My absolute favourite part of Christmas is watching my kids tear into the contents of their stockings on Christmas morning. Santa's obviously got lots of time on his hand (or LOTS of elves) as he tends to wrap all the little stocking gifts so it takes a good while to get through everything.
But it seems we're the exception to the rule – according to new research, 58% of children pause for less than two minutes between opening presents on Christmas Day, and only one quarter of parents feel their child truly appreciates each gift they receive.
The study also found that children’s heartrates can soar to 163bpm when opening gifts – a heart rate that matches that of an adult doing a High Intensity Exercise class.
Children’s toy retailer The Entertainer conducted a national survey to find out how quickly most children tear through the present pile on Christmas Day morning. The research shows the average child is likely to receive 24 presents in total this Christmas yet over half (58%) will spend less than forty-five minutes opening them all – waiting an average of just 1.88 minutes before they move on to the next gift.
This frenzied opening appears to be the case in most households as 1 in 8 parents say their child doesn’t even stop to look and play with the gift they’ve opened before moving on to the next. It’s little wonder that only one quarter (26%) of parents feel certain that their child appreciates every single gift that they receive. The Entertainer shared the results of the survey with a child psychologist and asked her to share tips for ensuring kids pause between opening presents.
Dr Sonya Wallbank said: “The key is to lengthen the present opening process so that your child is able to think and appreciate the gift that they have been given rather than just plowing through in a frenzied excitement. Try different techniques to see what works for your family; taking it in turn to open gifts is a great way for families to take their time over the present opening part of the day.”
On present appreciation, Dr Wallbank explained: “Children learn from the examples that we set them. One of the best ways to teach children about gratitude is by expressing it ourselves. By encouraging them to slow down and take their time, we can emphasise the significance of each gift that they receive.”
To encourage present appreciation this Christmas, Dr Wallbank provided the following 5 top tips:
- Don’t just pile all the gifts and let your child rip through them; get them to tell you about the gift they have just opened and share what they like about it, giving them time to say thanks.
- Turn taking is great; if you have siblings, take it in turns to open gifts with other family members.
- Leave the ‘most wanted’ gift until last; excitement tends to peak when opening a most wanted gift, so by leaving it until last, it will help spread out the excitement and not allow your child to ‘peak’ too early on Christmas morning.
- Think about how you wrap the gifts; Lengthening the time taken in opening the gift through intricate wrapping can be just as much fun as the gift itself.
- Spend time after opening the gifts to look properly with your child at what they got; once the excitement of the gift opening is over, taking your time to play with the gifts with your child; that time is invaluable.
To learn more about the effect opening gifts has on children’s excitement levels, The Entertainer conducted a social experiment where children were given ten presents to open whilst monitoring their heart rates using wearable technology. Results from the experiment showed that heart rates typically increased between 7% to 25% of their resting heart rates.
In one instance, a child’s heart rate rose as high as 163bpm from a resting rate of 98bpm, mimicking the type of results an adult would expect to see when doing a high intensity workout.
We'd love to hear your thoughts on this story. How do you help your kids slow down and savour opening gifts on Christmas Day? Share your tips and come and join the conversation over on our Facebook page.
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