If you forgot to enroll your child in summer camp or swim class this summer, this news may be your silver lining.
According to Psychologists, doing nothing is one of the best things for young minds. Some good old-fashioned boredom will not only save you money from expensive activities, but may also be good for your child.
Lyn Fry, a child psychologist in London with a focus on education, recently told Quartz
“Your role as a parent is to prepare children to take their place in society. Being an adult means occupying yourself and filling up your leisure time in a way that will make you happy,”
She also added “if parents spend all their time filling up their child’s spare time, then the child’s never going to learn to do this for themselves.”
Fry is not the only one. Other psychologists also suggest that instead of keeping your child entertained and engaged in activities throughout the summer, parents should celebrate the benefits of boredom. They refer to studies and research which suggest that there are links between boredom and creativity, problem solving and self – resilience.
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Most parents would agree though, that it’s easier said than done. The words “I’m bored” being repeated over and over, can make any parents want to pull some teeth!
Fry gave Quartz an idea to overcome this. She says that at the beginning of the summer, parents should sit down with their kids and write down a list of things they might enjoy doing this summer.
A variety of activities should be included on the list – from basic ones like reading books in their favorite series or going for a bike ride, to more complex ones like cooking a meal from a country they’d like to visit or even inventing their own board game.
So when they utter those dreaded words, they should be encouraged to go back to the list and pick an activity.
Fry says that after a summer of finding creative ways to entertain themselves, the kids may even unleash a new passion, like parkour – and, parents won’t even need to spend $500 for parkour camp!
“There’s no problem with being bored. It’s not a sin, is it? I think children need to learn how to be bored in order to motivate themselves to get things done. Being bored is a way to make children self-reliant” said Fry.