Happenings

I read an article in the paper today titled A New Era of Play - all about the way kids learn and play in our digital world. I find the ideas interesting and fascinating. I remember as a child spending hours upon hours sitting outside reading a book, wandering through the neighborhood, and very little time spent engaged with any type of technology. There was maybe an hour of TV a day if I was lucky and while we got our first home computer when I was in 3rd grade there weren’t many programs available for kids to use, and there certainly weren’t any hand held gaming devices or Wiis (hey-we were impressed with Atari and the simple fact that we could go and RENT VHS videos to watch at home-that was of course if you were lucky enough to own a VCR). I can see so many benefits to the technology of today’s world, and kids are definitely learning differently because of it. Every thing is faster, and information is so easy to access…which is good…I think. I wonder though if “different”, while not bad, is necessarily good. Are we losing an important balance between being connected technologically with the world and being connected emotionally? Everything in technology is fast paced, kids don’t have to wait for anything…it’s all at their fingertips in an instant. Their minds process information quickly at a rapid fire pace…but is that truly thinking or is it just a reaction? Is that the direction our entire world is heading? Is that where we want to go? Or is there something to be said for the simplicity of a technology-free world if even for a fleeting moment? Can we find a balance between the two? The book, Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv addresses this exact issue. The thought that I find myself wondering about is whether or not the increased technology and decreased “natural experiences” is hurting our kids in anyway. It’s not an easy question to answer, and while I’m not sure where exactly I stand on this, I can tell you as a parent that I try to find a balance for my own kids and it seems to be working. They have enough technology to quench their thirst and keep them “caught up” with their friends, but they also know the value of nature. They have sat and watch a caterpillar for 30 minutes to see him climb up a tree, they have quietly followed a deer through the woods, they have sat patiently for hours on the edge of a lake waiting for the fish to bite, they have sat beneath the trees doing nothing at all. Interestingly enough, they seem to enjoy these things as much as they do their video games.

My “To Do” list for the weekend is huge!  There is the usual-laundry, bills, checkbook, clean, lesson plans, homework for the kids, shopping, etc-and then there’s the kid’s picture appointment tomorrow.  I have so much to do that I really don’t have any business taking any down time-but I did just that today and I’m so glad I did.

This afternoon, my fellow Girl Scout Leaders and I “kidnapped” 9 of our 10 girls (and my son too!) and took them out for a surprise “night on the town”.  We started off by taking them to B.J.’s for dinner.  The girls really kept to themselves and enjoyed each other’s company, which was nice because it gave me the opportunity to dote on my son a bit (he doesn’t get that very often since he’s the youngest and always has to share me with his sister and my students).  After a leisurely dinner, we took the group to see “Enchanted” the latest Disney movie.  The movie itself was cute, with a happily ever after ending (what else would you expect?).  The evening was finished with a trip to Marble Slab for ice cream-YUM!

It was very relaxing, very simple, and very quiet (completely unexpected considering we had 9 girls with us!)  But I found that the entire time I was there with the kids and my friends, I didn’t once think about the long list of tasks awaiting me.  It was nice to just sit back and enjoy each other’s company and not stress over all the the little things that are looming over me.  I really need to find time to do this more often…it’s going to take some reprogramming of my thought processes though-I guess not everything on my list needs to be “crossed off”!