Summer is here, the kids are bored and that’s alright. While here on Geek Dads you can find tons of stimulating activities for your kids, I’d like to suggest you do none of them. I believe creativity is found through boredom.
This starts with Geek Dads acknowledging is OK to be bored. Hard thing to do with how much structure we add to our own busy lives. Or the structure we worked hard to add on top of school to our own kid’s lives. A tell tale sign is when Geek Mom is more of a Geek Bus Driver. When summer is here, you have a great opportunity of more time to do things with your kids, but don’t provide the easy answers, let alone curricula. When your kids work in absence of resources they very well may develop the skills to be entrepreneurs. On their own.
Vacation is one path to achieving boredom. Your determination to not stop the car until you cross Texas entirely is well founded, as your kids may find backseat meditation. Motels provide theaters for adventure, with pirates jumping between twin bed islands over lava industrial carpet. When in nature, trees are Transformers, rocks can be used for group sports and the campfire is YouTube.
Your kids already have enough toys (and way too much TV and video games). Your garage, basement, pantry and closets are full of materials. Encourage mess and chaos, and praise what they come up with.
So next time your kid says "I’m bored" — congratulate yourself on doing a fine job.
