Nipping Boredom in the Bud

"Only boring people get bored."
  ~Ruth Burke

I’M BOOOOOOORED!  Like fingernails on a chalkboard, we’ve all heard that nasally mantra more than a few times during summer vacation and we know what it means: when they don’t have something constructive to do, they’ll surely find something DEstructive to undo!  If you’ve come to this article looking for a list of activities to fill the dog days of summer, though, you’re barking up the wrong tree.    

In my opinion, “boredom” is a good thing for our kids in our over-scheduled society.  It allows them time to use their own imaginations, to unwind from their busy school schedules, to choose what they want to do instead of what a bunch of adults insist they want to do.  The problem is that we’re so busy telling our kids when and where to go that we’ve scheduled the creativity right out of them!  So, what do you do to combat the unstructured doldrums of summer without becoming the family cruise director every second of the day?

• It is important to start off the summer (or holiday) vacation by expressing your expectations.  Sit the kids down as soon as school is out and have a family meeting about the summer.  If your kids know that they are responsible for their own entertainment they will be less likely to try to place that burden on you.
  

  Boredom Buster Rule #1 – Mom is not responsible for the kids’ entertainment
  

• Talk about and write on the calendar activities that you might like to do as a family such as vacations, summer camp and day trips.  However, remember that summer is supposed to be a time of rest from a hectic schedule so keep the outings to a minimum and allow for rest.  A day trip to the zoo, an afternoon picking blueberries or a morning at the library is a fun way to break up the week.  However, every minute of every day does not have to be crammed with activity.

• During your start-of-summer family meeting, create a Boredom Buster jar or list.  Brainstorm with your kids some at-home activities for nipping boredom in the bud and write them down on a list or small slips of paper.  Explain to the kids that when they find themselves bored they should go to the list or pick an activity out of the jar.  Some great activity ideas for the jar are having a water balloon fight, playing freeze tag, making an imaginary campground (indoors or out), chalk art on the driveway, creating a summer vacation journal, reading a book, etc. (see the end of this article for links to some websites with good activity suggestions).

• Make sure to provide your children with the tools they will need to be creative.  Board games, art supplies and books should be easily accessible to help them bust their own boredom.  Check out Nikki’s craft bag idea to get you started!

  Boredom Busters Rule #2 – Mom is not the janitor.  The kids must clean up after themselves!
  

• Institute at least one No-Electronics Day per week.  Television and video games sap our kids’ creativity by requiring little to no thought.  By turning off the tube, we force them to get those creative juices flowing toward more productive activities.

• Create a list of deterrent activities.  This is just for you, Mom.  At the beginning of summer sit down and make a list of chores that you would allow your children to do – scrubbing toilets, cleaning windows, vacuuming bedrooms, etc.  Inform your children that they are not allowed to come to you and say, “I’m bored.”  Once those words have left their lips, they are required to perform one task on the list.  They may not do anything else until that task is done and they cannot suddenly come up with an entertaining idea to get out of the chore.  Trust me, you will only have to enforce this rule once or twice before they never utter those words again.

  Boredom Busters Rule #3 – Kids are not allowed to say, “I’m bored!”
  

• Explain to your kids that summer does come with some responsibility.  Life doesn’t stop just because school is out and we need to fight against summer brain drain.  It is important to incorporate time for your kids to catch up on their summer reading lists and any other activities their teacher has assigned to prepare them for school in the fall.

• Summer days, whether structured or not, take a lot of energy!  It is important to encourage your children to rest.  Enforce a resting time in the middle of the day for younger ones to nap after being out in the heat and older ones to work on those summer reading lists for school.

• Aside from the Boredom Buster Chore list, children should have regular, age-appropriate chores and responsibilities as contributing members of the family.  You can make a list and schedule of chores that need to be done on a regular basis such as making their beds, folding their laundry, emptying trash cans, weeding the garden, cleaning their rooms, helping with dinner preparation and clean-up, etc.

• Allow your children the chance to be creative.  They aren’t always going to destroy something if left to their own devices.  Give them a chance to make a fort out of that big box headed to the recycling pile or make a train out of the dining room chairs or to have a fashion show with every.single.outfit.in.the.closet.  You might be pleasantly surprised by what they create and who they become when they use their imaginations!  But, remember Rule #2, in the end, they have to clean up their own “creativity”.

If you’re stuck for ideas for summer activities whether they are day trips or Boredom Busters, check out these links to jump start your summer plans:

http://www.texashomeeducators.com/summerboredombusters.htm

http://familyfun.go.com/summer/summer-games/

Kim is the wife of one rockin' Worship Pastor and full-time mom to four crazy and beautiful kids. Toss in a part-time job, housework, writing, training for a foster care license and what passes for a social life these days and she’s still wondering how she fits 32 hours into a 24 hour day.