elidyce: luckyladylily: ohnoagremlin: itsvondell: off-in-lala-land: You know, if I was a parent, it
elidyce:luckyladylily:ohnoagremlin:itsvondell:off-in-lala-land:You know, if I was a parent, it would be at this point that I’d rip the game from his hands, stash it in my backpack, and force him to enjoy history goddamnit. This vacation cost a lot and the game is only for the hotel and travel time.imagine trying to force someone to think that stonehenge is funtake your kids places they actually want to go instead of getting mad when they quietly self-entertain, he’s not hurting nobody. me & my shitbag siblings would be climbing that fucking thing, gameboy kid is doing alright Some small child: does not yet have the mental development or contextual understanding to appreciate why these particular rocks are extra interesting.Some adult: God I hate that children don’t think like adults! I would force them to pretend they do because I interpret child thought patterns as a personal insult!Child: *looks at rocks for approx. 30 seconds, listens to vaguely interesting story about them for another minute or so, glances at the rocks again, is Now Done.Parent: I understand that your attention span has done all it can with the stimulation provided. Here is your gameboy to keep you entertained while the adults talk about things you don’t find interesting, like the history of very large rocks.Child: *quietly squats down and plays with the gameboy, allowing adults to enjoy their rocks*Parent: I am very glad that I understand to some extent how children’s minds work, or this holiday would be a miserable experience for both of us. How fortunate that I planned ahead to allow my child periods of rest and quiet entertainment during excursions that are primarily for my benefit and enjoyment.As much as I think that a lot of what has been said above is important, I also think as a parent you can make this experience more interesting for your kid and make it so that you can both learn and get something out of it. Yes, kid minds may not be able to fully grapple with the history of places like this but kids’ minds also need to be nurtured to find learning as an exciting and interesting process rather than just “adult stuff”My mom used to bring magic and wonder into places like this and let our imagination run wild while still teaching us respect. Yes, the child may not have the longest attention span or understand what the big deal with some rocks is, but that’s only because you aren’t approaching the situation while keeping fun and lifelong learning in mind. Sure giving the game boy to the kid can let them quietly entertain themselves and get on with it but it also teaches them to look at the world as ‘adult’ rather than being filled with wonder and learning. Tell them stories about stone henge being filled with fairies and magic, keep some truth to it and let their minds do the rest. Allow them to selectively transform their reality into something far greater than the eye can see and watch as they find wonder and learning in things that seem ‘adult’. You can still enjoy the history of it while they enjoy the magic of it. The greatest gift my mom ever gave me was my imagination and the ability to find wonder in learning, I am still reaping the benefits from it today. I would far rather have my child find magic and wonder in the physical world and learn from it, then be trapped in the digital world without truly understanding that magic is all around us. Yes, your kid might not find magic all the time in things and then you can give them the gameboy, but why would you ever want them to lose that spark of magic that can be found even in the dullest of places? -- source link
#parenting#advice#imagination#debate