I also invited them to make suggestions on how I could best help them in class. Do they work better near the front of the room? Do they respond better to pair or group activities? Or perhaps they, like me, are introverts, and enjoy working alone? Loading I avidly read these letters for hints and tips that would help me create a positive learning environment in my classrooms. So, when I stumbled across the suggestion that I could best help a particular student by not making the class do “boring stuff” I took it seriously. Sure, I could have immediately stripped my lesson planning of all instruction on spelling, punctuation, grammar and NAPLAN preparation, for even I believe that has the potential to be “boring stuff”. (Except of course when we do spelling I like to make funny jokes about every word. Well I amuse myself at least. I’m not sure about my students).

But the longer I’ve had to think about this comment the more telling I find it to be. Because the student who wrote it was not being a smart-arse. They are a delightful young person who I have taught previously. They did well in English, always put in their best effort and achieved positive results. They participated enthusiastically in class, engaged with others well and were always polite and respectful. Why then, I wondered, did they take the opportunity in the letter to ask me to ensure there would be no moments of boredom in English this year? Why is boredom cause for concern? When did doing “boring stuff”, become something to be avoided at all costs? Perhaps it was when as a culture we decided that children needed to have hectic schedules that accounted for every spare minute of the day. A number of students wrote to me about how busy they were with sport, dancing, drama, music, fishing and lifesaving to the point where it might affect their ability to complete their homework.

In one instance a student was doing around 3-5 hours of sport every day! I was exhausted for them as I read their letter. Loading Why are their lives so intensely structured? Why are so many young people whisked off to before and after school activities? When do they find time to do nothing and make discoveries about their world on their own? Boredom, I decided, is something that needs to be embraced. And we can only become bored when we slow down. When we stop flicking from one activity to the next in a desperate bid to appear important because we’re so busy. Sometimes, it’s essential to let yourself have nothing to do. To invite boredom into your life. To sit. To think. To let your mind wander. For these are the times when new ideas might spark.