I’m so BORED!

Bored- feeling impatient or dissatisfied, because you are not interested in something or because you have nothing to do. If you want to say you are extremely bored, you can say you are bored stiff/rigid/silly or bored to tears/to death

Oh, I’m so bored!

What parent hasn’t heard her child say “I’m so bored!”?

I have a solution – hand your child a book. When I was a child, my mother answered that statement by telling us that being bored only meant your mind had nowhere to go. So, send your brain on an adventure. Once we learned about all the wonderful places we could go, we were never without a book.

We all know how busy parents are today – the interesting thing is that giving your child a book doesn’t really take so much time! Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the only time your child gives you that “Look” is when you tell him or her to shut their book?

Kids aren’t the only victims of boredom. How many people do you hear lamenting how they couldn’t find anything to watch on TV last night? How many of us watch things we don’t even have an interest in just to do something? Last summer while in London, I was on the train and I was observing the other passengers- some sat staring blankly, some were dozing off and a number were reading. What adventure were they on? Who were they falling in love with? I have a feeling none of them were bemoaning the time spent in their commute. I have even noticed the sighs of regret from some of these readers as they slowly closed their book to exit the train.

If you can get your kids to read, they will be readers all their lives and we know for a fact that that makes them smarter and gives them healthier brains! Most of us make sure that our family is healthy and educated; why not set them on a track that will encourage those goals all their life by reading. So next time the words “I’m bored!” heads your way, be strong, after all you are the parent. It won’t be easy but it will be rewarding!