Can reading be an EC?

kelsmom
Tue, 27 Jan 2009 00:22:40 +0000

I believe in allowing our kids to be who they are. If your child spends his spare time reading, that’s what he does. Encourage him to find a way to highlight his hobby on his app.

My S spends his time doing non traditional musical things (playing guitar in a metal band, composing music, recording music for himself & others, mixing sound for recording, etc.). This is what he does - who he is, as he says - and he will have to figure out a way to convey that when it comes time to apply to colleges (he’s not going to study music). If it’s not “good enough,” so be it. He is who & what he is. I don’t think he’d be happy at a school where he had to do things just for the sake of getting accepted. Not that I think there is anything bad about encouraging our kids to do other things (D is an overachiever, so I have plenty of experience with the typical CC kid) - just that I don’t think all our kids need to follow a certain formula. And yes, it may mean certain missed opportunities. But all choices in life come with opportunity costs - if the child is happy with his hobbies, the balance is on the positive side.