I’m a big believer in letting kids get bored. This can be tricky as there’s a certain balance between I-have-nothing-to-do-so-I’m-going-to-create-my-own-fun and I-have-nothing-to-do-so-I’m-going-to-terrorize-my-brother. Balance is everything.
This past month, my seven-year old used a bit of his down-time to create an original board game. Stealing the dice from Monopoly and the game pieces from Sorry, Mr. Creator laid out a game based on the life cycle of a salmon. The goal: to be the first fish to reach the spawning bed.
Along the way, on the board, there are squares that will send you back ten spaces (I hit that one twice – Ek!). There is also one area where you can be caught by a hungry fisherman and (in the words of my son) “That’s game over for you, dude!”
This past month, my seven-year old used a bit of his down-time to create an original board game. Stealing the dice from Monopoly and the game pieces from Sorry, Mr. Creator laid out a game based on the life cycle of a salmon. The goal: to be the first fish to reach the spawning bed.
Along the way, on the board, there are squares that will send you back ten spaces (I hit that one twice – Ek!). There is also one area where you can be caught by a hungry fisherman and (in the words of my son) “That’s game over for you, dude!”
Where this kiddo got the idea for this new creation – I couldn’t exactly tell you. At school he was studying water and aquatic life which is where I assume the spark of imagination was ignited.
I had previously wanted to throw-out our basement stash of cardboard, but am now glad I was talked-into keeping half the pile. One key component to the balance of boredom is having raw materials at-the-ready when inspiration strikes.
I had previously wanted to throw-out our basement stash of cardboard, but am now glad I was talked-into keeping half the pile. One key component to the balance of boredom is having raw materials at-the-ready when inspiration strikes.