| I’m no child development expert, but I do have kids &, throughout my life, have worked w/ kids in several different situations, & I think, when kids don’t have age appropriate toys & activities and/or have too many toys that aren’t organized well, kids tend to get bored easily & act a lot like CC & Donny do.
They’re bored, so they throw their stuffed animals into the chandelier. They run through an empty living room screaming “poopy!”.
There’s no structure to their play. Free, imaginative play is wonderful for kids, but, in a sense, kids have to be taught how to play - how to initiate play w/ their toys & games. Show them & then let them loose w/ their imaginations - but, also, don’t try to micromanage their play. If a baby squirrel needs to live w/ the rabbit family, that’s fine. If CC wants to wear a princess dress w/ cowboy boots while Donny dresses up like an astronaut w/ a super-hero cape, that’s fine.
Kids also need age appropriate toys & different types of toys - not just stuffed animals or LEGOs but dolls & a pretend kitchen w/ food & dishes, cars & trains & tracks for the cars & trains, a variety of dress-up clothes (not just Princess dresses), different building materials (not just LEGOs), and different board games & books on their reading levels.
And they need toys related to their OWN, INDIVIDUAL interests. CC is her own person. Donny is his own person.
And all the toys & activities should be organized in ways that are both attractive & enticing to the kids AND are also easy for them to pick up when they’re finished playing.
Most of what we’ve seen of CC & Donny’s toys are too young for them and/or just random items that don’t really encourage active & imaginative play.
And the house is just too empty & echo-y - there’s too much empty space for the kids to just run wild in. Besides their bedrooms, there are no cozy spots for play, & they’re probably only in their bedrooms for nap & at bedtime.
Even the kitchen is sterile w/ hard, echo-y surfaces. The TV in the family room w/ the ugly brown chairs is just an absolutely ridiculous placement.
But, besides all that, the kids are getting older - they need better toys & better use of screen times. They need to be introduced to a world beyond Disney movies.
While Jen is doing her millionth Peloton ride, the kids could be participating in their own child exercise or yoga program - instead of just romping all over the basement or rolling around bored in the floor. |
|
