Why is occasional boredom is good for a child!

Hey readers,

The feeling of boredom among children is beneficial. Even though boredom can be unpleasant, occasionally going through it will equip them with valuable skills. 

The next time they whine about being bored, you can relax knowing that deep down, they're igniting creativity, developing independence, and taking vital breaks. 

 

1. Boredom encourages imagination and creativity.

When kids are left alone, they are compelled to employ more creativity and imagination to occupy themselves.

Allowing kids the freedom to experiment develops their sense of curiosity and discovery and aids in their exploration of what makes them happy. 

Studies have shown that people expected to execute various dull jobs have more imagination when prompted to engage in a creative thinking exercise.

 Kids must learn to take the initiative and come up with pastimes not predetermined by others. It stimulates imagination and creativity.

2. Boredom helps with problem-solving. 

Your children need to develop their problem-solving skills. The ability to solve problems is a crucial life skill, and boredom is a terrific way to practice.

Because they will utilise these abilities to locate activities, kids benefit from boredom.

Say, for illustration, that your children are uninterested because the internet is down. Your children will devise activities until the connection is established using their problem-solving abilities. 

No one needs to know if you accidentally turned off the modem and caused the outage.

3. Boredom makes your child less selfish.

 
They will become accustomed to having their absurd demands met if you consistently give in to them, and they will grow up believing that the world revolves around them. A negative attitude they will continue into adulthood.

Their actions will escalate in aggression, forcing people to accede to their demands.

They will be inspired to devise strategies for dealing with boredom if they see that you won't give in to their unreasonable demands (omit this if your child needs to hug or bond with you or has a medical problem).

Therefore, you and your spouse will have more free time. 

Also, spending enough time with your significant other helps keep your marriage strong, leading to less stress and a happier home life for your children.

4. Being bored can make their childhood happier.

They are more likely to recall the items they built and the memories they formed when they let their imaginations run wild when they reflect on their youth. 

The things they believed they were incapable of doing, the adventures they underwent.

A mind that has more time to think can generate original ideas and innovative thinking.

Kids should occasionally allow their minds to wander. It is lovely for imagination and creativity, but calm introspection also benefits one's mental well-being and ability to connect with oneself. And that influences how people perceive themselves.

Kids should develop their hobbies so they aren't dependent on others to keep them busy. 

Kids must understand that life is not all fun and games. 

There will be a lot of dull moments. They must amuse themselves and create fun.

5. Boredom is suitable for parents too. 

Giving your children some alone time allows you to spend time with your spouse. 

You don't need to wait for your kid to pass out before you say hello to each other.

 Being a good parent and maintaining your relationship depend on getting some mommy and daddy time. 

Parenting 24/7 has the opposite effect. It increases your anxiety and stress, which could harm your children.

 
What are your views on kids' boredom? I love to hear them down below.

Cheers for reading X 

Tips for Raising Child Who Is Easily Distracted

Hey readers,

An easily distracted child struggles with focus and concentration, hindering his capacity to learn and advance his cognitive abilities.

[Consult a doctor to check for ADHD symptoms if your child is consistently inattentive or cannot sit quietly for extended periods.]

Their regular usage of electronic media is bringing on this disturbing loss in our children's attention span.

A National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded study found that children who spend more than 7 hours a day in front of a computer experience negative physical changes to the brain, such as premature cortical thinning.

Additionally, kids who watch more than two hours of screen usage every day will probably perform worse in both thinking and language tests.

Knowing how important it is to keep our children's brains healthy, there are steps we can take right now to shield them from the harm that electronic media can cause to their developing minds.

Better results come faster.

Consistent schedule. 

 When they do not adhere to a routine, children struggling with attention problems become even more disoriented and off-task. Working together to establish a regular schedule is something you, as a parent, can do.

 You can let your youngster assist you in making the timetable so they can develop even more life skills. Many kids thrive when given a visual schedule. Have your youngster create an image related to the activity next to the action and then help you put down the time and the task of the training for the day.

Alternatively, you may enlist your child's assistance in choosing pictures from the computer, creating your timetable on the computer, and printing it. The schedule can then be laminated so your child can check items off as they are completed during the day, or you can use it as a handy reference. 

It's crucial to do this so that your child may learn to manage their day without always needing reminders from you. This will also help your child develop independence and self-help abilities.

Be in the moment.

 

Spend at least one moment each day being "in the now" with your child. Have a few moments every day to give your child your complete attention.

 Read her a book, play a quick game of checkers, or work on a sketch or painting together. If you like playing outside, take your kid to the park and play basketball or tennis.

Mindfulness (add a mindfulness activity sheet sample).

Mindfulness exercises have been shown to improve kids' attention span and focus. These exercises have a favourable effect on general focus and concentration because they encourage people to pay attention to the current moment, according to numerous research.

Additionally, it has been demonstrated that they ease anxiety and positively impact children's behaviour in general.

For kids, who typically struggle to sit still, mindfulness is a challenging habit to implement.

The good news is that you can start practising mindfulness techniques with your child right away. And here is a free activity you can download to help your child concentrate.

Read with your child. 

Reading to your children strengthens your relationship and promotes brain development. Little ones are curious and take in everything you say. 

Therefore, whether you read or narrate a story to them, their minds are engaged. Reading aloud to your children regularly helps them develop their listening abilities, linguistic and cognitive skills, creativity, vocabulary, and attention span, as well as their social and emotional development.

Set a timer. 

Simple activities like brushing their teeth, eating, or even playing can all have timers set for them. A child who is easily distracted can focus with the aid of timers. Limiting your child's time to accomplish a task can also challenge and inspire them to finish it.

Limit media sounds in your home. 

Many kids lack the same capacity for sound filtering as adults do. This means that letting your child watch TV while doing her homework can make it harder for her to focus. 

You should only allow your youngster one hour of "screen time" every day. Your exposure to television, video games, and other visual stimuli should be kept to a minimum.

What  do you think to my advice about helping a child stay focused? Love to hear your thoughts in the comment section down below.

 

Cheers for reading X 

My Sunday photo 14/05/2023

 

My eldest has some new glasses this week ☺ 

Air fryer baked potato recipe.

Hey readers, 

Seemingly anything and everything can be cooked in an air fryer via the quick and healthy alternative. This includes the humble jacket potato.

There’s nothing quite tucking into a hot and fluffy jacket potato with your topping of choice - be it baked beans and melted cheese or tuna and egg mayonnaise.

One of her latest quick and easy recipes to do in the air fryer is the good old jacket spud. Not only does it save time on cooking it in an oven, but it also saved much-needed energy in the home, at a time when bills are on the rise.

Below is a how I make a jacket potato in the air fryer, really simple and easy anyone can do it. 

 1. Pre-heat the air fryer at temperature 200c for about 5 minutes.

2. Wash and dry your potatoes and stab them all over deeply with a sharp knife or fork


3. Brush or spray the oil over the potatoes and season with salt and pepper to your taste Set to Bake/Roast at 200c for 16 minutes. 


4. Turn half way through repeating the oil and seasoning on the other side.

5. Set to Air Crisp at 200 degrees centigrade for 15 to 20 mins. Turning the potatoes half way through. You can increase/decrease this time to get the crispiness you prefer this is just a guide time. 

Enjoy X 

How not to spoil your child.

 Hey readers, 

Love has no boundaries, right? Wrong! You must establish certain ground rules if you wish to raise well-behaved kids. 

These five methods will help you stop unhealthy behaviours in their tracks:

1. Teach them to say thank you.

Your child should be able to say "thank you," almost reflexively and without urging, for both tiny, everyday things like a dinner you cook and for larger ones like a birthday gift you give them.

2. Set clear limits. 

Consider it this way: By leaving no space for interpretation, you avoid conflict in the future. As you hear the distinctions between "Oh okay, you can have a cookie," and "You can have one cookie, but don't ask me for another one," both leave open for optimism that a second one would be acceptable. That's it."

3. Giving back is caring.

Sharing teaches your child to value relationships and other people, whereas not sharing teaches them to value things. Children's ability to interact socially with others for the rest of their lives depends on their ability to learn how to share. Sharing is caring, and it has significant, enduring benefits from which you want your child to gain.

4. Promote Healthy Expression and Outlets.

Kids frequently have trouble assessing their emotions, as you are aware. They experience things strongly, and their emotions might fluctuate minute by minute. We've all experienced the seemingly instantaneous transition of one of our children from hysterical laughter and delight to complete and total devastation and sorrow. The joyful half, though, may be beautiful and delightful while the other, not so much.

Handle emotional upheaval with compassion. At first, teaching your children to count to ten, take a deep breath, take a personal timeout, or be able to say something like, "I need a minute to calm down," can sound almost ridiculous.

 Giving your children coping mechanisms, however, can actually help them manage some of that emotional energy and make wise decisions.

 Get your children to name their feelings, the reason of them, and what they perceive as the resolution. Encourage them to use "I feel" comments rather than accusatory language.

5. LEARN TO SAY "NO," first.

It is vital to hear your child out and respect their emotions. A key component of your child's self-esteem is demonstrating to them that they are important and that you always have time for them.

 This does not imply that you must always comply with their desires, though. While acknowledging their ennui, for instance, is OK, it is not acceptable for them to request that you buy them a new toy because they are unsatisfied with the ones they already have. Remember to explain to your youngster why you must say "no" as well.

Cheers for reading X 

My Sunday photo 07/05/2023

 

How to make chocolate brownies in the air fryer.

Hey readers,

Air fryer brownies – gooey fudgy brownies cooked to perfection in your air fryer. Follow my easy air fryer brownie recipe below; you won't regret it!

Ingredients needed.

 

* 80g peanut butter, divided. 

* 40g butter.

* 120g of dark chocolate, divided.

* 175g golden caster sugar. 

* 2 large eggs, beaten.

 

* 60g of self-raising flour. 

* 30g cocoa powder. 

Directions. 

1. Spray the silicon tray (or if there is no tray, take out a crisper plate and spray the drawer) with cooking spray or oil and line the base with a piece of baking parchment.

2. Break up the dark chocolate into pieces, and add into a saucepan with peanut butter and butter.

Gently melt and leave to cool. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the sugar and eggs until thick and creamy, like salad cream.

Add in the chocolate mixture and whisk together.

 

3. Sieve the flour and cocoa powder into the bowl and fold in with a sizeable mental spoon.

Spoon the brownie mixture into prepared lined drawers/trays.

Melt peanut butter in the microwave for 40 seconds.

Drizzle over the top of the brownie. 

4. Insert zone 1 drawer unit. Select zone 1, select BAKE, set the temperature to 160C and set the time to 35-40 minutes—press START/STOP.

5. After 30 minutes, remove the zone 1 drawer, and check whether the brownie is cooked.

The brownie is ready when it is soft to the touch in the centre. 

6. Melt the remaining chocolate in the microwave for 20 seconds and stir.

7. Drizzle the melted chocolate over the top of the brownie. 

8. Leave to cool in the drawer. 

9. Leave to cool before lifting out, using the lining paper as a sling.

10. Cut the brownie up into squares. 

Enjoy X