Being bored 'fires children's imaginations'

Play doesn't need to be organised

It's the familiar summer holidays cry: "Mummy, I'm bored."

Research suggests the best answer might be: "Good."

A survey of 293 parents in the UK suggests that a majority - 70% - feel it is important for school holiday time to be filled with planned activities, and 45% worry that they do not do enough.

But research commissioned by the Lego Learning Institute suggests that it is good for children to be "bored" - because they have to start using their own imaginations.

Active and creative

"The reality is that children never stay 'bored' for long," says the institute's Terry Dunne.

"Given a safe environment, even simple props and a bit of time, most children quite naturally figure out something to play.

"There's a lot of imagination and creativity there if we let it come out.

"By not rushing to keep them busy, we help them learn to be active, creative individuals."

A separate study of more than 3,000 parents' attitudes to children's play and learning in the USA, UK, France, Germany and Japan, indicated a conflict between wanting them to enjoy their childhood, and encouraging them to develop the skills to be "successful".

Passive

The result was that more than half of UK parents thought that "doing nothing in particular" was a waste of time.

And almost all felt they needed to organise planned activities and lessons outside the school timetable.

Consultant David Elkind, professor of child study at Tufts University, Boston, said this encouraged children to take a passive role.

"Ultimately, those children may find it more difficult as an adult to organise and manage their time effectively," he said.

"Being 'bored' pushes children to think on their own and is therefore a key to helping them develop resourcefulness and initiative."

So his advice to parents was to worry less - and just let the children play.