Getting DS to play by himself

[HomeMeasurements]

My DS (recently 4) has become atrocious at playing by himself. When he was a bit younger and I was home on maternity leave with DD he was brilliant. I think this is because I was trying to do a lot plus DD was very difficult so he was often left to his own devices and adapted well to it.

We now have a FT nanny and he cannot do something on his own for five seconds. I don't blame her of course but I'm sure it's because she is so brilliant and hands on. I can't exactly ask her to ignore him for the sake of ignoring him.

I'd really appreciate some tips on this, toys that are good, ways to organise the house etc so things are accessible maybe?

I saw this Facebook post recently which I thought was a good idea.

dirtandboogers.com/mommy-will-you-play-with-me/

Could you start encouraging something like quiet time, where he plays on his own in his bedroom/playroom for a while? If he has something like a Gro Clock you can try setting it so that he has an end time to play to, and then a reward chart or something similar for when he manages to play on his own. Then you can gradually build up for 10 minutes, 15 minutes etc through to a time you both like.

We do this with DD (just a few months younger) and it's a lifesaver, as I think we all appreciate that 45 minutes of respite from everyone. As long as she takes a snack and a drink in her room with her she is happy to close the door and amuse herself for a while. It took a few weeks to get to a reasonable time, mind. But now she's comfortable with "quiet time". she seems happier to play on her own at different times during the day.

www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/200901/how-ruin-children-s-play-supervise-praise-intervene

Interesting read. tThere are some other great articles on the site saying why it is important for adults to stay out of childrens play.
If you ask Nanny to not play all the time it's not for the sake of it, it's for his sake.