Anyone else’s kids becoming lazy and demotivated??

[Elsia]

This really. Mine are 6 and 3.5. They don’t want to do anything any more. Screen time crept right up so we have started restricting it which was hard at first but ok now. But now all they want to do is play Barbie or Sylvanian Families.

They seem happy enough. They play well together and I am so lucky that they do have each other. But they don’t want to go for walks. They don’t want to play in the snow (every bloody child in the street was out in their garden and they did a ten-minute stint then came back in moaning about the cold). They dont want to do arts and crafts. Sure I can (and do) force them outside but getting them ready is horrifically difficult. It is a fight every single step of the way.

My husband and I are working full time from home. We have no school/nursery place. It’s been very hard. We do an equal shift but to be honest I feel like we have no fight left.

I’m worried they are going to be fat couch potatoes at this rate.

Bump?

Mine are similar age. The fact they like playing together is great!
Could you theme the walk? Take Barbie out in a rucksack on their back or dolls pram? I have snacks as a bribe when we get to destination. Take scooters if you have them. Go on a hunt, collect nature items in a bucket and trade it in for something once home.

My ds's are 12 and 15. They are completely demotivated, even more than normal teenagerness! Both are incredibly fed up with online learning and ds2 (12) didn't even want to do online gaming with his friends today, but he had no idea what else to do. He's currently been in the bath for an hour. I make suggestions of stuff to do like baking or craft, but they don't want to do that, and to be honest I'm relieved as I can be bothered either!

Over half term I am going to spend time with both of them going through their rooms sorting things out and tidying up, I am hoping that this will mean they discover things they'd forgotten about and that will entertain them for a bit.

Your 2 sound fine, at least playing with barbies and sylvanians is using their imaginations. If they are happy I really wouldn't worry. I think everyone has reached the stage where you are just doing whatever to get through. Once the weather is better it will be easier to get out and do things.

I don't blame them. I'm becoming lazy and unmotivated, never mind my kids!

Could Barbie and the Sylvanian families get involved in a wider range of things?

E.g. Barbie has written a treasure hunt/word search for you, the Sylvanian families want you to make them a house/theatre/castle/car out of cardboard, and Barbie would like to see how you make cupcakes/grow cress/colour a picture?

Not at all. We start every day with a spring in our step, jovial laughter and keen to embrace the excitements of the day.

Not really. We’ve become a bit sluggish and unenthusiastic about going out. I’m hoping it’s just a primal hibernation mode or something and we’ll get back to normal next week when the weather is more bearable.

Not at all. We start every day with a spring in our step, jovial laughter and keen to embrace the excitements of the day.

You had me fooled for a moment

I have a 2 and 4 year old and they're the same. The eldest gets her exercise through her keyworker school place 3 or 4 days a week at least, but the youngest is at a childminders and I know they watch TV most of the day at the moment because she has her own children to homeschool.

I am a bit worried that, by the time the restrictions ease, they'll be difficult to motivate again. My 2 year old especially has spent so long indoors now that she isn't keen on going out at all. We can't drive for exercise in Wales and the prospect of walking the same route AGAIN holds no excitement for them these days, scooter or not.

To be honest the six year old has never exactly been an intrepid outdoorsy girl but the three year old had bags of energy and loved (and needed) a good run every day. Now I’m finding if we take the scooters they are fed up less than halfway round and I have to drag them. Also we are under a foot of snow right now but I’m hopeful that’ll clear in the next few days.

I do actually think the 3 year old is becoming a bit funny about going out. The other day I took her up to the corner shop just to get her out for a bit and she clung quietly to my hand the whole time. That’s not like her b

Anxious and quiet more than lazy and demotivated here.

Try Pokemon Go, that'll get them outside.

Mine are even bored of Pokemon Go. I'm forcing myself to play (made it to L41 this week after playing for 4.5 years!)

I haven't attemoted to get them out this week as the wind is so bitter. Will try more when it warms up un the next couple of days

They're bored. I'm bored. My stamina for fighting is worn out because with a 10yo with ASD and a trouser phobia, everything is like UN peace negotiations, and just getting out of the house in this weather without incurring hyporhermia in 15 mins is one battle too many.

I'm playing the long game. Swimming and Karate will return. Outside sports like parkrun return. The weather will warm up, the ground will dry out. We'll get back to a more active lifestyle.

I'd say that's absolutely fine. It's cold outside, so they're indoors and they're learning really important skills in entertaining themselves together without adult help or a screen. Yes they need exercise but there's really nothing intrinsically better about arts and crafts over imaginative play.

Mine are 2 and 4 and I make sure I take them out daily for a run around, we meet their friends in the playground to play with. They are so much more enthused to run around and have fun when with their buddies.

Yes.
And so am I...

It’s not their fault, it’s all just shit

So sad to hear 2, 3 and 4 year old are so demotivated and no longer even want to go outside. This is such an unnatural situation to be forced on them

Yup, my eldest is 10 and used to be a super fit little girl...cross country, gym, football, swimming etc. But we have found that it was clearly the team/class aspect that appeals as right now she would rather sit indoors and watch stuff.

We are keeping our fingers crossed that when things start opening up, and the weather improves she will start coming back around.

My 8 and 3 yr old are normally quite happy to go out, I take them out for something each day, unless the weather is truly horrific.

Mine are the same and so am I. I'm just riding it out until lockdown lifts and school reopens. There are no battles with the teenage DCs - if they want to go out that's great but I won't force it and I'm not restricting screen time. If they were younger, I'd be the same. This is temporary mind crushing boredom and once sport and playtime comes back they'll go back to normal.

Yeah we discussed the screen time thing. We haven’t removed it altogether but the three year old would literally watch people-playing-with-toys videos on YouTube all day if we let her (6 year old isn’t so fussed, she’ll watch for 20 mins then go and do something else). I just can’t allow that. If it wasn’t for lockdown she wouldn’t have been near an iPad at age 2. It makes me feel like such a failure.

Exactly the same here, including the two year old with a tablet which I would never have normally done. Lazy, demotivated, losing fitness so getting tired out and stroppy when I do get them out, just want to stay home and plug into screens. I'm struggling to motivate myself to force "fun" on them when all I can offer us another fucking walk in the cold.