Activities to do at home for a middle elementary aged kid

[Dcclerk]

We have a great kid, who seems to have difficulty amusing himself. He will read constantly, but other than that, at home he only wants to do screen time. He honestly acts semi-addicted to the screen, even though he is only permitted 30 minutes a day. His main focus is when he can do more, what he will do next time he is on the screen, how much more all of his friends do, etc. We thought maybe we were being too restrictive, and so have also tried to do "no rules" nights where he is able to do anything he wants. Anything he wants is to be on the screen for 6 hours at a time, even neglecting eating. When he talks about his weekend in class on Monday, it is always about screen time-- even if we have gone away for the weekend to somewhere really neat, and he only had a few minutes of screen time during the entire weekend. I'm seriously concerned that his neural pathways are honing in only on screen time for his dopamine hits.

So, we are going with an even stronger plan for not being on the screen while his brain is still developing so much. I recognize that lots and lots of kids can handle screen time (including our others) but I don't think he is one of them. Everything else is too boring in comparison for him. He is already acting like an absolute bear right now as we are getting rid of the screen, but I am hopeful he will get to a place where he is capable of enjoying other amusements around the house. I honestly feel like a bad parent as I see him acting like an addict with such a little amount of stimulus, relative to most kids.

Can you please help me think of activities that he can do that might be interesting for him? He will reject them all initially, but I'm hoping over time he gets interested in something. Here is what I have so far:

Board games/chess
Card games
Tinker with snap circuits
Draw
Write stories
Learn how to do an instrument (we will happily pay for lessons if he shows any interest whatsoever)
Create movies
Play pool
Make experiments
Photography
Practice soccer moves
Practice basketball
Brainstorm a new business venture
Ride bike/scooter/skateboard


TIA!

[SnuggleBuggles]

Cook/ bake. My kiddos have both enjoyed those activities (baking more than cooking).

[baymom]

I think for an activity to replace his screen time, it has to be something he can easily do alone (like being on a screen is). How about:
Extreme dot to dot
Carving soap sculptures
Teaching the dog how to do tricks
Learning cards tricks to perform for the family
Mazes/word searches
Work towards a juggling goal with his soccer ball

That’s all that comes to mind right now, but I’ll try to think of more. My kids could use this list, too!

ETA: DDs main screen time addiction is watching Tasty videos. At some point I told her she had to start MAKING some stuff. Now she’s really into that. So maybe add cooking/baking to the list. Or how about trying different smoothies recipes and rating them?

[hillview]

agree with baymom's idea -- what about slime making videos + making slime; soccer trick videos + trying the trick; etc

[nfceagles]

I don’t have great specific ideas at the moment, but did want to offer what I hope is helpful feedback. Your starting list sounds a bit like a chore list. Learn something, practice something, build something, etc... I think these are all great, enriching activities but for where your DS is at right now it might be pushing things and not appeal to him. I assume you’d be happy if he would just PLAY using anything but a screen.

So maybe things like
Board Games
Hide and Seek
Lego’s
Nerf guns
Basketball
Tree climbing
Box forts
would sound like pleasant alternatives. I wish I could think of more solo ideas for you as that’s one of our struggles. Neighborhood kids are busy so it’s hard to find kids to play with around here.



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[Dcclerk]

These are great! Many thanks! And, yes, I agree that my list is somewhat like a chore list. TBH, it doesn't really interest me, either, but I always said that I wasn't very creative! I just want him to find something that interests him, because the screen is too addictive. Slime, cooking, legos, carving soap.... everything is way better than I came up with, so I'm glad I asked! Please keep them coming.

[mom2binsd]

Get him outside, away from the screens, either playing a sport/gardening/biking/jumping on a trampoline etc. Does he play with friends, it's sometimes easier if they are doing something together, and playing a game is more fun with a peer. Doing things together as a family like biking/geocaching.

[georgiegirl]

My middle child is 8.5 and he loves screen time. If he has friends over, he doesn’t have any issue playing without screens, so I try to invite his friends over often. Here’s a list of other things he likes to do

Read
Play guitar (he has both acoustic and electric)
Write stories/books (four blank papers folded and stapled)
Play chess
Play other games (connect 4, battleship, monopoly)
Play indoor soccer and hockey in the basement
Listen to music (on amazon echo dot)
Organize Pokémon cards and football cards
Play outside: ride bike and scooters, play soccer, make chalk obstacle courses on driveway for scooter or bike, collect sticks and rocks



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