7 Ways to Help Your Child Cope with Boredom During the Holiday Break
Holiday breaks usually include some much needed downtime for many families. With a scheduled break from schoolwork and tests, large projects at work, & extracurriculars like sports and clubs, most families welcome the chance to rest and recover from such busy day-to-day lives. A drastic change from going from “go-go-go” to such a relaxed schedule can reveal some needs your family may have. Here are some things you can do to help with that adjustment:
- Limit scheduled events. While there are so many fun activities to get excited about, try to pick a few as a family and keep the rest as ideas for next year’s seasonal fun. Not only will this help with the holiday expenses, but it can also create the downtime to relax at home with family and allow you to create some connection capital before jumping back into your post-holiday schedule. Downtime at home can lead to meeting whatever you family needs are in that moment, whether that be rest, time together, individual time apart, or spontaneous fun.
- Allow boredom…and that means limiting the screens. Boredom is a good thing! Creativity, problem solving, and unique ideas aren’t developed within the confines of such strict schedules and constant distractions. When we allow our children to become bored and disconnect from devices, we are encouraging healthy expression of themselves and the development of things like problem solving & communication skills, new hobbies, and new abilities. It also creates opportunities for family members to connect (if the grown-ups are limiting their screens too, that is!).
- Don’t rescue kids from boredom. My favorite response when my child says, “I’m bored,” is this – “Oh good! I’m so happy you’ve become bored because that’s when we come up with really good ideas. I can’t wait to see what you come up with!” I’ve also heard a parent respond this way: “I’m not in charge of your boredom. I know you’ll figure something out.”
- Provide invitations. With younger children an invitation may be setting out some toys they’ve not played with in a while, as if you’ve been playing with them. It could be creating a track with their train set and leaving the dolls next to it. This would be an invitation that they could jump right into when they discover it. For older children, an invitation may be leaving out a glove and ball or supplies to make cookies in the kitchen. These are activities they could initiate themself or with someone else – maybe even you! You could always actually invite them verbally to do something fun too!
- Get creative. There are lots of holiday crafts that take little supplies or only minimal planning. We just made a tree garland out of thread and cotton balls at our house, which my son enjoyed! We have also enjoyed finding rocks outside and painting them like dinosaurs. Have fun within your creativity and encourage your children to do the same.
- Invite helpfulness and encourage belonging while doing so. When we encourage children to participate in the runnings of the household, this can encourage belonging within the family. While the word ‘chore’ may have a negative connotation, having ‘jobs’ within the family may not so. Let your kids know about a big household project that needs to be done and ask for their help. For example, with the gifts that need to be wrapped, invite your children to help wrap with you. You may also encourage helpfulness by saying something like, “I’m trying to finish this up right now, but I do need your help – can you please find something that needs to be done and help me with it?”
- Get outside and move your body. In some places, getting outside may be really cold right now, but for many of us, getting outside and moving our bodies together can be a great way to spend some extra downtime. Go on a nature scavenger hunt, look for fossils at the creek, and if it is cold where you are – build a snow person!
This holiday season, may your family create downtime for happy memories to be made. Have fun!
