What does your 9/10 year old like doing?

[cupcakeicing]

My soon to be 10 year old DS seems to have lost interest in everything he used to love, lego, playing star wars etc. All he seems to want to do is play his PS3 or watch you tube videos of video games. I realise he's just growing up but would love to interest him in something else for his 'downtime'. (His regular activities include swimming, cubs and guitar lessons).

[ChasingSquirrels]

Just turned 11 yo ds.
His preference for life would include being permanently connected to his iPod touch and the PC.
As I don't let that happen he also reads, plays with ds2 who is 7 with Lego or something, plays out either dens in the wooded area behind our house or on his bike on the street, watches TV, talks to me, sometimes plays games with me - chess or yugioh or similar.
He also has a weekly swimming lesson which I would have abandoned by now but his dad takes him, youth club, scouts, jogging club.

[Flossiechops]

Sounds like my ds who is 9 next month. His favourite pastime is playing Minecraft on his iPad. Ds is a bit of a lazy sort activity wise, unless he is the best at something he won't bother and nothing will sway him. Dd who is 10 is the opposite - she's heavily into running and trains as often as possible, goes dancing in a Saturday and Brownies during the week. I have noticed just how much they seem to be changing this past 12 months.

[InkleWinkle]

Minecraft, reading, minecraft, dancing, minecraft

Oh and did I mention minecraft?

[Flossiechops]

Phew inkle thought it was just my ds!!!

[NicknameIncomplete]

If my 9yr old got the choice she would be on the computer permenantly. In the last few months i have had to set a time restriction on it. Before it was never a problem as she would be out playing with her friends, playing with her toys, drawing, reading.

[morethanpotatoprints]

My dd is 9 and plays musical instruments, sings and dances twice a week.
Also enjoys reading, ds, computer fun and games (educational and fun)

[DontMentionThePrunes]

This is so reassuring. Mine is the same.
He also likes reading, but in bed.
Lego and anything Avengers related.
Playing fantasy monster-hunting games with the neighbours, packing a bag with 'kit' and returning for a swift biscuit and juice before going off again. (I love this. It's what being 9 is like in my head.)
He does love being outdoors but in the countryside where we don't live but sometimes I think it's mainly so he can hit rocks with sticks, or throw rocks at sticks.

[willyoulistentome]

DS1 (10) playing football, playing FIFA13 on his DS, playing FIFA14 on his iPod, watching football on TV, watching football on YouTube, watching other people playing football games on YouTube.

...and winding his brother up!

DS2 (8) Playing Minecraft on his iPod. Watching CBBC, doing elastic band magic tricks, chatting with his friends on Facetime on his ipod, Playing more Minecraft. Making stuff, he always got a project.

....and avoiding his brother.

[Wishihadabs]

Ds (9.5) likes rollerblading, swimming and last weekend developed a paper aeroplane fetish ! However if left to his own devices would be on FIFA and minecraft permanently. On school nights we come in 5ish, must do his homework 1st then plays till dinner (7:30). No screens after dinner. Sundays are screen free. Its the only way !

[Lizzylou]

9 yr old Ds1 is also into minecraft and other games on his tablet, would do that all day long if we let him. He has never been one for imaginative play, unlike his brother. He likes lego, loves family board games when we play them, junior trivial pursuit, junior cranium, monopoly etc.
He swims 3 times a week, has golf lessons once a week at the driving range and likes playing football and going out on his bike.
But his default is bloody minecraft/gaming

[cupcakeicing]

Dontmention, bring your DS here, plenty of countryside to offer. Think that's part of the problem for mine all the sticks, rocks etc he can ever want has lost its novelty. His school friends from the town love it here.

[lljkk]

Nerf guns usually popular at that age.
DS is a young yr-5. He likes DSi games, Blue Noses, Nerf guns, Lego, Minecraft, army toys, reading (very selective), cute animals and being a right royal pest to siblings.

At school he plays a bit of football but gets too emotional so not much. Very good long distance runner (but the emotional thing gets in the way).

Complete fail at guitar & managed a whole term at Cubs before quitting.

[Northumberlandlass]

DS just turned 10 - minecraft on his kindle fire, watching films, more minecraft... he also is in a Swimming Club and swims 3 nights a week for an hour a time, plays rugby on a Sunday and Cubs on a Friday.
tbh Minecraft is imaginative - DS has built prisonworld, a brand new swanky hotel and a hospital.

[DontMentionThePrunes]

Yeah, enough good people tell me enough good things about Minecraft that I no longer always roll my eyes at its mention. However, the Youtube videos are banned. Just because they are 45 minutes of pure slacker shit.

[lljkk]

... with lots of rude words in them.

[Lizzylou]

I totally don't get Minecraft at all
Thank heavens the boys have yet to find the youtube videos. Annoying Orange youtube clips are bad enough.

[willyoulistentome]

OMG....Annoying Orange.. hahaha Nyanyanya.

DS2 loves him.

[jimijack]

Scooter, trampoline, bike, motorcross, football,board games.

I'm very glad he isn't particularly interested in computer type stuff like most of his peers.
Good job as we don't own any fancy gadgets.

[Ivedunnit]

Soccer , xbox, youtube , instagram, soccer , xbox , youtube, instagram

he is also in the school choir as apparently there are great trips this year! [:-)]
Swimming and more football

[kimmills222]

Hi cupcakeicing, take a chill pill. Your son is just 10 years old and these are his growing up years. His taste will change during these years. Let him play games whichever he wants to. Moreover, he is also doing some healthy activities like swimming, etc. As he grows up he will become intelligent enough to know what is right for him.

[MirandaWest]

I have a 9 nearly 10 year old DS who has swimming lessons, goes to cubs and has guitar lessons (and also trumpet lessons). He too loves Minecraft both playing it and watching boring you tube videos about it. He has just bought a Minecraft handbook for beginners...

He does play with DD (8) sometimes and does go out on his scooter. Friends come round but often Minecraft ends up being involved. I am happy with how things are at the moment but keep an eye on it.

[MirandaWest]

I am going to get some board games suitable for all three of us for Christmas and hopefully we'll start playing them more often.

[MrRected]

My Ds2 (9) plays with his lego, reads, rides his bike, shoots hoops, plays with the NDN. He only does all these things because we don't allow any screens in the week at all.

[Dotty342kids]

My 10yr old DS would also have any kind of screen based activity as his default pastime if I let him. But as I still restrict the kids to 1-1.5hrs max screen time per day he also plays with the dog, chats to me and annoys his sister.
He does plenty outside the house - scouts, tennis lessons and swimming club but wish he could amuse himself better whilst IN the house!
Anything he wants to do, eg cooking, board games also requires one of us to do with him. He's terrible at independantly amusing himself.
Seems like he's not the only one though

[sporktacular]

OK that's it, I am going to download Minecraft, it's got to be brilliant. I don't have any kids and am allowed to play all night if I like.