Stop blaming technology! Blame the Parents!

I see so many news articles, blog posts, vlogs and social media statuses about how children of today are becoming obsessed with technology. Children are spending more and more time locked away in their bedrooms alone whilst they surf the internet, spend time on social media and chat with their friends online.

Family meal times and conversations are in decline as children and their parents would rather sit and stare at their phones whilst eating instead of making conversation about their day or life in general.

What’s happening to us?

So many parents complain about the amount of time their children spend online, yet when we take a closer look, it appears that the parents are just as guilty.

However, we also have to question who gave our children this technology in the first place? Who buys them their mobile phones, tablets and laptops? Who pays the phone and internet bill?

It’s us! Their parents!

We gave them access to the internet. We bought them technology. Whether that be a games console with a 12 month online membership or a contract phone. We did this and now we’re reaping what we sow!

We’re the ones that dictate how long our children can spend online, so let’s limit it!

I’m not saying that all technology is bad by the way. It’s a great discovery tool, and there are lots of educational resources online, but when children spend hours at a time watching silly videos, playing silly games and are spending time ‘painting’ and ‘drawing’ on their tablets, we need to take action!

Instead of letting your child ‘paint’ or ‘draw’ on a device, why not get the paints and pencils out for them to do it for real? You could sit in the garden and ask them to paint or draw what they see. This is so much better than them staring at a screen.

When I was little I would be in the garden right up until it was time for me to go to bed. As I got older, I’d stay outdoors right up until the second I had to be home. I really want to bring this kind of childhood. So let’s put the technology away – mums and dads I’m talking your technology too! Let’s lead by example! Let’s find things to do that don’t involve technology.

Here are some crazy ideas!

A walk

Trip to the park, farm or zoo

Museum

A bus or train ride

Go to the theatre

We can do this!

We have a garden that hasn’t been in properly since the summer of last year! Why? Because it’s too cold. There’s no such thing as too cold! Let’s wrap up warm and bounce on the trampoline, run around the garden and play football!