I loved the depth of this article because I would be so quick to say that my youth sans any kind of electronic devices was exceptional insofar as my freedom and ability to create my own fun. The only demand from my parents was to be home by dinner time. And I was never allowed the luxury of sitting in front of the TV on weekends. It was up, do your chores such as mandatory cleaning and then out the door. I lived by a large river, pond and park so endless opportunities for swimming, boating, ice skating, sledding, riding bikes, climbing trees, pick up games of baseball, tennis and basketball. Very active and lots of kids to play with. Shocking by today’s standards because my parents never really knew where or what we were doing! I loved my childhood but when I entered my catholic school, it was a disaster of stifling rules, regulations and rote memorization learning. Culture shock for sure! I certainly don’t know the answers here. I did not enroll my own kids in a lot of activities when they were young. We did a lot of outdoor explorations in nature, went to the library, museums and they took an art class each summer with friends. They got to play a lot. I did not allow the very early addition such as video games, which caused initial arguments but I held fast. In my opinion, I think they had a good balance. I feel for my kids now as they have families and have to navigate this new, very technological world.
As a former teacher of high school students, social media and phones have a major impact in young and older children. What resonated with me was—
“Caregiver mental health is by far the strongest predictor of childhood mental health,” Odgers said.
Odgers is spot on in my opinion. Again and again this proves to be true.
As for outdoor “free”
activity—it is key in the well-being of mental health. So everyone, get outside and play!
I loved the depth of this article because I would be so quick to say that my youth sans any kind of electronic devices was exceptional insofar as my freedom and ability to create my own fun. The only demand from my parents was to be home by dinner time. And I was never allowed the luxury of sitting in front of the TV on weekends. It was up, do your chores such as mandatory cleaning and then out the door. I lived by a large river, pond and park so endless opportunities for swimming, boating, ice skating, sledding, riding bikes, climbing trees, pick up games of baseball, tennis and basketball. Very active and lots of kids to play with. Shocking by today’s standards because my parents never really knew where or what we were doing! I loved my childhood but when I entered my catholic school, it was a disaster of stifling rules, regulations and rote memorization learning. Culture shock for sure! I certainly don’t know the answers here. I did not enroll my own kids in a lot of activities when they were young. We did a lot of outdoor explorations in nature, went to the library, museums and they took an art class each summer with friends. They got to play a lot. I did not allow the very early addition such as video games, which caused initial arguments but I held fast. In my opinion, I think they had a good balance. I feel for my kids now as they have families and have to navigate this new, very technological world.
As a former teacher of high school students, social media and phones have a major impact in young and older children. What resonated with me was— “Caregiver mental health is by far the strongest predictor of childhood mental health,” Odgers said. Odgers is spot on in my opinion. Again and again this proves to be true.
As for outdoor “free” activity—it is key in the well-being of mental health. So everyone, get outside and play!
This is an interesting debate and so important because our children’s mental health depends upon figuring it out.
I agree, it’s such a complex and compelling subject. Really well written.