Planning on sending your child to a Dutch school?
Let’s talk about Wednesdays…
For some unknown reason, in the Netherlands the Wednesday elementary school day ends at 12pm. Yes that’s right, before lunch boxes have been opened and kaas boterhammetjes have been consumed, the school day is already over. Ok, the reason isn’t completely unknown, in fact it kind of makes sense, in that very Dutch, very well considered way and it is in order for children to have a mid-week break and spend the afternoon playing sports, doing extra-curricular activities or playdates. So whilst the children are enjoying this midweek respite, the reality for any parent sending their kid to a Dutch elementary school…we are left wondering, especially those new to the city, what do we do about Wednesday! Either way you are going to pay with your time, ferrying your kids about to activities or with your Euros, for extra childcare/ BSO :-)
Whilst children do gym class at elementary school, if your child wants to play any other sport you are going to have to organise this yourselves, there are no school tennis, football or hockey classes or teams. Luckily however there are plenty of independent sport classes and clubs to choose from.
So whilst most sports are on offer, especially in cities like Amsterdam, yes even baseball, you might be wondering what are the popular sports that kids here play? It won’t take long after arrival to notice the numbers of kids and teenagers cycling about the city with hockey sticks hanging from their sides. This is the sport for kids living in Amsterdam and the Randstaad area. Hockey also isn’t just considered a sport here, it is a lifestyle and the club you join becomes a big part of your life. As a friend who grew up in Amsterdam explained, you have your school friends and your hockey club friends. And it isn’t just Wednesday afternoons you dedicate to the sport, once kids start playing matches, weekends too. Of course it isn’t just hockey, you will also notice the large number of football (soccer to the American parents!) clubs around the city and also tennis clubs, all offering classes to children. If your child doesn’t want to run around a freezing cold pitch in winter however, dance classes are also very popular, especially for the younger kids.
Of course it doesn’t have to be a sporting activity, Wednesday afternoon can also be for other extra curricular activities such as music classes or indeed playdates, or simply letting your little one have some much needed mid-week downtime! Perfect for the kids, just a little trickier for working parents :-)
