Do your kinder students

[Runnergirl04]

Say ”this is boring?” I am working with a kindergartener who only wants to play.
We sing, dance, move around, and keep activities changing quickly.

Any suggestions?

 

[hiker1]

A simple, "Too bad. this is what we are doing." Then walk away.

 

[Sbkangas5]

I often ask them what they mean when they say something is boring. 90% of the time they have no idea. They are just parroting something that gets a reaction.

 

[PPCDTeacher]

I have had a couple say that as well. And i tell them, guess what. We are doing it anyway. But i also find ways to challenge them a little bit.

 

[Keltikmom]

I agree with sgkangas in that a 5 year old really doesn’t know what being bored means. I usually found they just wanted to do something else, something more fun and less work OR they were struggling with the lesson and didn’t want to admit it.

frankly, I have a sarcastic personality, but I would reign it in when a kinder said they were bored. Take a few minutes to dig down to the real reason.

 

[Runnergirl04]

Thank you all for your suggestions. It’s pretty much what I figured. I think the work for her isn’t challenging as much as it’s hard for this particular student. Since I don’t have experience working with kindergartners it made me wonder where a kindergardener would pick up a sentiment such as I am bored.

 

[luvtulearn]

Sometimes I find it is over stimulation too. So much going on they have a hard time filtering it all and then they shut down or turn their brains off. To them it's boring when their brains stop filtering or processing.

 

[all41]

OMG yes! I have a kiddo this year that finds everything boring. He refuses to write his name because it's boring, even when I give him the option of using markers, crayons, or colored pencils. He won't participate in our PA activities because they are boring. Playtime is boring and so are the iPads. Walking in line to lunch is boring. He is bored all the time with everything, even gym time. I can't figure out why. I do not think this is a case of improper work load, but instead an attention getting behavior. I have ignored him and avoided any direct comment to his proclamation of boredom and am firm with my redirection back to his task when he is not doing what he is supposed to be doing. I have spoken to his mom about this behavior and she tells me he does this at home too. She said she is constantly having to entertain him and his every whim. Hmmm....

Yesterday in gym class he very loudly told me he didn't want to play the game because it was boring. I very sweetly said, "Ahh, well that's fine. You don't have to play today. Please go sit on that bench and I will get you when we are done." His facial expression was comical as he tried to change his mind and play. He sat on the bench for 20 minutes watching his friends play a very fun game. He tried to tell me he wanted to play but I ignored him. Hopefully he will think twice before he tries that again.

 

[anna]

I always respond with "what can you do about feeling bored?" Give the child acknowledgment of their feelings and then move on very quickly.

 

[Haley23]

I haven't heard that a ton- mostly kids asking to do something else that is a preferred activity for them, and I just say, "This is what we're doing right now" or "we'll get to that (the preferred activity)" (if that's true, of course).

Last year I did have a student on the spectrum who said that all of the time. To be fair, she had no business being in my resource class and the work WAS boring/way below her level. She was already reading and we were doing basic PA skills and letter names/sounds. And obviously she didn't have much of a "filter" socially. She had to stay awhile because of the way her IEP from preschool was written. Unfortunately, her classroom teacher didn't really understand ASD and wasn't supportive of the change in services, so it took awhile for me to gather enough "evidence" that a resource placement wasn't right for a student who didn't need any academic help. Thankfully she's now thriving in 1st grade. In her case, I would try and respond with, "Well, it's not boring for everyone, and saying that makes our friends feel bad."