Boredom (contrary to what many parents may think) It is beneficial for children. In other words, trying to keep their heads and bodies occupied most of the time they stay awake can interfere with some important abilities related to learning.
I speak specifically of imagination and creativity. I say this because as the mother of a very intense child who needs to 'get bored' to relax tensions and escape, I know how beneficial it is, and I can also anticipate what would happen with that bright head if it forced him to perform activities imposed beyond the schedule school. And besides saying it, more and more experts and influential people in different countries say it. To cite a few examples, we have Teresa Belton, a professor at the University of 'East Anglia' (Norwich / United Kingdom), Meera Syal (who among other things is an actress, singer and producer), and Grayson Perry (a well-known artist and pottery craftsman).
Free time is, above all, to enjoy boredom
I know that sometimes parents give us a little 'fear' that children have days off or holiday periods: 'with how good the routine is', 'what will my children do now with so many hours ahead ', etc.
If the first intention is to keep your days off busy, without letting you choose activities, or prepare endless exercises to review the tasks at home, we must repress ourselves, stop a little and reflect on what they really need.
When you have nothing to do, You also have the opportunity to choose entertainment, when you have nothing to do, you can think (creatively or critically), when you have nothing to do, you can sit still, or look for someone to talk to (this is very enriching). When one has nothing to do and 100% precious time is occupied, the opportunities to create, think, speak, relax, decide are over.
Technology does not help you get bored
But be careful, because It is not the same to be bored than to stay in line to spend your free time. Technology fulfills its function, but it is very difficult to relate it to creativity, in addition to that it usually does not leave us decision-making capacity (how many times have we been more minutes than we would have wanted in that social network that we affirm 'makes us waste time' How many times do we jump from site to site without thinking?)
It also happens with technology, and especially with the presence in social networks, that children and adolescents (in fact adults do too, so that we deny it) want to be present, want to be online, want to be seen ... When you want to be for everyone else, you are less with yourself, and this cancels the possibilities of imagining and creating.
Teresa Belton says that boredom can be an "uncomfortable feeling" if we do not handle it well, and especially if we think it is 'forced' to be busy; He also affirms that society has formed in us expectations of being constantly busy and constantly stimulated
What if we are really interested in 'fighting' boredom?
Imagine that it starts to be heavy to hear 'mom I get bored', 'dad what can I do now' ..., as they are used to pressures, obligations, sometimes to the kids they find it hard to sit still thinking. An easy resource would be to turn on the television, but that does not help much, and when you are tired it is also not a good idea to put the board to play checkers on the table.
Dr. Belton reaffirms our belief about how beneficial is the contact with Nature: it stimulates the mind and starts the imagination. It also releases tensions (of course!).
An added attraction of contact with the natural world is that we should not worry about offering toys, although (and this is important), Nor should we inhibit the possibilities of freely interacting with natural elements., unless - of course - that this could pose a danger to them.
And do not think that Nature is synonymous with shady forest or distant place, also a park with trees, that lake that is close to us because we live on the outskirts of the city, the beach, etc.
It would definitely be to allow them to get bored at their leisure, but at the same time limiting access to television or computer, and if we want to intervene: let's take them close to Nature!
