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Internet personality and mother of seven kids, Hannah Keeley, is encouraging parents to let their children 'run wild' this summer after having such strict school schedules.
"I think a powerful question is 'Why not [let your kids run wild]?'" says Hannah Keeley, America's #1 Mom Coach, founder of Mom Mastery University, bestselling author, speaker, and the host of the PBS reality series, Hannah, Help Me! "Sometimes as moms, we ask why because it's got to make sense to us. But I think 'Why Not?' puts us in a position that opens up a different part of our brain."
Keeley says that the natural state for a child is to live in curiosity and creativity, but too much structure can actually detract from that.
"In a lot of children, we're seeing this thing called structure fatigue. Now we've taken our adult lives, our template of, wake up at this time and go to work. And then I do this and we've kind of overlaid it on our children. A child is naturally fluid and creative and curious by nature. And now they're having to adapt to the structure. And we're seeing legitimate stress occur in children."
Keeley says that having seven children to raise has opened up her idea of needing to hold control.
"When I had one, my 'wild limits' were very limited. When you have seven, it's like, 'Is everyone alive and breathing?' When you allow children to be their wild selves, you see something so beautiful come out. You see the light come back in their eyes."
'Boredom is Not a Problem'
Keeley says that when children are bored, it actually creates a moment of opportunity for kids.
"Boredom is not a problem. It's really a portal, yet by and large children do not have an opportunity to be bored. Step into any waiting room and it's like a button, as soon as you sit down, you're on your phone. We are constantly distracted. Boredom is essential and unfortunately, we're robbing our children of that."
Another aspect of running wild, according to Keeley, is that learning occurs, often effortlessly.
"Sometimes we think a learning environment has to be structured. It has to be a camp. It has to be a class, or a book, a program. But learning can also be so integrated in with our lives I've seen."
Keeley is an author of many books, including Mom Fog: 8 Steps to Overcoming Mom Fatigue Syndrome.