Bored Children

Constant advertisement marketing to the child population has impressed on them the fact that they “need” the Xbox 360. They “need” a PSP. They “need” all these expensive electronic gadgets to play in a more realistic environment which eliminates the imaginary vision that they once had to utilize.

Well, a few points...

The "I'm bored" phenomenon is not new. And neither is the marketing. As my mother was always fond of reminding me, I once asked her, "Mommy, why are we the only people who don't believe the TV?" after one of her lessons on "remember when you got that <insert old toy here> and it wasn't like they showed on TV? Do you really think you "need" this <insert latest toy here>?" That is, as a little squirt, I had recognized that many of my peers didn't have the guidance and patience of my parents.

Secondly, I have noticed that parents seem less creative these days. Often, there are two parents working [as an aside, think about the credit our capitalist system should get for absorbing a doubling of the workforce and still keeping our wages so inflated over the global market!] and less time for teaching kids how to observe and experience the world around them. It's not just reading that helps a young kid, but learning to notice textures, colors, behaviors of materials, subtle distinctions, etc., that all play into differences between what two people observe in their world. While I as a county boy might not notice or understand as much going on around me in a city as someone who grew up there, I guarantee that I'd notice more than someone who didn't have parents and teachers who took the time and energy to teach me to experience the world. (Plus, you're competing with peer pressure from kids with parents who use the purchase of a gadget as a proxy for love, attention, and time with their kids.)

There are other points, including the safety of the outdoors these days, distance from nature, desensitization, demographic changes, etc., but my advice would be to teach your kids how to discover interesting things in the world other than gadgets. Teach them to recognize that what their peers have is a poor substitute for the love and care that you provide to your children...and that they are the blessed ones, and the others who brag about the PS3, etc., are just envious. Note, I'm not denying the allure of technology...even way back when, my entry in the college freshman listing showed my interests as "Hunting, Computers"... (meaning real-world hunting as well as computers...this was way before Big Game Hunter or similar games were released! :-)

And with a good understanding of how to observe and learn, even a rainy day without outdoor activities can be interesting when they discover how to create games of their own from a pack of golf tees or a handful of change.

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