Lately, my 7 year old has been coming to me with heavy sighs, saying pitifully,” I’m bored, I don’t know what to do.”  Now, this is something new and not at all normal for her.  My first instinct has been to find something for her. Today, however, I tried a little experiment. What will she do if I leave her to her boredom?  I was reluctant to try this at first because idleness drives me nuts. I like everyone to be busy about something, and lying on the couch drawing breath doesn’t count.    

There was a tic-tac-toe pad laying on the bar and she further played on my sympathies by noting that she couldn’t even play tic-tac-toe by herself.    I told her she was so creative, I knew she could find a way!

I left her to her boredom and waited to see what would happen.  A while later she came in smiling wide.  She had indeed “played” tic-tac-toe by herself,  turning it into a beautiful work of art!  

My conclusion:   Yes, she can find something to do on her own and boredom can serve as a springboard for her creativity!