For some age-groups, kids are watching up to 32 hours of television a week.
This is more than four hours a day.
Once the video games and the constant texting and surfing the web on their smartphones are taken into account, it’s any wonder we get to communicate with our children at all. What did we do when we were small without all this technology to play with? Hours would be spent on the floor playing with dinkies and dolls, the disappointment when you were called away from ‘the game’ for dinner was horrendous.
Imagination and creativity played a big part of the activities we pursued.
Let’s get our kids back into some old-school action.
Take Out the Toy-Box
Every house should have a toy-box filled to the brim with dinky cars, dolls, plastic gadgets and teddies. Turn off the television, empty the toy-box and see how smaller children fare with an hour or two’s play with the toys. Oversized teddies will be played with alongside their toy cars and this is what gets a child’s creativity going. Child development experts are stressing the importance of a child’s imagination and creativity in their cognitive development.
Let’s Take A Walk
Get the kids outside exploring the garden or a park. The more worms and ladybirds poked at the better, they need to have an understanding of the world around them. You may not be a nature expert but you can guarantee they will learn a thing or two from you with their incessant questioning.
It’s Dinner-Time
If you have the time at the end of the day, get the kids involved in making the dinner too. Hand them vegetables to wash or let the older kids peel. Stirring up mixtures in a bowl shouldn’t be too difficult for them and after a while, they’ll be real help in the kitchen. Kids should know the basics of making good food.
Fashion Bonanza
Before any old clothes or shoes are thrown out, let them loose in the living room for an evening of play. There’ll be more excitement than at Christmas with opening a big bag of clothes and fashion shows and playing pretend, the living room will be a hive of imagination and activity for the day.
Get Out the Albums
Why not take down the photo albums for an afternoon and show the kids what old-school photos were like? They’ll be in stitches at the younger versions of the people they know and it’ll be a great conversation piece for days afterwards.
Have your kids experience real-play again…
Get Doing Some DIY
Get out the colouring pencils, crayons, scissors and paper and save some cash yourself while the kids make some greeting cards. Everyone loves a homemade card, people will be delighted with the time taken to make them and it is a fun activity that can be done inside on a rainy day or out in the sunshine.
Picnic Time
Have smaller kids experience the independence of having their own picnic and organise a basket for them. Put paper plates, sandwiches and some surprise treats in the basket and let them head off down the garden. It’s a great chance for a bit of fresh air and it will tear them away from the television for the afternoon.
Snakes and Scrabble
The board games may not have been used in years, or since the last time you and the girls decided to have a wine-induced game of rude scrabble, but to the kids they’ll be a brand new form of entertainment. Classics like Scrabble, Snakes and Ladders and Monopoly never grow old.
Obstacle Race
A ladder, a rope, some cans and chalk. Let the kids explore the garage for obstacles they can use for their race and let the fun begin.
Camping Out
If some fine weather beckons, organise in advance to have a tent pitched out the back for a night’s camping trip. The kids will probably be knocking on the back door at half ten but you succeeded in getting them away from the X-box and outdoors!
