Makes You Think...

I came across little e-article in The Bulletin by Alandra Johnson called Parenting: 10 Years of Change. It comments on some of the ways parenting and childhood looks different today compared to a decade ago. The article was written in early 2010, and I was struck thinking about how much faster things have actually been changing this year alone! (The article didn't even mention increased use of lap tops, smart phones, new apps, ipads, e-readers, twitter, augmented reality...) Of course, technology trends have hugely impacted family life since the year 2000, and a few examples were given a nod in the article. Think about some of the impact on parenting... -the amount of quick access and exposure to information at home and at school that is now second nature to most parents and children. (In a word- GOOGLE!) Parents come into Pediatrician offices prepared with research from the internet. Kids are easily able to research and answer homework questions with a quick click. This was not the norm for elementary kids in 2000. -Baby Einstein went from boasting about increasing baby intellect to offering refunds to parents. - it's not unusual to see everyone in the family using a cell phone anytime and anywhere, which is awesome for more frequent family contact, but not so great for teen texting temptations at school and while driving...and there wasn't talk of cyberbullying or sexting a decade ago. -handheld devices are the norm, including video games, ipods, digital photo-sharing -cool things like wii fit and increased awareness of how to stay healthy -communication with blogs that are giving a voice to stay-at-home-moms and others; -Facebook for all ages... It seems to me that parents need to be on the ball like never before to help kids make healthy choices, but what an incredible time to be alive and learning/sharing along with everyone in your family!