For the past few weeks, I have been taking my two (almost three) year old to a weekly gymnastics class.

Chloe loves running from station to station, sometimes following the instructor’s lead and walking on the purple foot prints carefully imprinted along the floor while making a giant clapping motion with her alligator arms. Sometimes she follows behind others in her group and allows another child to go first. Sometimes she waits until the assigned water break to retrieve her personalized bottle.

But sometimes she doesn’t.

Sometimes she runs on the trampoline when the teacher says bounce. Sometimes she wanders away from the group to drink from her water bottle in the middle of the most intense cartwheel training of its kind. Sometimes she slaps the rings instead of swinging from them. Sometimes she leaps in front of another athlete so she can be the first to drag her bum across the mat while thinking she’s climbed a rope.

I think we are expecting too much when we arrive at activities geared towards this age group and think they are always going to listen, always going to do as they are asked, always wait for scheduled bathroom and drink breaks. They’re two, we can’t expect perfection. Shouldn’t these just be opportunities for learning?

Maybe I’m more relaxed this time and I see it for what it is. An outing. Exercise. Socializing with same aged kids. Possibly developing a friendship. Learning to wait your turn. Having to listen to instructions, process and execute.

But my number one reason for taking Chloe to gymnastics for one hour every week? Hands down, it’s to tire her out.

The real purpose for going to gymnastics is to encourage Chloe to run many, many times around a padded room, jump, keep running, spin, kick, run some more, bounce, never stop running so she will nap the afternoon away and I can get things done.

Do I want her to enjoy her time at the gym and maybe even learn how to do a front roll? Of course, but that is not my top priority.

This is why I find it puzzling when parents pull their children aside to scold them, “If you are not going to listen we are leaving and we are never coming back here. Is that what you want?” Child picks nose angrily. Or, “If you don’t follow along with what the rest of the group is doing, I’ll take away your hermit crab collection” or “You want to play with the toy train out in the lobby? I’ll show you a caboose leaving the station!” or “I will shave you bald if…..” Too far?

I do think we’ve gone too far.

Recognize the kids are between the ages of 18 months and 3 years, they simply can’t be expected to always follow the group, always do what they’re told, always do a star jump when they are overcome with a need far beyond their control to do a tuck jump instead.

I’m just not sure threatening them is the solution.

We want them to like gymnastics don’t we? We want them to develop some fine motor skills, to get some exercise, to hop, skip and jump and maybe even laugh with a new buddy but mostly, we want them to get tired. Very, very tired.

I think we’re only hurting ourselves when we pull our children aside to punish them for wanting to chew a bean bag that resembles a bag of Halloween candy or running after a hoola hoop.

If Chloe’s chasing a hoola hoop, she’s running.

That makes me very happy.