Johnny can read. But he doesn’t know how to play.

In the old days, kids made swords out of tree branches and spaceships out of cardboard boxes. Their imaginations ran wild. They tromped through the woods and invented new worlds. But, in the 1950’s, the marketers got involved.  They showed the kids amazing new toys. The Lone Ranger six-shooter. Malibu Barbie. Matchbox Cars. These things are so fully realized that once a kid gets his hands on one, no further imagination is needed. The toy does all the work. Play stopped being an “activity,” and became a “thing.”

Then the baby boomers grew up and became uber-parents. They schedule every minute of a kid’s life and monitor her every move. Sports leagues, but no pick up games. Play dates, but no free play time. Karate class, but no kicking back. Today’s kids have no down time, no chance to get bored, and no opportunity to develop anything on their own. And they are suffering for it.

A new book by Brown University historian Howard Chudacoff concludes that, when kids don’t learn how to play, they don’t learn how to think. Today’s kids lack “self-regulation,” the ability to determine their own agenda. A recent study shows that today’s 7-year olds can’t sit still and think for longer than 3 minutes. But once they get moving, they don’t know what to do next. So they fidget, but they don’t explore. They literally don’t know what to do with themselves. Educators are realizing that some of today’s smartest kids are struggling because they simply lack the ability to dream on their own.

What’s a parent to do? We recommend a highly structured 4-step program: Cancel the enrichment class. Take ‘em out in the yard. Sit ‘em down. And walk away.