“I like that too” said Christopher Robin, “but what I like doing best is Nothing.”
(A. A. Milne “The House at Pooh Corner”)
In today's achievement-oriented world, parents often don’t value imagination. There is a worry that children are wasting time when they are staring off into space. Parents fill their children’s day with lessons and activities and often children’s time is eaten away by watching TV. People fear that their children will be bored.
And giving your children a break from organized activities and electronic baby-sitters can mean them being bored at first. There may be lots of whining, but deprived of anything else to do, children will find a way to amuse themselves -- even if it means simply doing “Nothing”.
Because, of course, when a child is doing “Nothing”, they are exploring their capabilities for creativity and imagination.
And why is that to be encouraged? Well, firstly it enhances children’s ability to generate different ideas about a topic and thus to become better problem solvers. A s our world continues to change so quickly, we are going to need people who can cope with change in a creative manner.
It also allows children to explore the world. In fantasy, they can pretend to be anything – firemen, animals, aliens! It increases self-confidence and helps children grow socially - to see the world from other people’s perspectives.
Another important benefit can be that it allows a child the space to be themselves and to deal with their feelings and problems. Children who cannot express their inner emotions verbally can often find an outlet through the stories that they create. If a child is afraid of monsters under the bed, he can hunt down the monster in a story and master his fears by transforming it.
So, give kids the space for imaginative play. Make sure that you provide alternative resources so that they can be creative - a good supply of paper and pens and art materials is important.
Leaving time for children to discover their potential for creativity should not mean high input of time from parents. Brainstorm with your kids, all the things that they could do without much parental supervision, outdoors and indoors; play basketball, have a water fight, skip, make a den, play board games, make homemade play dough, do crafts, write a letter, make a circus, put on a magic show, make sock puppets, make doll clothes, plan an imaginary trip to the moon.
However, when the whining starts there are many activities that you can do together.