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How I Deal with Summer Boredom
June 23, 2010
This is a re-post from last summer, but the sentiment is the same for this year.
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How do you keep your kids occupied during the summer?
The thought had just never occurred to me until I read it earlier this week in a comment on a blog somewhere (I honestly don't remember where). I'm paraphrasing but it went something like this "I think summer is hard for a lot of moms" and it was in reference to what to do with the kids now that school is out. And the adjustment to having the kids home every day when you're used to having your own time.
Wow, this is definitely not my world and that's just one of the reasons I love homeschooling. We greet the arrival of summer with much joy and anticipation. We dropped the bookish stuff a good two months ago already and have spent that time instead in the garden and outdoors or working on creative projects and hundreds of other little things that I can't remember right now.
homeschool field trip I organized this month
My children are not used to having their days dictated by a school schedule and curriculum requirements. Instead our days follow the cycle of the seasons, pursuing individual and family goals and dreams.
Sure they get bored from time to time, especially during the rain of this last week. But I feel very strongly that my job as mother is not to fill their days with activity after activity - outings, crafts, playdates, fieldtrips, sports, you name it. Because after all, a lot of life is making meals, cleaning up and doing things that need to get done.
My husband directed me to this ParentCentral.ca article a couple weeks ago and again I hear the same sentiment echoed in this Camp Creek blog post on Empty Hours. I don't worry about keeping my kids occupied this summer and I haven't registered them for day camps, craft camps, sport camps or bible camps.
Instead we'll pick berries, go to the beach, spend hours roaming the fields at the farm, go to the farmer's market downtown, sew, paint and sculpt together, meet up with friends, ride bikes, jump on the trampoline, visit ponds, go to the library, work and play in our gardens, maybe take swim lessons at a lake, hike every weekend, camp in our yard, at the ocean and in the mountains.
And in between all that there will be lots of down time, even some boring time, because life isn't always fun. There's laundry, meals, errands and rainy days. But it's all the good stuff in between that makes summer so delicious and full. And so no, never once have I thought "what am I going to do with these kids all summer?".
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Francesca on June 23, 2010, 8:14 p.m.
Our schedule is pretty busy during most of the year, and I so welcome summer and its semi-unstructured time (sport practice continues). I feel the same about "down time" (or travel time, or waiting time etc ... I was appalled a while ago when I saw a family who'd brought a laptop to a pizza place so that the kids could watch a DVD while waiting for their order!!!). What happened to the "just lying down watching the clouds go by"?
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chrystal on June 24, 2010, 12:24 a.m.
I've never understood when I hear moms say they can't wait for school to begin. I LOVE having my kids home with me!! I posted an article on my blog-54 free (or nearly free) things to do this summer. http://purposefullymom.blogspot.com/2010/06/54-free-or-nearly-free-things-to-do.html
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Spring on June 24, 2010, 12:25 a.m.
I was having a chat with another homeschool friend the other day, about how sad she was to hear a woman say (already) that she couldn't wait for school to start up again, so she could have some peace and quiet again. How sad! "Why have kids?" my friend wondered? When my son went to school, we were so thrilled to have him around all the time again... we finally decided to not put him back in! No camps here either. (No sports either.. no one's interests seem to run in that vein here). Just swimming, gardening, playdates, good books, and a few math facts thrown in for good measure (or they just seem to fly the coop around here! LOL!)
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Jill Foley on June 24, 2010, 1:45 a.m.
Summer is no different for me - other than the fact we can spend more time outside. And I love not having camps of various types to go to. We can do whatever we want, whenever we want. I want my kids lives to be as unstructured as possible for as long as possible. I want them to be kids while they are kids and enjoy life's spontaneity. I understand the value that organized camps, lessons, teams, etc. offer, but for our family, we want to avoid scheduling our kids lives for as long as possible.
Thanks for this post!
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Rana on June 24, 2010, 2:36 a.m.
My kids just think of summer as another season to enjoy. We have pretty much the same schedule for summer except like you said we are outside more. Our pace is a bit slower. I have some crafty things for us to do at home and with friends. We have gardening and playing in the water, going to the beach and just enjoying ourselves.
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nicola@which name? on June 25, 2010, 3:07 a.m.
I am a mix of the two...a parent of a child educated outside the home who has also greeted summer with positive and joyful anticipation. We, too, will be spending our days almost exactly as you describe filling yours. I don't worry about the kids and boredom, but I do have young ones, and while they don't need me to entertain them every second, I cannot leave them unsupervised, which means the time my son naps, which used to be my alone time, is not spent with my daughter. I am loving it, but I can no longer use this time to get through homemaking tasks that are difficult to do with young children around. So I am shifting my tasks, expectations, and my own schedule until I get the right summer feel. Happy beaching and berry picking, Renee! Nicola
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Nicole on June 27, 2010, 3:46 a.m.
I loved this post last year...I still love it! Nicole
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kyndale on June 23, 2010, 6:10 p.m.
We love the summer too and I've always looked forward to it. Even when Amelia and Solomon were in school. I know it's a hard adjustment though.