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I Make My Kids Experience ‘Bored Time’
If you’d been outside my house last night, you would have heard my child exclaiming that I’m “the meanest mom ever!” His dramatic protests echoed through the halls as he stomped off to his room to sulk in defeat. Why? I wouldn’t let him go swimming at the neighbor’s house. Again.
With my son now in school, his days are jam-packed with activities that kick off at sunrise when he hops on the bus and don’t end until bedtime after homework and his bi-weekly kung fu lessons. That’s a lot for a little guy to handle! So, I’ve instituted “bored time” several days a week.
In an effort to counteract the overwhelming schedules that threaten to consume my son’s attention and drain his energy, I want to ensure he still has time to be a kid. When I was young, we called it free time or quiet time, but at our home, it’s known as bored time. This means we tap into our imaginations and creativity to discover fun ways to fill our hours.
During bored time, screens are off-limits. No iPads, no video games, and no calling friends. Instead, we have a small library filled with books and a craft table brimming with supplies for all sorts of wacky projects. He can choose to go outside, invent stories, sing songs, or even engage in goofy dance-offs. Once, we even had a staring contest that left my eyes twitching for the rest of the night!
Childhood is fleeting, so why rush through it with too many activities? When we take a moment to slow down, breathe, and really pay attention to each other, I discover the little things that matter to him—like his fascination with a particular ash tree in our yard where he once spotted a butterfly cocoon.
Bored time fosters those deep conversations where my son shares his wild stories featuring characters like farting pirates and kung fu monkeys. It allows him to voice his hopes and fears, knowing that he can always talk to Mom and Dad without judgment. These moments of simply being together or letting him explore and create on his own serve as the foundation for our bond, and that’s something I cherish.
As he grows older and extracurricular activities become more enticing, keeping the bored time tradition alive will likely become a challenge. I’ve decided he can only enroll in one activity per school year. Dinner will always be a family affair, and we’ll set aside time on weekends for togetherness. Screens will remain shut off as we embrace this house rule of using boredom to ignite creativity and joy.
After my son finished sulking, we had a chat about how lame he thinks bored time is. As he yawned through his critique of my “silly rules,” he showed me a drawing of a rocket ship he wants to build out of cardboard after school. He even pondered how much duct tape we’d need to create an escape hatch for alien invasions.
Though he may throw a tantrum now when bored time isn’t what he wants to do, I believe he’ll eventually see its value. Those pockets of time spent without screens or schedules will help him grow into a person who can appreciate the beauty in simple things, like a butterfly cocoon.
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In summary, I believe that incorporating bored time into my children’s routine is essential for fostering creativity, nurturing our family bond, and allowing them to enjoy the wonders of childhood without the pressure of constant activity.