The power of boredom
“RELAX, IT’S OK FOR KIDS TO BE BORED”, a message to parents experiencing school closing and confinement due to COVID-19.
British Schools are now closed, and for a lot of parents, it can seem a rather daunting prospect as we attempt to understand the true meaning of confinement and reconcile working from home with keeping our kids happy, entertained, and on-track academically.
The UK’s department of Education’s advice for parents is not to aim for perfection or put too much pressure on academic work. Sarah Ockwell-Smith, parenting expert and author of several bestselling books, also recommends against too formal an education at the moment, and to take the pressure off as we all adapt to our new normal.
So how do we navigate these testing times and all come out the other end as healthy as possible?
At STORYSKIMO, we strongly believe we need to resist the urge to over plan. Stick to agreeing key markers for your day such as wake-up and bedtimes, meals together, times for homework/work and freetime, and above all, allow for flexibility and embrace the power of true boredom.
Done well, boredom can:
encourage imagination and creativity as children seek to find ways to amuse themselves without prompts
build confidence and independence as they try things out, fail, and try again before succeeding
develop problem-solving skills as they rely on themselves to tackle the ‘problem’ of being bored
be good for their mental health as they get time to show down the pace of their lives, just ‘be’, let their minds wander, and explore their own thoughts
Our lives today are so fast-paced that we have lost the ability to be bored.
Our children are constantly stimulated, between school, music lessons, sports activities, art, tutors, etc. that they have very little opportunity to be truly bored.
We believe we have a unique opportunity to encourage this in our children while still getting some work done (whether chores or working remotely) with some of the following ideas:
Prepare a pre-selection of activities for them to choose from: LEGO, Puzzles, books, drawing, art and craft, etc.
Leverage technology to help them stay in touch with friends, like coordinating a whatsapp group with friends to send video or voice messages to each other, or a video call on zoom with multiple friends to chat about what they have done, the best moment of the day, show what they drew, built & made.
Create a special atmosphere in their bedroom with music or audiobooks/podcasts. Many parents have found that music or a narrator's voice soothes children. The audio engages their imagination and you can task them with drawing their favourite character, or imagining an alternate ending. Join our STORYSKIMO parents Whatsapp group to join voice recording activities for children
Choose specific topics to focus on and develop their learnings, creativity and imagination further. In the current content, why not pick topics like “Germs or viruses” to explore what they are, how they spread, why they should wash their hands, etc. and task them to come back with their own creations, may them be drawings, paintings, short movies or voice recording them talking about the topic. Check our science podcasts in our All about germs channel and Netflix Storybots
And… please, please, be kind to yourself. As parents, we are all trying to do our best in these unprecedented times.
Good luck to you all and lots of love.
Veronique, founder of STORYSKIMO
***
About STORYSKIMO
STORYSKIMO's mission is to offer children beautiful audio experiences. Highly curated audio stories are currently available on www.storyskimo.com*. We champion quiet time play, and limited screen activities. Listening to stories is a very immersive experience that children can enjoy independently or with their family, screen-free. It stimulates their imagination, boosts their love for literature and improves their literacy.
*Discover our audio channels: All about germs, Witches are cool, Timeless stories, Famous authors, Tales around the world, Funky animals