There’s Nothing To Do!
Does your child have tons of toys and activities but still complains there’s nothing to do? Check out this book written by Dev Petty and illustrated by Mike Boldt, There’s Nothing To Do! This engaging and interactive picture book is about a frog who gets bored despite his toys and creative ideas from his friends. In the beginning of the book, Frog states, “I don’t know what to do today.” His father asks, “You can’t think of anything?” Frog says, “I can think of lots of things…but I don’t want to do any of them.” Nothing interests him! Swimming, cleaning his room, hopping in circles, sleeping, and all of his ideas from his friends are immediately declined. Finally, his frog friend tells him “to just be”. She tells frog, “Sometimes the best ideas come when you stop looking for them.” Frog finally practices some mindfulness exercises and realizes that doing nothing is doing something!
With text messaging, email, video games, YouTube and social media, it’s hard for children and adults to just sit and be without feeling distracted. As adults, some of us have to try mindfulness exercises to enjoy the feelings of “just being” and “doing nothing”. I myself definitely have this issue!
I loved this book because both children and adults can relate to the dialog between the father frog and his son. I loved the valuable lesson in this book about the value of “to just be” which I think is undervalued in our society. In our society where we are constantly busy and running from place to place, it can sometimes feel unproductive to “just be”. However, “just being” can help foster creativity and help teach mindfulness for all ages!
Language and Learning Tips: When reading this book, focus on the interaction and different color dialog bubbles between the characters in the book. Define specific words as you are reading to help expand vocabulary and help your child recall his friends ideas by reviewing them at the end of the book. Encourage a discussion with your child about the concept of “doing nothing” and discuss the importance of down time without electronics.
Check out Dev Petty’s other book that I reviewed, I Don’t Want To Be Big! here To learn more about Dev Petty, check out her website here.
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