Discipline Strategies How to Help Your Children With Entertaining Themselves By Amy Morin, LCSW facebook twitter instagram Amy Morin, LCSW, is the Editor-in-Chief of Verywell Mind. She's also a psychotherapist, international bestselling author and host of the Mentally Strong People podcast. Learn about our editorial process Amy Morin, LCSW Reviewed by Reviewed by Ann-Louise T. Lockhart, PsyD, ABPP on January 18, 2021 facebook linkedin instagram Ann-Louise T. Lockhart, PsyD, ABPP, is a board-certified pediatric psychologist, parent coach, author, speaker, and owner of A New Day Pediatric Psychology, PLLC. Learn about our Review Board Ann-Louise T. Lockhart, PsyD, ABPP on January 18, 2021 Print Frank Herholdt/Taxi/Getty Images Table of Contents View All Table of Contents Tolerate Boredom Self-Entertainment “I’m Bored” Jar Use the Craft Supplies Scavenger Hunt Read a Book Let Them Help Out Prepare a Performance The constant refrain of “Moooom! I’m bored!” is enough to make a parent roll their eyes and tense with frustration. All you want to do is finish making dinner or get a small home project done, and all your kids want is for you to come up with an activity to entertain them. Are you a bad parent if you make them beat boredom on their own? No — in fact, you’re quite the opposite. Learning how to battle boredom and find ways to occupy unstructured time is actually a vital life skill for children to master. It’s important for kids to know that although boredom is uncomfortable, it won’t kill them. And feeling bored is a fact of life. After all, adults feel bored sometimes too. Sitting through soccer games and dance recitals isn’t always fun. But learning how to tolerate boredom in a socially acceptable manner is important. Without learning how to get over being bored, kids will have a harder time finding anything to be interesting—and that’s been shown to lead to substance abuse, risky sexual behavior, academic problems, and vandalism. Does that sound a bit too much like fear-mongering? OK, then consider this—kids who aren’t given the opportunity to experience unstructured time have fewer opportunities to be creative, learn problem-solving, and develop motivation skills. This unstructured time is when kids learn to explore their own passions, free from suggestion or direction. They’ll find out if they prefer digging in the garden or playing dress-up. But there are times when kids just aren’t going to be inventive enough to figure out entertainment for themselves. As tempting as it might be, the answer to boredom isn’t more television or iPad time. When this is the case, have a few tricks up your sleeve to banish boredom without you having to drop what you’re doing to entertain the kids. Help Your Child Tolerate Boredom Teach your child that it’s OK to feel uncomfortable emotions and sometimes, (s)he may have to simply tolerate feeling that way because it’s not appropriate to engage in an activity. When he’s shopping with you or when you’re talking with another adult, being bored is OK. Explain that there are healthy ways to deal with feelings of boredom. Counting quietly in his head or making up a new song—as long as he’s singing the lyrics in his head—are socially appropriate. But interrupting you while you’re talking to your mechanic or rolling around on the library floor while they wait for you to find a book isn't OK. Establish clear rules and follow through with consequences when they break those rules. Provide Tools for Self-Entertainment Don’t entertain your child every time he’s bored. Otherwise you’ll be taking responsibility for curing his boredom. But do offer ideas that could help him or her entertain himself or herself. Whether you’re waiting for your meal in a restaurant, or he’s struggling to find something to do on a rainy day, teach him or her how to deal with boredom effectively. Younger children need more hands-on help when it comes to finding entertainment. But as your child grows older, (s)he should become less dependent on you for help banishing his boredom. So turn your child’s “I’m bored!” into a learning opportunity. Give him or her tools and ideas that will help him or her find ways to entertain themselves in the future. Create an “I’m Bored” Jar This is a two-parter: The first time your kid announces “I’m bored!” have her create the jar. This entails doing a little craft project to decorate a jar and then coming up with ideas to put in it. The next time boredom strikes, he or she can pick an idea out of the jar. Some ideas could include: Brush the dogBuild a castle with boxesBuild a fort with blankets and pillowsCreate a family newsletter to send to cousinsCreate a zoo for your stuffed animalsFind a magnet and then make a list of everyone in the house that’s magnetizedHave a dance partyHave a stuffed animal tea partyMake a bird feederMake a collage with magazine picturesMake a paper airplane that flies across the backyardPlay capture the flagOrganize all the clothes by colorWrite a letter to grandma, grandpa, or a cousinWrite a storyWrite down five things you love about each person in the family Use the Craft Supplies Craft projects can also be a good way to keep your child out of trouble if you’re working from home. Keep a basket full of craft supplies at the ready so you can pull it out when boredom comes calling again. In this basket, keep these essentials: Construction paper/cardstockCotton balls, buttons, and other embellishmentsGlueMarkers/crayonsOld magazinesScissorsStamps and ink Notice two items prominently missing from this list: glitter and paint! Those are the two biggest mess-makers and can be saved for special crafting days with you. When your little one proclaims to be bored, pull out the basket and set up on the kitchen table. Give your child free rein to paint, cut or stamp to his heart’s content. If (s)he needs a little direction, offer an assignment, like “Make Grandma a card” or “Create a butterfly out of buttons.” Have a Scavenger Hunt The key for this to work is to have scavenger hunt sheets ready in advance. During your downtime, create a few different hunt sheets for both indoors (for rainy days) and outdoors. When boredom strikes again, you’ll have an easy activity that keeps the kids out of your hair for 30 minutes or more! If you have an old digital camera—or your child has an electronic device with a camera—photo scavenger hunt can be lots of fun. Simply create a list of items for your child to find, like a butterfly, something red, and a rock that looks like a heart. Read a Book Schedule a trip to the library every week, and your child will never again say they have “nothing to do.” If you happen to hear those words, tell him or her that’s it’s reading time and (s)he has the choice of any book in the house. Instill the love of learning early, and your child will likely always turn to a book when they feel bored. Let Them Help Out If you have chores to get done, include your little one in the activity. Although it might end up making the chores take twice as long, you’ll be teaching your kiddo how to fold laundry, wash windows, and sweep the floor. If you’re doing something that your child can’t safely help with, such as making dinner on a hot stove, give him or her a safe alternative, like sweeping the kitchen floor. Prepare a Performance If you have a child who loves being in the spotlight, ask him or her to prepare a performance for you. They can go in their room and work on a song, a set of jokes, or a dance routine. Schedule the talent show for an hour away, so you have time to finish up what you’re working on and the child will have time to perfect his act. Then give all your attention to the talents of your child—don’t forget to record it! Sometimes a child isn’t really that bored but rather wants your attention. If you can manage it, stop what you’re doing for five to 10 minutes to give your little one your full attention, whether it’s to play a short game or just talk about his day. A little positive attention can go a long way to helping your child entertain himself or herself. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Get diet and wellness tips to help your kids stay healthy and happy. Sign Up You're in! Thank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up. There was an error. Please try again. What are your concerns? Other Inaccurate Hard to Understand Submit Article Sources Verywell Family uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. van Hooft EAJ, van Hooff MLM. The state of boredom: Frustrating or depressing?. Motiv Emot. 2018;42(6):931–946. doi:10.1007/s11031-018-9710-6 Miller JA, Caldwell LL, Weybright EH, Smith EA, Vergnani T, Wegner L. Was Bob Seger Right? Relation Between Boredom in Leisure and [Risky] Sex. Leis Sci. 2014;36(1):52–67. doi:10.1080/01490400.2014.860789 Aha! Parenting.com. Handling Boredom: Why It's Good for Your Child. By Laura Markham. Brooklyn, New York: Aha! Parenting Dr. Laura Markham 2020 https://www.ahaparenting.com/parenting-tools/intelligent-creative-child/boredom-busters-good-for-kids WowParenting. 14 activities to help get rid of boredom in children. By WowParenting. Pune, India: WowParenting, Lifeschool Digital Pvt. Ltd. 2019 https://wowparenting.com/blog/boredom-in-children Additional Reading Militello LK, Hanna N, Nigg CR. Pokémon GO Within the Context of Family Health: Retrospective Study. JMIR Pediatr Parent. 2018;1(2):e10679. doi:10.2196/10679