Reply to Lack of independent play is creating mental health crisis among kids today -- and overprotective parenting is to blame

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I don't even think that kids even get the concept if free play anymore. The holidays are here, dh has a large family. 10 nieces and nephew all between the ages of 4-13. I swear when we gather for holidays and things that they don't know what to do or how to entertain themselves anymore. They just wander around looking for adults to find them something to do. It's sad really, hanging with my cousins was so great growing up.[/quote]

This definitely isn’t universal… there are 10 grandkids on my side, ages 2-14 (my kids & their cousins). At gatherings, they run around outside, play board games together, play hide & seek, just talk, etc. Usually in smaller groups than 10, but they definitely play independently (except the 2 yo still needs an adult around of course). [/quote]

+1. I have one child and this entire discussion seems totally foreign to me. I haven’t organized an activity for play dates in…I don’t know when I ever did! By the time they were enough to play cooperatively, they figured it out together. When she’s with cousins or friends, they disappear for hours and reappear occasionally for snacks. The only time I organize is when there’s 6+ kids at a sleep over, otherwise they go feral and it’s pandemonium. And at home she zones out playing with toys or reading and doesn’t want to be interrupted. We probably do more activities than other families, but that’s because she likes them and I only have one schedule to chauffeur.

But let’s be real. 99% of it is temperament and some kids are pathologically incapable of entertaining themselves without whining. Sure you can encourage independent play when they’re toddlers, but some kids take to it more easily than others. Previous generations may have played with neighbors outside, but if no other kids are outside, what can parents do? We don’t do screens (much) and I don’t “play with” my kid, but I also don’t judge others that are juggling work and kids and do the best they can.[/quote]

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