Warning Signs That Your Child May Be Overscheduled

Warning Signs That Your Child May Be Overscheduled
Ask yourself these questions to check if your child's getting enough downtime.
By Martha Brockenbrough

There may not be a "right" number of activities for every child, but ask yourself these questions to check if your child's getting enough downtime.

1. - Does he act grouchy, mopey or irritable?

2. - Can she fall asleep at bedtime?

3. - Are his grades slipping? Does he finish his homework?

4. - Has she started overeating?

5. - Does he zone out in front of the TV?

6. - Is she complaining of stomachaches, headaches or mysterious illnesses?

7. - Does he grumble about being bored?

8. - Is she overanxious about getting approval from authority figures

9. - When you're heading out the door, does he throw a tantrum or "lose" equipment?

10.- Does she pick fights with her siblings or complain you don't love her as much?

11.- Can he keep track of where's he's supposed to be?

12.- Is her schedule draining you or your family members?

If your child exhibits a few of these behaviors on an ongoing basis, you may want to re-examine his after-school schedule.

Mom's Homeroom columnist Martha Brockenbrough is a former high school teacher whose students have been published in The New York Times, the Christian Science Monitor and elsewhere. She has written three books, one on parenting, one on grammar, and one for children. For nearly a decade, she wrote an educational humor column for the encyclopedia Encarta, and she founded both the Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar and National Grammar Day. She is the social media director for readergirlz.org, a teen literary organization that has won a National Book Award for innovation. Martha has taught creative writing to elementary school students and has two daughters in elementary school — who almost always remember to put their homework in their backpacks.