what happened to kids playing??

[ouchwithNo.2]

I am puzzled...what has changed so much since I was a kid?
I have my 6yr old son and his friend, also 6 for the day.
My son has loads of toys, boxes of inherited lego, playmobil, Nintendo DS, Wii, board games....the lot.
He has been here nearly 4hrs and they haven't stuck to one thing for longer than 10 minutes without them saying...'what shall we do next?' it seems to be make a mess, have a play fight, have a play and back to the start again.
Have things changed that much in 22yrs?
I remember playing playmobil and barbies for ages, hours even with my friends.
Its not even like they are glued to the DS.
Whats happened to the generation!!!!

 

[freckleonear]

I think it's actually because children have so many toys nowadays and a lot of those toys are either electronic toys with flashing lights and noises or are not open-ended. Children simply don't have the opportunity to develop their imagination in the way children did in the past. Sounds like you've got a houseful today!

 

[ouchwithNo.2]

It is so sad, I used to spend hours playing barbies or sylvanian families with my friends as kids.
I was hoping things would calm down after the initial excitement of the first hour but it hasn't and now I am hurrying along 3.30pm when I can drive the long way back to his friends house..!
Maybe it is because his friend is an only child and so was our boy up until last June, perhaps they aren't used to having that kind of interaction out of school.
I don't know!
I said to Harry why don't you go on the wii fit as the weather is awful outside and they both shook their heads.
I guess I am lucky I can give one back, thanking my lucky stars I don't have 6yr old twin boys!!!

 

[purplerose]

I agree, kids now days don't have the mental capacity to expand in imagination like we did. When I was that age I was happy to play house, skipping, barbies, mermaids, fairies and with my dollhouse. It was endless fun. Oh and colouring books. Give me a good colouring book and pencils and I was quiet.

Yet I guess because videogames started to make their way into houses such as Sega or Nintendo or Atari most kept entertained by then.

My younger cousin of five is like that too now days. Give her a doll and she will play with it for an hour. Then go I want to do something else.

I thought imagination was dying out until I was at our local pool recently and was over hearing a group of three kids playing sea animals they were around 9 or 10. Kinda made me think of when I played mermaids.

 

[MrsRabbit]

We rotate toys. Less options help. Limit TV and video games. Children have the same mental capacity we did - they are just catered to endlessly by us. They have every new toy, millions of toys in general. The toys all blink, make sounds, have lights - practically play with themselves. Video games and TV think for them too. They don't have to work for it.

We read every day for about an hour.

DS has time every day for free play. If he gets bored I give him ideas. He listens to audio books.

IDK - my son plays for hours without much help - he's turning the sofa into a space ship, building his train set, cars, towers for cars to smash etc. DD also plays for hours every morning with little input from me.

Rotating the toys helps because it's like new toys every 2 weeks.

 

[tallybee]

We rotate toys. Less options help. Limit TV and video games. Children have the same mental capacity we did - they are just catered to endlessly by us. They have every new toy, millions of toys in general. The toys all blink, make sounds, have lights - practically play with themselves. Video games and TV think for them too. They don't have to work for it.

We read every day for about an hour.

DS has time every day for free play. If he gets bored I give him ideas. He listens to audio books.

IDK - my son plays for hours without much help - he's turning the sofa into a space ship, building his train set, cars, towers for cars to smash etc. DD also plays for hours every morning with little input from me.

Rotating the toys helps because it's like new toys every 2 weeks.

I totally agree. Kids are pandered to and indulged far too much these days.

 

[KarenLV]

Keep in mind boys are more active players than girls. Girls sit with the same doll for an hour but boys stay max 20 minutes with the same toy.

 

[Ozzieshunni]

I totally agree with rotating the toys. My mom used to read to us every night too and I'm going to do the same with my son. She read us things like The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe and Roland Dahl books. He'll also be outside as much as possible and not sitting in front of a TV. It'll be hard though cause his dad is a computer guy, lol! I'm sure once LO is born he'll be taking him outside though

 

[Lyndz]

I know what you mean! DH has an 8 year old son who we have at weekends and when he comes down, he'll play with each toy for about half hour before exclaining he's bored! He's got every toy imaginable and a Wii and DS but he has very little imagination, even when we play with him.

When i was little i could happily spend most of the day playing with my barbies and house, if that failed, colouring was always a winner!

 

[x_Nov30_x]

my girls hardly play with any of their toys, always role playing and making a mess lol

 

[mommy2lilmen]

I think it's actually because children have so many toys nowadays and a lot of those toys are either electronic toys with flashing lights and noises or are not open-ended. Children simply don't have the opportunity to develop their imagination in the way children did in the past. Sounds like you've got a houseful today!

I agree
Life now is to fast. People are always ont he move and ready to explore whats next. I have 6 kids and atleast once a day hear IM BORED. I guide them to their room closet, and point. I guide them to the pantry cupboard and say hmm board games, crayons. I then say its nice outside, you have hockey sticks, balls, bikes, skateboards, rollerblades. I say we live next to a park, go play. NOPE. they wont.

 

[lemily]

I think it's actually because children have so many toys nowadays and a lot of those toys are either electronic toys with flashing lights and noises or are not open-ended. Children simply don't have the opportunity to develop their imagination in the way children did in the past. Sounds like you've got a houseful today!

I agree
Life now is to fast. People are always ont he move and ready to explore whats next. I have 6 kids and atleast once a day hear IM BORED. I guide them to their room closet, and point. I guide them to the pantry cupboard and say hmm board games, crayons. I then say its nice outside, you have hockey sticks, balls, bikes, skateboards, rollerblades. I say we live next to a park, go play. NOPE. they wont.

At a family friend's house, if any of the children said they were bored, their mum used to go get some soapy water and a cloth and tell them that bored was not an option and they had to clean the skirting boards/base boards until they found something else to do. 9 times out of 10 they suddenly found something else they wanted to do straight away, and if they didn't, about 15 minutes of washing and they definitely found something else they wanted to do. No one was allowed to sit around whining in that house about being bored.

 

[mommy2lilmen]

I done that with my kids during summer break. my kids do their chores which include rotating washing toilet. The toilet isn't a punishment more to teach them responsibility in keeping a place clean for hygeine purpose and because family help out. I have begun with gardening as a way to get my kids to change their mind but its been so poor outside that I can't do that. I think I will resort back to the baseboard trim. I just have to remind myself not do it when I do the floors during the week lol

I think it's actually because children have so many toys nowadays and a lot of those toys are either electronic toys with flashing lights and noises or are not open-ended. Children simply don't have the opportunity to develop their imagination in the way children did in the past. Sounds like you've got a houseful today!

I agree
Life now is to fast. People are always ont he move and ready to explore whats next. I have 6 kids and atleast once a day hear IM BORED. I guide them to their room closet, and point. I guide them to the pantry cupboard and say hmm board games, crayons. I then say its nice outside, you have hockey sticks, balls, bikes, skateboards, rollerblades. I say we live next to a park, go play. NOPE. they wont.

At a family friend's house, if any of the children said they were bored, their mum used to go get some soapy water and a cloth and tell them that bored was not an option and they had to clean the skirting boards/base boards until they found something else to do. 9 times out of 10 they suddenly found something else they wanted to do straight away, and if they didn't, about 15 minutes of washing and they definitely found something else they wanted to do. No one was allowed to sit around whining in that house about being bored.