Independent Play
Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2007 9:26 am
I'm wondering if anyone else has kids who, when presented with free, unstructured playtime, have no clue what to do with themselves and choose to do inappropriate activities (i.e. jumping on the couch, chasing after cats, etc - stuff they know is not allowed) instead of appropriate activities.
I know the ability to play independently is important, but to date I've been pretty unsuccessful in my attempts to get my kids to do appropriate activities in their free time without me expressly telling them what to play with. They are completely clueless as to what to do with themselves without me directing them.
The odd thing is that when my 6 year old isn't home, my 4 year plays independently perfectly fine, but when both boys are at home, neither of them know how to play independently (or just the two of them).
Just a hot button issue this morning while I was trying to get some stuff done and wondering if anyone else dealt with this issue and how it was dealt with.
I know the ability to play independently is important, but to date I've been pretty unsuccessful in my attempts to get my kids to do appropriate activities in their free time without me expressly telling them what to play with. They are completely clueless as to what to do with themselves without me directing them.
The odd thing is that when my 6 year old isn't home, my 4 year plays independently perfectly fine, but when both boys are at home, neither of them know how to play independently (or just the two of them).
Just a hot button issue this morning while I was trying to get some stuff done and wondering if anyone else dealt with this issue and how it was dealt with.