Let Children Get Bored Again
nytimes.com
Let Children Get Bored Again
1–10 of 179 posts
Re: Let Children Get Bored Again
#2Makes sense. Many of my best memories as a child started off with me being bored. My mother only let me have 30 minutes of screen time per day, computer and television combined, so the rest of the time I was forced to run around bored looking for things to do.
Re: Let Children Get Bored Again
#3This article primes my confirmation bias. I used to think it was up to me to keep my son entertained or otherwise 'engaged'. One day it hit me that letting him experience boredom is probably a net positive since I won't always be around to keep things interesting and the boredom might force him to explore pursuits he otherwise wouldn't have.
As he's grown older I've restricted screen time for the same reasons (although I could probably do more in that department).
Having just read the other HN topic regarding the hikikomori, I wonder if a/the root cause isn't their use of technology to treat boredom. Perhaps not a blanket condemnation of technology - if I discover a new hobby online and can parlay that into a job/career that's a net positive - but there's certainly some aspects of tech that are going to keep someone isolated and socially atrophied.
Re: Let Children Get Bored Again
#4The parade of concerned parents writing these kinds of articles have conveniently forgotten how much TV and video games many of us consumed in 1980s and 1990s.
This stuff reads like satire:
“Rather than teach them to absorb material that is slower, duller and decidedly two-dimensional, like a lot of worthwhile information is, schools cave in to what they say children expect: fun. ”
The kids are going to be alright.
Re: Let Children Get Bored Again
#5This article primes my confirmation bias. I used to think it was up to me to keep my son entertained or otherwise 'engaged'. One day it hit me that letting him experience boredom is probably a net positive since I won't always be around to keep things interesting and the boredom might force him to explore pursuits he otherwise wouldn't have. As he's grown older I've restricted screen time for the same reasons (althou…
When I was a kid I remember being bored all the time, but interestingly as an adult I am never bored. In retrospect I think a lot of it has to do with the opportunities available to me. Now if I have an idea of something I want to do or a project I want to work on I can just start doing it. When I was a kid I was limited since many of my ideas required some disposable income or a car to accomplish. Given this perspective perhaps it is somewhat your responsibility to keep your son "engaged".
Re: Let Children Get Bored Again
#6The parade of concerned parents writing these kinds of articles have conveniently forgotten how much TV and video games many of us consumed in 1980s and 1990s. This stuff reads like satire: “Rather than teach them to absorb material that is slower, duller and decidedly two-dimensional, like a lot of worthwhile information is, schools cave in to what they say children expect: fun. ” The kids are going to be alright.
Yeah, it is also interesting how they categorize the activities... apparently reading a book doesn’t count as “avoiding boredom”, but playing a video game does... why? Both are using something to entertain yourself, and it seems pretty arbitrary to distinguish between them. In fact, I am pretty sure there has been times on our history where reading fiction was treated the same way we treat watching YouTube videos today... as bad for your brain.
Re: Let Children Get Bored Again
#7The parade of concerned parents writing these kinds of articles have conveniently forgotten how much TV and video games many of us consumed in 1980s and 1990s. This stuff reads like satire: “Rather than teach them to absorb material that is slower, duller and decidedly two-dimensional, like a lot of worthwhile information is, schools cave in to what they say children expect: fun. ” The kids are going to be alright.
> The parade of concerned parents writing these kinds of articles have conveniently forgotten how much TV and video games many of us consumed in 1980s and 1990s.
One of the great things about growing up in the UK in the '80s is that there were only four television channels, and they were all a bit rubbish (we got a fraction of the cartoons the US did, and our local children's programmes were often extremely dull). I did watch TV, but there was usually nothing worth watching on, so i had no choice but to go and do other things - read, draw, make things, try and program a computer, etc.
Re: Let Children Get Bored Again
#8This article primes my confirmation bias. I used to think it was up to me to keep my son entertained or otherwise 'engaged'. One day it hit me that letting him experience boredom is probably a net positive since I won't always be around to keep things interesting and the boredom might force him to explore pursuits he otherwise wouldn't have. As he's grown older I've restricted screen time for the same reasons (althou…
When I was a kid I remember being bored all the time, but interestingly as an adult I am never bored. In retrospect I think a lot of it has to do with the opportunities available to me. Now if I have an idea of something I want to do or a project I want to work on I can just start doing it. When I was a kid I was limited since many of my ideas required some disposable income or a car to accomplish. Given this perspec…
As an adult, I see my "boredom" more clearly as a psychological imperative "Do Something!" combined with an existential reply "Nothing Is Worth Doing!"
The result is inaction, the fix is either identifying something, anything worthwhile (the state often points to some unresolved need), or acting anyway despite the meaninglessness (only tenable for short periods, better to rearrange one's environment to avoid such situations altogether).
Re: Let Children Get Bored Again
#9The parade of concerned parents writing these kinds of articles have conveniently forgotten how much TV and video games many of us consumed in 1980s and 1990s. This stuff reads like satire: “Rather than teach them to absorb material that is slower, duller and decidedly two-dimensional, like a lot of worthwhile information is, schools cave in to what they say children expect: fun. ” The kids are going to be alright.
Yeah, it is also interesting how they categorize the activities... apparently reading a book doesn’t count as “avoiding boredom”, but playing a video game does... why? Both are using something to entertain yourself, and it seems pretty arbitrary to distinguish between them. In fact, I am pretty sure there has been times on our history where reading fiction was treated the same way we treat watching YouTube videos tod…
I think there's some truth to that, though.
As a former video game addict, I look back on my time spent gaming as largely a waste. Most of it was a compulsion, like staying up until 4am re-queuing in Dota. Or grinding some armor piece.
But I don't look back with regret on any of my time spent reading. I think most people here know what I'm talking about. Why is that?
I can think of a few guesses. Books aren't in the same category of quick dopamine releases as most (not all) games. There's an element of imagination and mental world construction in the book with even the cheapest entertainment. You're exposed to different interpretations of the world, possibly integrating the thoughts of others against your own. It also helped me write and spell.
I'd certainly categorically rank books higher than games if I had to. Though I know if you told this to my 14-year-old self, I would've made you think I only played MathBlaster and games from The Learning Company all day. "What, you think learning is bad?!"
I'm reminded of when I was at my friend's house when he kicked his son off Youtube to go outside. He thought it was the most unfair thing in the world, happy to let you know how many good educational videos there were on Youtube even though he'd just done a four hour binge of screaming Minecraft vids.
I chuckled and thought of myself at about that age. At one point I spited my mother by bringing paper and pencils outside to draw instead of playing in the street. That'll show her! Well, I now have a drawing hobby that I still practice weekly in my 30s. :)
Re: Let Children Get Bored Again
#10Earlier quoted context omitted.
When I was a kid I remember being bored all the time, but interestingly as an adult I am never bored. In retrospect I think a lot of it has to do with the opportunities available to me. Now if I have an idea of something I want to do or a project I want to work on I can just start doing it. When I was a kid I was limited since many of my ideas required some disposable income or a car to accomplish. Given this perspec…
As an adult, I see my "boredom" more clearly as a psychological imperative "Do Something!" combined with an existential reply "Nothing Is Worth Doing!" The result is inaction, the fix is either identifying something, anything worthwhile (the state often points to some unresolved need), or acting anyway despite the meaninglessness (only tenable for short periods, better to rearrange one's environment to avoid such sit…
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