I’m sure you have heard people say, “My kids can’t make it to the store without their DVD player or DS.” Yikes! When did a 5 minute trip in the car become a time for entertainment?
Recently my husband and I took our twin 6-year-old boys on a vacation that included 1,886 miles on the road (in 7 days) without electronics. What happened? Stories, poems (yes poems!), artwork, geography, games, photography, reading and listening of books and some good old-fashioned quiet time. Here’s their newest friend from the trip!
As kids are growing they are taking their cues from us as adults. When we set them in front of electronics as a means to pacify or/and entertain them we are robbing them of a chance to build their skills. Skills such as patience, imagination, creativity, peacefulness, self-discipline, decision-making skills, critical thinking etc. are first fostered in childhood.
Raising healthy children means providing them with opportunities to build their skills.
The biggest skill a car ride teaches, PATIENCE! In this society of fast food, fast cars, cheap food and clothes so much is tangible that not many kids have to wait (or work) for anything. Within the very first violin lesson I teach, it is easy to tell how people parent by how their child responds in the lesson.
As a violin teacher my job is to use my skills as a violinist to provide an environment for a student to learn something new -how to play the violin. Over the last 10 years I have noticed a marked increase in the number of kids who expect me, their violin teacher, to entertain them. Unfortunately I am not alone. Many, many, many conversations have been shared with other string teachers about how kids are expecting a, “song and dance.” They want to be entertained. Period.
How does this happen?
Well-meaning parents begin by finding the coolest toy for their new baby or toddler. The toy that lights up and has all the bells and whistles. Well-meaning parents are attaching DVD players to the back of their headrests to make a long car trip go by faster. Well-meaning parents see TV time as a good “break” from parenting or as a way to distract kids. Caught up in social norms of the heavy presence of electronics many parents don’t stop to think about it. In reality, these actions are unconsciously telling kids,”you do not have the skills to handle this situation.”
DVD’s and DS etc. on car rides. Sure they “pass” the time, but how or when will your child learn how to pass the time on their own without being entertained? As mentioned earlier, the seemingly innocent act of using electronics as a time passer leads to a lack of skills.
You may be saying, “but when I was a kid I hated long car trips.” Yes, you may have, but you were building life skills without knowing it.
What is our economy going to need in the next 10 years? People who can think out of the box. Someone who can be innovative. New businesses are launched by entrepreneurs. Are we preparing kids for that world, or are we just pacifying them?
Leave A Response