Tonight with your 9 to 12 year old

The prompt

“What does being bored actually feel like for you, like, in your body or your head?”

What to listen for

A vivid description shows real emotional self-awareness, being able to describe a feeling physically, not just label it, is a skill that helps them manage it better over time.

If boredom sounds more like restlessness or loneliness in disguise, that's worth noting, sometimes 'bored' is the word kids reach for when they actually mean something closer to unsettled or wanting company.

If they say 'it just feels bad, I don't know,' that's a fine start, you can offer a couple of words (itchy, heavy, jittery) to help them find language for it.

What this tells you

This shows you how well your child can name and understand what's going on inside themselves.