I'm Bored!

"I'm bored!"  
"It's  boring!"
"They will be bored if they have to do ___ again."
  

This is one of those words that is like fingernails on a chalkboard to me.  
Over the years I've heard this way too much from parents and students, let's face it, people everywhere.

It is overused and misused.  I once heard "smart kids don't get bored, they can always find something to do."

Many times that children use the term "bored", it means they are tired or the information is too hard for them.  They don't want to put the effort into what must be done.

Parents use the term to explain misbehavior or when they want to complain that they already learned 'that.'  
So when I say 'smart kids' don't usually get bored (and I whisper it as if it is a bad word), because they can take in the known information and gain confidence they already know it.  They can take their knowledge to a deeper level of understanding.  A self-differentiation, so to speak.
For example, during a lesson about letter sounds, /m/  a student might think "hey my brother's name is  Mark and it begins with /m/.  There's a 'm' in Monday, it must have /m/ sound too."

The brain needs to have a rest at times with all the stimulus around us.  Some children just tune out because of overload.  They need time to process and rest the brain.
Some people are unaware that being quiet and listening is not to be misconstrued as being bored. Children need to learn to put effort into listening and thinking.


And what is wrong about being bored?
I still do NOT like that word and believe that our lives are so filled with activity that just doing nothing for a while is a good thing.  It helps us sort out what else to do, think of things, process, let our minds wander, etc. 

Take time to WONDER.