# Boredom and downtime

**Is boredom good for children?**

Whether you fill your child's time or deliberately leave unstructured space, including letting them be bored.

In short: Parents choose between 3 main approaches: Fill the schedule; Balanced; Protect unstructured time and let boredom happen. Evidence: evidence leans one way. Research or guidance points in a direction, but it's thin, small or correlational. Best settled: preschool.

- Area: Emotions and resilience
- Evidence: Evidence leans one way
- Best settled: Preschool
- First published: 2026-10-03
- Last updated: 2026-10-05
- Page: https://www.raisingyourchild.com/topics/emotions-and-resilience--boredom-and-downtime

## Boredom and downtime: what are the options?

1. **Fill the schedule**: You keep the child busy with planned activities.
2. **Balanced**: You mix planned activities with free time.
3. **Protect unstructured time and let boredom happen**: You leave open time on purpose and let the child find something to do.

## Boredom and downtime: what does the evidence say?

**Evidence leans one way.** Research or guidance points in a direction, but it's thin, small or correlational. (Leans (correlational))

In a study of 70 six-year-olds, parents logged a week of activities: more time in less-structured activity (free play, reading, social outings) went with stronger self-directed executive function, and more structured activity (lessons, chores) with weaker. The authors stress that this is correlation and does not prove that unstructured time causes the difference. A 2026 mixed-methods review of free play and school-aged children's mental wellbeing reported mostly positive impacts, with none negative; I only saw its summary. There is no research on how much boredom is ideal

Sources:

- [Barker et al., 2014, via ScienceDaily](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140618122307.htm)
- [Systematic review](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212657026000474)

## What else is worth knowing?

Unstructured time gives children room to invent, play and rest. A full schedule offers skills and supervision. How much free time you protect, and whether you rescue a bored child, is a matter of values.

## Questions to ask each other

- How do we feel when our child says they are bored?
- How much free time do we want in our child's week?
- What do we do about screens as a cure for boredom?

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General information, not medical advice. Two parents can each answer this and compare: https://www.raisingyourchild.com/explore?cat=emotions-and-resilience&topic=emotions-and-resilience--boredom-and-downtime