(Without Using Screens or Becoming Your Kid’s Personal Entertainment Director)

My book comes out on January 13th and this offer expires on the 12th. Preorder But I'm Bored for $28, send your receipt to ButImBored@penguinrandomhouse.com, and get 6 months of Something Playful, my paid tier of substack, for free ($30 value).

Independent play isn’t a fluke.
It’s not a personality trait or a magic toy or something you luck into if your kid happens to love dinosaurs and Magna-Tiles.

(But yes, some kids indeed learn how to play independently more easily than others.)

It’s a skill.
One your child can build.
And one you can support, without becoming the all-day entertainer.

I've spent over a decade studying play, raising three kids, and coaching thousands of families, and honestly? Parents are the real experts. You know your kid's tells. Their rhythms.

There is no one-size-fits-all formula. Children are unique, life ebbs and flows, and some seasons require more screen time than others.

And yet- independent play matters. It matters not only for your child’s development, but for the well-being of your entire family.

So while I will not offer you a formula, I will give you a framework you can bend to fit your actual life.

If you want to see more independent play in 2026, it starts with how you show up.

Here’s what’s in this post:

• The five mindset shifts that helped me go from constant entertainer to confident play guide
• How to respond when your kid says “I’m bored” for the fifth time before lunch
• Why boredom isn’t a red flag — and what it means when you stop rushing to fix it
• Where play actually happens (hint: it’s not always the playroom)
• A simple one-liner that invites storytelling without stealing the lead

If you’re craving more self-led play and fewer all-day interruptions, this one’s for you.

Grab your coffee and keep reading:

Here are five things I changed in my own home, and what I teach every parent I work with:

1. I protected time for play the same way I protected time for sports and enrichment.

If the only time they get to play is after everything else is done, they learn to treat it like an extra.
It’s not. It’s foundational.
Start blocking space for it on purpose.

2. I stopped seeing play as “cute” and started seeing it as communication.

The way they arrange the animals.
The way they care for the baby doll or defeat the lava monster or pretend to be the teacher.
That’s telling you what they’re processing. Watch it. Listen to it.

3. I ditched the idea that toys belonged in the playroom.

Play doesn’t just happen behind a closed door.
It happens in the kitchen while you’re making dinner.
On the floor of the living room.
Next to you while you’re replying to emails.
Bring the toys into the spaces where life is happening.

4. I quit being the entertainer and became the mirror.

You don’t have to perform.
You don’t have to narrate every move or make it Pinterest-worthy.
Try: “Tell me what happens next.”
That one line supports their story without stealing the lead role.

5. I embraced boredom.

Not as a problem to solve.
Not as a parenting failure.
But as a sign that I was doing something right.
Boredom comes before productive, creative play. (Of course, there's nuance—plenty of it. That's the book.)

My kids are teens now. But the foundation we built still shows up in who they’re becoming.

If I could give every parent one goal for this year, it’s this:
More space.
More boredom.
More self-led play.

My first book But I’m Bored comes out January 13th.
It’s packed with these kinds of shifts, stories, and strategies to help your kid play more and need you less while they do it.

If you haven’t preordered yet, you can grab it here (and yes, it helps more than you know).

Let’s make 2026 the year we stop entertaining 24/7 and start making room for real play so that we can give our kids back the childhood they deserve.

Thank you for being here. I am wishing you and yours an easy 2026.

x. Lizzie

5 Ways to See More Independent Play at Home In 2026