Hi guys...
just had a discussion with my 5 year old's teachers and they said he is very bright and its a loss if we dont send him for extra classes like musical instrument etc.
He still have so much more he can learn.
in class he is the brightest and he should be able to learn many more things outside.

So, need your help here.

what are the options available for extra curricular or extra classes he can benefit outside?

i dont want him to lose his childhood as well. he must be able to play freely as well. i dont all of his time full with classes.
maybe once or twice a week have some music lessons?

any ideas? what classes u guys send ur kids to etc.

can send to music or art classes. something non academic and fun to learn

My reply might seem intrusive, but i would like to assure you that my intention is good (i hope), so apologies if i seem harsh.

1) Do you want your child to at least explore his childhood? Because when i was a kid, my parents send me to multiple classes after school everyday and my only play time is 1 hour before dinner (after dinner got homework, then sleep). I never had the time for myself. Weekends sure, fun time, but my parents were busy working during the weekdays they just rest weekend and i sleep in too. so that's one thing to think about. So i decide NOT to do that to my kids.
2) Musical class is actually good for kids' brain/skills. Piano, guitar, violin, drums build their hand-eye coordination, faster brain processing skills and multi-tasking, but dont force them to be the next Beethoven (unless they want to). Coming back to number 1 above, time management, he is still 5 years old, his childhood is one of the most precious time in his life.
3) Ask him what he wanted. yes, "he is 5 years old, what does 5 year olds know..blah blah blah". Talking to him, asking what he wanted to do actually is better for him, since he would think it is HIS initiative to do what he wanted (rather than you instilling it in him), builds his confidence and decision making process.
4) my kid goes to school in the morning till 1pm, we allocated only 2 hours from 2pm to 6pm for her other curricular activity, we send her to our next door neighbor (fortunate for us) for piano lessons, because her auntie plays piano and "i wanna be like Auntie Tishaaaa who can play the piano"..She goes to play piano 2 times a week only. So the remaining free time she used it to be herself, play, doing homework, learn, watch tv, cooking with her mum, etc.

In conclusion : yes, but dont force your kid into not having childhood. 1 or 2 classes a week seems fair. Ask him what he wants, but obviously within reason, dont want to have "Anakku Sazali" moment do we? hahaha.

Good luck TS.

thanks a lot.

yeah like i mentioned earlier, i dont want him to lose his precious childhood moments.
thats what we are doing now actually.
go to school until 12:30 ( others finish at 11:45, but he has some extra mandarin classes ), go back home and no after class activities.

after talking to the teacher today, she really feels that my son can actually learn more because he is doing very well at school. kinda wasted bcoz he can still absorb more.
because of this, im looking for something for him to do.

of course not everyday, too tired with studies and classes, this is not what i wished for.
perhaps a few times a week.
to build his character, discipline, empathy etc.

was thinking of a few:
1) Martial arts
2) Little Soccer
3) Arts and Craft
4) Musical instrument
5) Swimming

yes, i also intend for him to choose himself what he wants. i want him to try first. then choose which ones he likes best.
like u said, if its coming from himself, he would be more committed, motivated and interested to do it.

Nice one daddy/mommy. Hahaha. but swimming lessons is easier for me, since we got a swimming pool at our condo, and i can swim, so i taught my kids instead of sending them to class.

Keep up the good work!!

I think a lot of robotics and programming classes are gaining popularity. Apparently it encourages problem solving skills.

Dance classes or Martial arts can promote discipline and dedication as well as perseverance.

thanks for the input.
considering coding/programming when he is in standard 1.

he is taking basic mandarin at kindie, and then a more comprehensive one after the basic one. also at his kindie.

sorta old topic but i think extra curricular classes are quite important for their growth. i dont think you should view it as taking away from his childhood unless maybe all those classes are tutoring haha. we signed up for a bunch of trial classes and let my son make the decisions as its his time (well parents too as we need to taxi around), but once he decides we demand commitment at least for 6 months. then relook at if they want to continue. normally they make tons of friends and have a great time. if you have the funds, good to let him socialise and learn outside of school.

coding

many coding classes for kids around us are not suitable for his age yet.

Music is best therapy. If your kid is interested, it's advisable to do so.
I let my kid learn drumming.
Not because I like drumming but because I saw him pretty good at rhythm game, he went searching for classical remix songs regularly. Music teacher said his rhythm is very good.

Most importantly is that, he can release his stress on the drum.

something quiet lol

You can let him participate in a few more, and then see the effect, and then choose the one he is really interested in.