In general, in the upbringing of children, the most important thing is a personal example. If you have grown a belly and are lying on the couch, then it will be difficult to explain to the child why he needs sports. After all, you personally do not need it - the child loves you like that. Take off from the anchor - the sofa, and go to the gym, to the yard, to the sports ground, to the pool or even to the park for a walk. This will help motivate the child to play sports more than all the right talk.

If you play sports, then your personal example will surely inspire your child to go in for sports, even if you have not achieved serious results in this field.

Sports from the tenderest age

Sports for the sake of health and physical development, what is it?

Parents want to see their own child healthy and active throughout the year. Sports activities contribute to the goal, giving the body a number of additional loads. At the same time, a new type of activity naturally fits into the lives of children - they like non-standard activities that make them spend their own strength, there is a desire to learn something new.

After training, the child remains in a good mood and desire to do other things. There should be no concept of bringing the baby “to the brink”, when the coach strives to work for the maximum result, often killing the slightest desire to play sports in the wards.

As a result, visiting sections for the sake of physical development is when the child has the opportunity to independently set the desired bar for himself with little consultation from the outside, gradually raising or lowering the requirements for classes.

Video: coach's opinion on how to motivate to sports

Suitable sports for a child by age

As practice shows, the older the child, the easier it is to get used to visiting the selected section. It is enough to highlight the minimum age bar that allows you to engage in a particular sport:

• 2-3 years - restless fidgets constantly want to move. Of course, it’s not worth talking about enrolling in any section yet, but parents should take care to buy the minimum equipment in order to make the child’s “first acquaintance” with sports.

• 3-4 years - a period when children can boast of increased flexibility and plasticity. The perfect moment to show your child the delights of gymnastics or figure skating, if available.
• 5-6 years - children show good collective interaction with peers. It's time to think about football, dancing or table tennis.
• 7-8 years old - during this period of time, the initial registration for basketball, volleyball groups and more contact areas - boxing, karate, etc.
• By the age of ten, you can start thinking about more specific (often expensive) sections - equestrian sports, fencing, biathlon and more.

Often, a child boasts an individual accelerated development, so the age brackets can be shifted.

Help parents in choosing a sport

If a child has doubts about the choice of a section or playing sports in general, then parents should be given all possible advice, which should not develop into pressure.

There is no need to impose your own ideals, convincing the baby to take up a particular sport under the pretext of parental heredity. It is also wrong to forbid a child to attend the section of his choice (unless finances allow).

It is best to observe the baby at an early age. To note his inclinations or successes in a certain direction, imperceptibly setting him the right path. If a child refuses sports activities at all, then the time has not come. Parents should unobtrusively interest the child, preferably by example, through joint activities.

Inventory Role

Acquired at the right time, sports equipment can give the baby the idea to fully engage in sports. Here we are not talking about weights, which in 95% of cases are dead weight. If from time to time you manage to see the baby on the horizontal bar in the yard, it makes sense to put a Swedish wall at home. More often you can limit yourself to a soccer or basketball ball if the child likes to play in the company of friends. The acquired inventory should develop already existing interests, and not be imposed as an inevitability.

Parental support for children's sports initiatives

At an early age, parental opinion means a lot to children. Even the slightest encouragement of the activity performed is very important for the baby. An indifferent attitude to the activities of a child, at times, can extinguish a strong interest in sports. This happens when it seems to the fidget that no one needs his activity.

We support the first children's achievements in sports

Any prize-winning place, competitive success, and the penultimate place in the tournament should be encouraged by parents. It doesn't matter - with words, sweet prizes or toys. The main thing is to note the successful actions of the baby and gently suggest where it could be done better. It is very rare that children, especially at an early age, try exclusively for themselves. Therefore, all their successes must be recognized by adults.

Conversations between parents and children about the benefits of different sports

Such conversations should be in the nature of an unobtrusive friendly conversation. Without hard pressure with indications of the futility of the selected section. It is enough to ask the kid himself what he takes out of his studies. If the child has doubts about the choice desired type sports, you can use the successes of famous personalities. Reveal the charms of this or that section to the fidget.

We protect children from comparison with "sports" peers

Such a comparison should be absent, both positively and negatively. negative side. If children are an order of magnitude superior to their own peers, then their praise can stall subsequent development. If the child, on the contrary, lags behind the rest in his successes, then comparison with more “successful” comrades can morally crush the baby. This is a start to the development of complexes and a general hatred of sports.

Search for alternative solutions and lack of pressure from adults

If the baby is haunted by failures in sports moments or undertakings do not go according to the planned route, parents should gently push their child to solve the problem. It may be necessary to propose another section without abandoning the old one. So that you can compare them, and give the child the right to determine. It is best to give children a chance to choose from the options offered by their parents so that everyone is happy.

Small reward system

At an early age, kids love pleasant (often tasty) prizes, and not necessarily as a result of sports achievements. Sometimes it makes sense to agree in advance that in case of success there will be incentives. In the beginning, the toddler may engage solely in anticipation of upcoming rewards. He does not notice how he subconsciously begins to like classes in the section.

Watching feature films about the chosen sport

Children love TV very much. If the first acquaintance with the sport took place, and glimpses of interest are visible, it makes sense to choose a high-quality feature film. It should be about the life of a famous person who has achieved success in the chosen direction. It is desirable that the tape contains many moments from a person’s childhood. This will interest the baby when he begins to subconsciously compare himself with his idol. He will begin to see the next steps in development.

The benefits of joint sports activities for children and parents

Children always look at their parents and in many ways try to repeat their actions. Joint classes can spur the desire of the kids - it can be a joint exit with the mother on the ice in the short track lessons, a friendly game of football in training with the father in the same team, and so on. The child sees that parents not only verbally support the chosen sport, but they themselves are not ashamed to participate in front of the "baby", raising the authority of the section in the eyes of an enthusiastic fidget.

Learning theory and practice through books and videos

Children like everything connected with TV and computer. The study of theoretical and practical lessons on video lessons or books, at first, may not be clear from the word at all, but it is very interesting because of its novelty. The kid sees

the sport he has chosen is not only jumping and running, but also the prospect of reading something interesting. The opportunity to watch classes from the side on TV.

As a result, getting a child to play sports is not so difficult. The main thing is to give the opportunity self-selection if there are options. Do not forget to regularly encourage progress and, from time to time, take part in the training process on an equal basis with the children.

sports kids

Ecology of Consciousness: Children. I am often asked how I "persuade" or "negotiate" with my children to go to training. How did we come to such a state of affairs when the children themselves voluntarily rush to the gym, where they train hard for 4, and sometimes for 5 hours? What is happening is the result of some "party policy" carried out over time.

I am often asked how I "persuade" or "negotiate" with my children to go to training. The thing is, I don't convince anyone children always have a choice - to go or not to go(and in the two and a half years of our studies, there were such “yes, I absolutely know that I won’t go today” maybe four times, for all three).

But there were many cases on the contrary, when with fever, sick, these children, like some kind of sectarians, rushed into the hall, as if there were no more important things in the world. And the worst punishment in the gym itself is suspension from training or performing a certain exercise.

They also like to come early and as an unspoken rule good manners, as well as a reason for pride, they are considered to leave later, generally later than everyone else. The coach for them is the greatest authority in the world, they hang on every word and coaching gifts are the most precious for them. Now they are 12, and almost 8 years old, and they are much older, more independent, more purposeful and, it seems to me, happier than I was at their age.

I thought about how we came to this state of affairs, when the children themselves voluntarily rush to the gym, where they train hard for 4, and sometimes for 5 hours, where they can be shouted at and hurt, when they are ready to work without lowering their hands on some element that may not work out for months ... well, and in general is able to work on its own, even when there is no one around and not let it slip. Of course, such children are not “given out” ready.

And the happening result some "party policy" held during this time.

The first principle, the most important -This business should be such that both the child and the parents like it.

If you don’t like the business, well, the soul doesn’t lie to it, nothing will work out. For example, older children did karate for several years, and went to classes with businesslike sadness. little creature, who still has no choice (yes, it was like that in our family then). I thought karate was important. It seemed to the children that hitting each other was not right. And for almost three years that we have been there, their opinion has not changed. They received blue belts with yellow stripes. Sports did not captivate them. That is, if this is something that parents only like, and no one is particularly interested in the opinion of the child (a common scenario with music schools), then the option “be patient, fall in love” may not work.

But this is also important: if the parent himself does not get carried away by what the child loves, then the child's immature psyche can easily be "blown away" at the first failures. Any occupation has its joyful and dark sides. Gymnastics, for example, is so beautiful, but stretching is so painful. A little girl may very much want to be a gymnast and very much not want to endure pain. The task of a parent is to be there, if not at the trainings themselves, then really be in the subject in general, show that “I am with you”, this is important and interesting for him. It is more interesting to go together, especially on an unfamiliar road. And if this is such a thing that an adult doesn’t have a soul at all - a child can turn sour (... well, if it’s not important for parents, then even more so for me ...)

The second principle is a smooth start. No person can withstand the momentary immersion in the training regime of a professional athlete. Children of the first year just learn to go to these classes, and what happens there is no longer so important. When we first started, the children studied three times a week for an hour and a half and that was just enough. Sometimes it seemed to me that so little time had passed, we just relaxed - and then training again ... and it was only 4.5 hours a week. And now there are 27 of them. We started with a circus studio, the children liked it. It happens that ambitious parents bring their children to a serious group, saying “we are very serious about it”, there they start to plow and just burn out - it’s hard, nothing works out, we will never keep up with other children, etc. Before you develop speed, you need to accelerate, and in our business, acceleration should be smooth. We've been building momentum for many months. When daily training began in the sports group, we would not have survived if we had not been engaged in a circus studio for half a year. The children were first released after two hours, and I had no idea how the children who train 4-5 can withstand.

The third principle is that everyone has their own way and their own speed. My three children who train with the same coach in the same group are completely different. The eldest daughter is gifted with data, strength, but often she lacks drive and perseverance. She is a sad pale princess. The second daughter is a small tractor. I would write a “stupid” tractor, but you can’t do that about children, and especially about your own. She is not gifted with data, new elements are difficult for her, learning a dance sequence is generally a nightmare. But she is fantastically efficient and loves what she does.

To “launch” it into work, completely different levers are needed than the older one. We also have a younger boy. Being the twin brother of a small tractor, he became her antipode, so to speak. The boy clearly knows his limits of comfort, he does exactly as much as he is comfortable with, and the coaches quickly adopted a position of “non-violence” towards him. So far, he is about a year and a half behind the sisters in terms of skills. But for some reason we all believe in his great future.

It's just that this boy needs time to prove himself, to open up. If it weren't for his sisters, I don't know if I would have had the patience to take him to practice every day, where he does ten percent of what he could. Indeed, compared to the rest of the children, this boy is the most lagging behind. But this is not the main thing - because he likes what he does. He is not ready to work like the rest, but in general he likes training. And this is the main point!

The fourth principle is that there is always a choice. I am often asked “but if they decide to quit? ... you will not be sorry for the time spent?”. Firstly, this time is very high quality, it is a great time. And we go to training not only to achieve something in the future, but because it's cool. Like going to the movies, for example. But, on the other hand, if we train where there are all sorts of competitions, then, of course, we want the outcome of these trainings to lead children to prizes. Everyone remembers this. And if they want to quit, I will do this: I will ask them to think carefully about their partners, whom they leave halfway. About coaches who may have some plans for them, believe in them and love them in their own way. And weigh everything again: the problem leading to leaving lies in the field of sports, in the field of relationships, in the field of personal skills, inability, and so on.

Next, we will talk about what could cause such a decision. My youngest daughter said that “she has nothing else to do in acrobatics” when they were separated from her sister, with whom they performed quite well in a pair and she was left without a team. We came to the conclusion that this is not “bad acrobatics”, but circumstances have developed, and it will be very stupid to quit now, when everything has just begun. We discussed the fact that her personal skill does not depend on a partner nearby and there are many things that she can learn on their own. Daughter was reassured by this conversation. In general, children trust me, they know that I am on their side and will never say “no, because I decided so.” We talk a lot about their training, my husband and I know by name all the kids in the group, and this activity has become part of our family in some way. Not just a place where children go to train.

The fifth principle - we help with the first victory. I think the only period when you can run into a recruit hard (parents, in a sense, you can - it's the coach's job every day :), press and leave no way out but to try - This First stage before the first competition.

"Unfired" children do not know how to work and try in principle. Imagine the face of a typical scoliotic schoolboy looking away from the tablet “what-o-o-o-o-? work-o-o-o-otat?

It is important to understand that this is not a fight with a person, but a fight with laziness.

Mine were exactly the same. I am infinitely grateful to our first coaches from the circus studio, who said that my children, who went there for three months to hang out, are not ready to work and there is nothing for them to do in this circle. This is where we took them on. "Do you want to continue?" They wanted. "Will you be upset if you get kicked out?" They got upset. And then we agreed with them that we would bring them up to the level of that group, but we would act as we should, and not as they might be accustomed to and pleased. Is the game worth the candle? You can sign a contract with a child, by the way. To be clear - THIS has clear time limits. Let's say a month. The first days of home training were hell - I stood outside the door and listened to the howling of the children whom Dima taught to tumble. They howled with frenzy from protest, from the fact that their whole essence did not want to make an effort. But after a couple of weeks, they learned to tumble forward, backward, make a “wheel” and began to skip to class themselves.

It was important for us to break through this barrier, break the force of gravity and bring them into a new orbit.

Yes, you could wave your hand - it's hard to roll back. It hurts to sit on the twine. It's not ours. But in any business it is like that - at first it seems difficult, and then there is so much joy when it works out!

I saw a lot of kids who refused to go to the gym because it seemed to them that they simply could never do it. Why take. That's why coaches sometimes yell at children like that - they say, don't you dare doubt, you lazy bag of bones, you can do it! And they can.

Principle six - support for the smallest achievements. Paradoxically, the more you praise a child, the more he works. There must be a fulcrum when the whole world is against you - judges, rivals, everyone is just waiting for you to stumble.

That is why a warm, honest parental rear is so important.

I never scold children for not succeeding in something, although there were many such situations as in the joke about “don’t cry girl, your head is not square” We have a rule to rejoice at any, the tiniest victory. Many parents are afraid to overpraise their children, to spoil them - but the fact is that children do not stop when they achieve one kind of victory, they need to move on, increasing the number of victories. That's why you can't spoil them with praise.

The seventh principle is not everything at once and everything has its time. My eldest son has not yet found a job that he is ready to do day and night. That is, he found it, but we still need to come to a reasonable consensus - so that his hobby would take on a structured form with a professional cut. He is 15 and I think that everything is still ahead. The eldest daughter changed more than ten circles from dancing to zoology, before unexpectedly taking root in acrobatics for everyone. She was 11 years old when she, completely unprepared, not stretched, came to the sport, where it is customary to start at 6 years old. But at 6 years old she was a completely different person, she was just too early.

The eighth principle is where a good coach is. We spend about two and a half - three hours a day on the road. We drive through the whole city and it is sometimes exhausting. Of course, there are sections and closer. But even if suddenly our group moves even further and more inconveniently, we will continue to travel, because it all starts with the coach. It seems to me that if necessary, we will even move to another city. It is very important that children love their coach and trust him. published

The success of children is not only in good grades and school achievements. It is also very important that they are in good health. And for this you need to maintain good physical shape and exercise regularly.

How to instill in a child an interest in sports, will tell 4mama.

1. Define goals.

In order to motivate a child to go in for sports, first you need to find out why exactly he and you need it. If a child, for example, has excess weight, he gets tired very quickly, cannot fulfill school standards in physical education and because of this they laugh at him at school, then he just needs to improve his physical shape and attend classes with a trainer who will develop an individual program for him personally.

If you see in your child a predisposition to some specific sports, then there may already be a completely different approach. Discuss with your son or daughter if they want to seriously engage in a particular sport and what they are willing to do for real success and Olympic awards. The prospect of winning Olympic gold is one of the strongest motivations for athletes.

2. best example- own.

If parents have always been and continue to play sports, do exercises in the morning, go jogging, visit a fitness center, then the likelihood that the child will inherit the same attitude towards physical activity is very high.

Therefore, if you do not visit the gym or group sports yet, it's time to save up a subscription for yourself and your child. Moreover, many fitness centers offer family club cards at a bargain price.

3. Encouragement and awards.

If the child is not particularly eager to play sports, then you can try to develop a system of rewards and rewards with him. It is certainly not the most The best way motivation, but with the right approach can give excellent results.

Agree that for this or that achievement the child will receive some kind of reward from you. It can be a small gift once a week or once a month, or a trip somewhere with the whole family.

4. Alternative to sports activities.

If the child absolutely does not want to attend sport sections, perhaps it is worth taking him to some active classes. Such as, for example, dancing, vocals or a theater studio.

Perhaps your child will not have a superbly modeled figure in this case, but at the same time he will certainly receive considerable physical activity, which will help him keep himself in shape. At the same time, he will have the opportunity to reveal many talents in himself and realize the accumulated energy and his potential.

We hope that our tips will help to attract your child to sports activities. But remember, it's best to show everything by your own example.

Catherine! I have two twin sons, now 18.5 each. From the age of 7 I have been doing taekwon-do. They gave it to the section, because it was at the school where we were on the extension. About a year later we moved to another club, where it seemed to us that the coach was better. Personally, I didn’t intend to do anything professional from children in terms of sports, and I don’t like any scuffle (((. But it often happens that parents through children realize their failed hopes and plans. So my husband, apparently, went for it way ... He personally took them to all the trainings, went with them to all the competitions, where they just didn’t go, in short, he didn’t give a descent. ..In short, there are plenty of reasons to quit, but their father stood behind them and not a step back... Today we are multiple champions and prize-winners of the championships and cups of Moscow, Russia and Europe))) And I, as the most devoted fan, are always on the podium! !! And now there is no question of abandoning classes, although it is difficult to combine with studying at the university. On the contrary, the children themselves found a coach to do acrobatics and some kind of youth trend - tricking. Why am I doing all this. It’s easy to quit what you started, there is always a reason, at this moment it seems that instead I will study or something else ... In fact, it doesn’t work out like that (((Everything was busy time turns into sitting at the computer or elementary laziness. In my opinion, try to find the strength and the right words in yourself, to convince the child that he personally spent a lot of effort to come to a good result, that it’s just a pity to leave things halfway. Unfortunately, at this age, few children know what they really want. And the parents have to take this decision for them. Good luck to you!

Thank you very much for your review😍 So many of my thoughts have been confirmed in your words. I also do not dream of a sports future, but I want more health, hardening of strength and spirit for my child. You have wonderful children and a husband. The boys are already adults and can decide what they want, therefore they set new goals for themselves, achieve them, and sport taught them this in part.
When children are small, our arguments about the future are incomprehensible and ridiculous for them. Just like you, I am sure that the time that we now spend on classes (now we study on the second shift, so classes are from 8.00 to 9.00) will just go to sleep, and in the evening he will play until late into the computer, because in the morning you can sleep as much as you want. Thank you for your support😍

And I have such a story: When my son was 8 years old, we thought about what he would do, he was "tortured" for a long time (he did not know what he wanted), the choice fell on basketball. At first they were engaged with pleasure, they moved to sports class, persuaded us to move to another school, traveled a lot around the country, the data for basketball is simply gorgeous, but at the age of 15 he said I DON'T WANT, we persuaded the coach for a long time and we quit everything in vain, moved to another school in the 10th grade (by that time I studied at limped us). As a result, he became interested in drawing, now he is 18 to study as an architect and does not regret that he quit basketball (dad still cannot accept that his son did not become a basketball player😄). I didn’t let my daughter (she’s 12) into sports, at the age of 5 she expressed a desire to play the piano, now we are already in the 5th grade of the music school (last year she still wanted to play the guitar), of course we are lazy, but we fight laziness together with a teacher (by the way, a lot in sports and not only depends on coaches and teachers).

Elena, despite the fact that your son asked for basketball at the age of 15 (at this age a person already makes his choice more consciously), I think that he learned a lot in sports - for example, to achieve goals and not give up, work and not be lazy. These qualities will help him in his studies and further work. Another important factor (for me) is that children who are doing something seriously (except school), are busy in the transition period, they do not have time for stupid things. So you say that he does not regret that he quit, ask him if he regrets what he did at all, I think he will answer NO (maybe not now, but when he becomes an adult and his children appear).
About daughter: when a child expresses a desire to do something - this is great for parents - no need to puzzle over where to take the child. Good luck to you and your children😍😍😍

Katyusha, my son is 11 years old, he has been playing tennis 5 times a week for 4 years already, at first he liked it, then he didn’t like it much, because the coach made him work, and not kick the bulldozer in the ring .... respectively, there were disputes about whether to go or not ... I remember myself at the same age, when they sent me to the skating rink, and swimming, and aerobics, and dancing, and I went everywhere for no more than six months, to be honest, I reproach my parents for this, I had to force, because at this age children do not understand. what is good for them and what is not! Now modern children have so many entertainments, I mean technology, iPods, iPhones, playstations, that, of course, they want to do them after school, but nothing useful ... So, back to my cub, that's all -I insisted on his classes and he went and honestly studied. Then we connected him to watching tennis matches on TV and he got so involved in this story that now he knows all the tennis champions by name, who is which racket in the world, who has won and lost how much ... And attends classes with great pleasure! That's why. my advice to you, do not give up, do not give up, but find convincing arguments, it is much easier to give up, give up and let the child do what he wants, but as my experience shows, this does not work ....🌹