Adventures in Parenting

“Boooring…”

This word has become the ultimate putdown. If a party is “boooring”, it is a total disaster. Or if a class is “boooring”, the teacher is the epitome of failure.

I recently heard that in Michael Crichton’s  novel Timeline, a character made this insightful remark:

“In other centuries, human beings wanted do to be saved, or improved, or freed, or educated. In our  century they want to be entertained.

The great fear is not of disease or of death, but of boredom A sense of time on our hands, a sense of nothing to do.. A sense that we are not amused.”

Are you seeing this with your children?

We can blame it on overstimulating computer games, and fast-action CGI movies that our kids have come to expect as the new “normal” pace of life. Whatever the reason, how do you handle it when your children say, “We’re booored!”?

First, it’s probably no use to lecture them. Ever hear yourself saying, “I didn’t have computer games growing up, and I was never bored…” And it goes from there to “and… I used to walk to school in the snow…” Yeah, we’ve heard that one, mom!

Here are some of my suggestions for what to do when kids are bored. There activities will give them a bigger outlook on life. They are also activities that gives them room for creativity.

1. Spend time outdoors. Good ol’ fashion bike riding, play at the park, kick a soccer ball around, have relay races.  How about planting some flowers or vegetables in the yard? When the children’s bodies are restless, they need physical activity to work out the boredom.

2. Cook something together. I believe that a family that cooks together, will have fun together. It can be as easy as making brownies from a box. But make it more interesting by having the kids “improvise” – add gummy bears, sprinkles, or whatever you have around the house suits your fancy. Making a little mess is part of the exercise. And of course, eating them afterwards is part of the benefits.

3.  Build something. Encouraging our children to use their imagination is basic to alleviating their boredom. One of our favorite activities is to build a tent in the living room out of chairs, sheets, and whatever else you find. We also  have a huge box of Legos that we would bring out to build something. Playdough (try these recipes), craft knick-knacks, construction paper, shiny things, etc. – spread them all out and let them go at it.

What do you do when your children say they’re booored??