In today’s competitive world, your child is expected to be a master at all. Also, going with the popular idiom- All work and no play makes jack a dull boy proves that extra curricular activities should be encouraged.
Many parents force their children to join drawing classes, hobby classes, dancing classes, skating classes, elocution classes, etc to join - the idea to let the child do what he or she enjoys. If you force anything on the child neither is your child going to enjoy it nor will you be satisfied with their performance.
We have seen another species of parents that lay too much importance on academics. Here, you child will only become a ‘book worm’. There is a strong need for activities outside the academic world that teach them a lot of things that books perhaps may not be able to teach them.
It is important that you hone a good skill in your child. If your child loves art, then take him to a peaceful place (may be a green meadow along the country side) with a canvas and allow him to paint whatever he wants to.
If you have budget constraints and cannot afford classes that many parents enroll their children in, you can sit at home and involve your kid in a lot of extra curricular activities. For example, go skating or cycling with your kid. If they are interested in cookery, teach them a simple dish or two!
It all boils down to involving your kid in something that he or she loves doing. A lot of schools also lay stress on extra curricular activities and prefer children who are all- rounders rather than just academic scholars.