Lily
Goderator ☠️
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Your idea of childhood is age appropriate and from a much different world. These kids are growing up with a natural AND a digital world.
Mine did (and do) a variety of everything. We spend a ton of time outside. We do projects like growing butterflies, making landscapes, painting, using rocks and leaves....going to the local parks (there are bigger ones here).
Then they also have screen time. Now there are more educational games and apps (Squish likes ABC mouse).
When I teach them about navigating the world, the digital world has to be included because it's a big part of life now.
I'm a gen xer so my childhood looks MUCH different than my children's (gen zs and a gen alpha) childhood. I was thrown out of the house and stayed out running the streets with a gang of other kids until the street lights came on.
Childhood is brief yes but it's a time when they are constantly learning and preparing for the next stages of their life. I'm not saying you do this but some people who say that "childhood is just a short time and I want them to be children" really infantize their kids and the kids end up kinda....spoiled, chronic babies who struggle to adjust.
My 7 year old is very much a 7 year old. But I let her cook and do chores. She scrambles her own eggs, makes sandwiches and bakes from scratch (all with super vision...I don't just let her have at the stove all by herself no matter how bad she wants me to). Some would say she's "growing too fast"....and I would disagree. 7 year olds are very smart, capable and competent when given the chance and when they wanna earn some respect they take it very seriously. They wanna be seen as "big kids"....and be able to retreat back to the safety of being the baby.
It's a great age to teach things like boundaries, consent, responsibilities. And it sticks.
I'm a Gen Xer too.
You know who doesn't give their kids screen time? The children of the people in Silicon Valley. They want your kids, my grandkids to be plugged in so they make money off of them.
They don't want it for their kids. The most exclusive school in Silicon Valley has no computers for kids, no tablets, etc.
They want their kids to be critical thinkers...and fuck everyone else's kids.
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