Do your kids get enough boredom? A thought provoking question and article

I read another article that made me stop and pause. The article discusses whether our children are having enough time being “bored”.

Do your kids get enough boredom? http://t.co/6NgkhM4

I cannot help but think being bored is actually a good thing. I think to my son Aiden who complains about being “bored” within 10 seconds of not playing with a friend, playing a videogame, or watching tv. It bothers me that he has already begun to lose the creativity and imagination that he once used all the time to entertain himself. Or perhaps maybe it looks different now and I have not come to terms with this yet. He must be constantly entertained. He was one that could sit and create something out of nothing, but now that he has grown up to the ripe old age of 8 he is losing that critical skill.

The more I read about the future and how the world is flattening I cannot help but think that I need to put him and his sisters in situations where they are forced to be creative and problem solve. At night when Aiden and Addy go to bed we can hear them two hang out in Aiden’s bedroom and just play and create these very cool(and humorous) games and pretend worlds. I don’t want to be some extreme parent, but I want my kids to be able to entertain themselves. I don’t worry about Addy because she still lives in Addy World and she can just do her own thing whenever.

I don’t know what the answer is. Do we eliminate stimuli? I know I am guilty of the notion of always being entertained. I am trying hard to keep my phone away from me at times so I don’t constantly check this app and that app. What I have found is when I move my phone away for certain parts of the day I am slowly getting my concentration back to read and explore other things.

Would I accomplish more without my phone? I think so, but I have gained so much from my Twitter conversations and networking with people. There is a time and place.

It is all about balance. Aiden no longer has that balance. I just don’t know what to do with it. I just let him be bored and tell him it is good for him until he figures something out. So far, he just pouts until it is time for the next thing in our crazy schedule.

Thoughts?