Parents dread hearing the words “I’m bored” from their kid, so they do everything they can think of to keep it from happening. The average parent has to come up with four new activities every day to keep their little one entertained, according to a new survey.
The poll of 2-thousand U.S. parents also finds:
- It’s not easy to keep kids engaged, as four in 10 moms and dads admit they struggle with finding ideas and activities to keep them entertained.
- While most parents believe their kids have active imaginations, 47% of children quickly become bored with what they’re doing, and the average kid gets bored in just 33 minutes.
- That leaves 35% of parents feeling stressed out about trying to find new ideas for their kids.
- Eight in 10 (81%) parents say their kids are always looking for something to do when they get home from school or daycare.
- That’s when they’re more likely to watch TV (80%) than play with toys (67%), while some like to play with friends or siblings (62%) or play with playsets (35%).
- Watching TV contributes to the 13 hours the average kid reportedly spends in front of a screen every week.
- Moms and dads don’t feel great about all that screen time, as 58% are concerned about how much time their kids spend in front of a screen.
- But 81% of parents say their kids prefer hands-on activities, with 71% saying their kids feel happier when crafting than when having screen time.
- Nine in 10 (91%) parents feel it’s important for their children to be engaged in activities outside the classroom that encourage learning, and 93% want their kids to be involved in forms of play that promote mental and emotional development.
- To encourage their kids to explore creatively, parents do arts and crafts with them (64%), let them have more outside play time (62%), offer books for them to read (50%) and encourage playdates with friends (40%).
Source: SWNS Digital
Scott's Thoughts:
- And that 13 hours is just the screen time parents know about! Kids are probably sneaking in more!
- When my kids were little, I tried to limit screen time but found it was my go to when I got tired, or needed to do chores.
- When kids are young, like under middle school age, they need an afterschool program just to help use up their energy from sitting all day in class.