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.

This entry was posted on Monday, December 17th, 2007 at 12:13 am and is filed under School Activities. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.