Include this in Your Daily Lesson Plans
From Sam Burgess’s May 8th Substack:
We’ve normalized over consumption.
Podcasts while walking.
Doomscrolling on the toilet.
Netflix while eating.
Something is always filling the silence.
We’re becoming scared of our own thoughts.
Our minds have no breathing space.
We’re feeling groggy and mentally exhausted.
Of course we are.
Boredom is the cure.
Sam’s short post led me to make a life style change. In previous posts I’ve written about the value of regular walking. It’s something I do every day. Sometimes with a ruck plate carrier to add a fitness dimension. Reinforcing this habit are our two dogs who expect to be on the trail behind our house by sunrise.
My big change. Listening to podcasts while walking is no longer part of my morning routine. Do I miss them? Yes. But “the content” is waiting for me to access it any time. It’s always ready to go along with my 40 + podcast/Substack subscriptions that I pick and choose from. What I’m gaining by cutting this out is hearing the forest behind our home “walk up” and transition from night to day. My awareness and sensitivity to what’s going on is slowly being restored.
Our brains never get a break.
When we and our children unplug from the digital world, we make space to plug in and appreciate the real world. I know I’m not alone in this experience.
Include the experience of non-digital, unscripted, physical activities into your student’s daily course of study. I know your kids may say to you, “We’re bored.” Probably true! But, as Sam suggests, boredom may be the cure to the endless notifications, clickbait subject lines, and curated advertising we’re all subjected to. It may be part of the answer to finding our way back to more healthy relationships, a realistic sense of time, and our place in the world God created.
Thanks for reading!
Curt Bumcrot, MRE
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