My 6-year-old has just started putting this phrase into her vocabulary. When I hear it I say, “That’s fantastic!” Does this make me sarcastic, sadistic? No. It means my kids are about to have to figure it out on their own—use their (watch out…I’m really going to say it) IMAGINATION.
As I’m sure you have heard, children today, more than any other time, are over-programmed, institutionalized, over-stimulated and spend too much time with electronics. It is hard because we worry that if we don’t expose our kids to enough they might miss out on something the might be good at or that could be a future career or hobby. Or that if we don’t keep them involved, other kids will pass them up. And the TV is such a nice way to unwind and relax. Or that computer game will make my kid smarter!
Oh, I am no better than you. We have soccer, church, gymnastics, karate, playdates, and school. When we get home from school, my children watch TV. One of their most favorite times of the evening is playing a video game with daddy. But we do have some down time. During that down time, I sometimes have a plan or play with a game or a toy with them, but the best is when they create something totally new by themselves.
Many castles have been built with couch cushions, stores are set up using pencils as currency, and oh so many puppet shows. You think this might just be playing or making a mess all over the house? No. A castle erected from couch cushions is teaching spatial skills and is an early introduction to math. A store is helping her counting skills and beginning an understanding of how business works. A puppet show is dramatic play that deepens social interactions and helps verbal development.
Think about it in your own life…when you are going full steam through your day from one meeting to another, errand after errand, this event and that appointment. In those times, do you feel creative? Or are you just trying to breathe? Probably the latter. When we want to get our groove back, feel creative and inspired, we have to step back from the chaos. Let your children do that too! It might take a little bit for them to get used to the concept of free time. It might be uncomfortable in that gap between urgency and inspiration at first, but it will come.
So get excited the next time you hear, “I’m boooorrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeddddddddd.” Great things are about to happen.
Amen.
ReplyDelete