Bored

Yesterday at daycare pick up there was a note for me. Please come talk to Y. I groan. The notes are never good.

My son, it turns out, spent rest time picking apart a paint roller. Please have him remedy this, they say. I agree. I sigh. We go home.

He doesn't know why he did it, he says.

But I do.

We talk. Oh yeah, he says. I'm bored.

A little more checking and it seems that while at one point he was allowed to lie and read during rest time, now that's been forbidden. He has to lie on his little cot for 30 minutes, still.

So let me get this straight, I think. You want my kid, who has not had a regular nap in almost three years, to lie still for 30 minutes with nothing to do?

I sympathize with him, to be honest.

Look, ok, I get it. I get that they think that stilling yourself is a crucial skill. And I believe that myself, I do. I mean, this is why I practice, at times, meditation, because I want to learn to slow down. I've been working on simplifying things, at not doing 20-bajillion things at once like I seem to do (I can't just sit and watch a show. I must knit! And read blogs! and watch the show! THERE'S ONLY SO MUCH TIME IN THE DAY, PEOPLE!)

But he isn't like every kid, he likes to think. Constantly. He likes constant stimulation, and he's been like that since birth. Sure, I can try to teach him to meditate, but even meditation for kids recommends only 5-10 minutes to start. NOT 30. So what else can he do with himself? There aren't many five year olds who can sit and do sums in their heads all alone. Not even mine.

But at what point can I bring in the gifted kid card? Won't I just be that mom who causes eye-rolling, oh here we go AGAIN with the special treatment for her kid, cMON lady, give it a rest.

At the same time ... well, next time it might not be a paint roller. He's FIVE. He's BORED. You have given him NOTHING to alleviate the boredom, so he's going to find something himself. It would be far better for you to direct him than allow him to get into trouble himself and then feel constantly like he was being bad. If adults are bored, they can find something to do. Not all adults want to lie still, either. When adults want to rest, they read books. Or watch TV. Or otherwise rest, but not necessarily sleep. This requirement of total stillness is ... well, it's kinda bullsh*t IMO.

Because he's not a bad kid. And I don't want him feeling this way, not at five. Not ever, of course. But not at FIVE, when he hasn't even started school yet and God knows if he's bored in daycare, he's going to be bored in school. If he can add fractions, I think first grade is going to be a major let down.

I don't know what we're going to do, and it's becoming more and more clear that we're going to have to do something. I don't know what. I don't know how we'll cope.

But I'll be damned if I'm going to sit back and have him labelled that problem child when they put him into a situation that even most adults would hate.