As a parent, talking to your child about it all will help you see how he or she feels, and to give the child a chance to take decisions. Involving children in deciding whether to fast or not helps give them a lot of pride in their action when they fast, as well as a lot of stamina to continue fasting, because they made the decision.
The years before fasting is obligatory should be used properly to give children confidence in their physical capabilities to fast, as well as confidence in their decision-making abilities.
It should always be stressed however that there is a choice because they have not reached the age when fasting is compulsory, and how merciful Allah is in that.
It should also be stressed that the time will come when there will no longer be a choice because Allah knows best that then it will be within their capabilities.
Physical capabilities and age are the main factors in deciding whether your child can have a swimming class while fasting or not.
Whether the child can have an exam while fasting or not is a different issue.
If your child is physically able to go to school every day and concentrate, then exams shouldn’t be a problem.
On the contrary, you can encourage the child to fast during exam times based on the fact that Allah will bless the day and effort because he or she is fasting.
As for feeling too hungry, once again, it really depends on your child’s capabilities and choices. If it is only a short time until iftar, then you should encourage the child to go on fasting. Perhaps your child feels hungry because he or she did not have a filling sahur.
We all know how difficult it is sometimes to wake children up for this meal. In such a case it would only be fair to allow the child to eat, and then, try to make sure that the child has a filling sahur everyday.