{"id":425063,"date":"2024-11-06T07:43:00","date_gmt":"2024-11-06T07:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=425063"},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-29T14:00:00","slug":"3-unexpected-ways-boredom-can-help-your-child-s-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/3-unexpected-ways-boredom-can-help-your-child-s-development\/","title":{"rendered":"3 unexpected ways boredom can help your child\u2019s development"},"content":{"rendered":"

(BPT) – Many parents feel a natural inclination to fill their children\u2019s days with activities, often fearing that too much unstructured playtime will lead to boredom. In a recent survey conducted by Talker Research on behalf of Kiddie Academy\u00ae<\/sup><\/a>, nearly half (45%) of all parents feel like they should be doing more activities with their kids. However, many experts agree that children being bored from time to time may not be a bad thing. In fact, brain development and many other outcomes happen when children have unstructured time to engage in imaginative, open-ended play.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoredom will naturally occur with children at times,\u201d said Joy Turner, vice president of education at Kiddie Academy. \u201cParents shouldn\u2019t put so much stress on themselves to fill that space.\u201d<\/p>\n

Boredom expands imagination and creativity<\/strong><\/p>\n

When children say they\u2019re bored, parents often default to using screentime or engaging them in play. Thirty-four percent of parents surveyed said they typically play with their child in this scenario. This can likely be attributed to 56% of them reporting that they feel guilty for not spending enough time with their little one. However, when children are left to explore in their downtime, their minds can get to work, allowing them to use their imagination to find creative ways to entertain themselves.<\/p>\n

Parents can facilitate imaginative play and creative expression by setting up a craft station, creating a reading nook and\/or providing toys that allow for open-ended play.<\/p>\n

Being bored builds resilience and tolerance<\/strong><\/p>\n

Children can often have big feelings about not having something to do. This is a parent\u2019s opportunity to validate and empower their child. They can say something like, \u201cIt\u2019s okay to be bored. Sometimes I feel the same way, but now is your chance to explore and learn what you like to do!\u201d A phrase like this helps little ones understand that while feeling uncomfortable is understandable, it can be used as an opportunity to grow and discover new things about themselves.<\/p>\n

Sometimes there isn\u2019t enough time between scheduled activities for little ones to engage in exactly what they want to do. This can be used as an opportunity to build patience and tolerance by encouraging children to move through their feelings with the understanding that waiting isn\u2019t always easy, but it\u2019s a necessary part of life. Remind them of things they like to do when they\u2019re being patient, like singing a song or playing with a small toy.<\/p>\n

Independence and social skills excel through unstructured time<\/strong><\/p>\n

When children \u2014 even those who don\u2019t know each other \u2014 are put in close proximity without planned activities, they often engage with each other by inventing games. The skills children develop when they\u2019re free playing with others include things like cooperation, communication and kindness, all of which are essential for long-term socialization.<\/p>\n

At the same time, children who have to play by themselves often become more independent. When it\u2019s up to them to provide their own entertainment, they engage in a unique kind of problem solving and creative expression.<\/p>\n

Teaching children to embrace unstructured moments when they are without entertainment is crucial to their maturing psyches. When parents support their child in this process, they are sure to see them turn into more capable and self-sufficient human beings as a result.<\/p>\n


3 unexpected ways boredom can help your child\u2019s development<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(BPT) – Many parents feel a natural inclination to fill their children\u2019s days with activities,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-425063","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-health-fitness"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/425063","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=425063"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/425063\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=425063"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=425063"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=425063"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}