 | by Mollianne Reese, Program Director email Mollianne Kids today can do anything on a cell phone. They can communicate with their friends, take goofy pictures and learn to tie a tie for prom. Cell phones save a great deal of time. No more waiting for the phone to ring, leave a message and wait for the person to get home for your message to be received. Simply send a quick text, “Be home late. ILY!” No need for a long conversation about where you will be or why you’ll be late. No need to even spell out the words “love” and “you.” These wonderful devices help kids learn a lot of skills and save them time, but at what cost? |
An article came across my Facebook last week: “Study: Kids who ditch smartphones for outdoor fun are ‘substantially’ better at reading emotions.” Ferenstein talks about the study done at UCLA. Students were taken to an outdoor camp for 5 days. They played traditional camp games and interacted with other kids their own age, face-to-face. Both before and after this experience, the researchers measured the kids’ ability to read social cues.
As small children we all had to learn the difference between when mommy was crying happy tears and sad tears. We had to know the difference on when dad was angry at us and when he was angry at his football team for getting a turnover. There are a lot of facial expressions and vocal cues that we must learn to fully communicate with those around us. It is difficult to properly communicate emotions through text for most adults. It is nearly impossible for kids to communicate without text without practice.
I am not saying that camp is for everyone. Some people don’t like nature and prefer indoor experiences. I am also not saying that cell phones and technology are bad. Just yesterday I asked my mom if when she was my age, people ended conversations with “I don’t know” instead of “let me Google it.” The important part of this article is that the kids got away from the screens and focused on each other, on faces and people. Spend some time this week away from the screen. Talk to your friends and family. Look them in the face. It will make all the difference in the lives of your children.
Read the original article
Read the research article
As small children we all had to learn the difference between when mommy was crying happy tears and sad tears. We had to know the difference on when dad was angry at us and when he was angry at his football team for getting a turnover. There are a lot of facial expressions and vocal cues that we must learn to fully communicate with those around us. It is difficult to properly communicate emotions through text for most adults. It is nearly impossible for kids to communicate without text without practice.
I am not saying that camp is for everyone. Some people don’t like nature and prefer indoor experiences. I am also not saying that cell phones and technology are bad. Just yesterday I asked my mom if when she was my age, people ended conversations with “I don’t know” instead of “let me Google it.” The important part of this article is that the kids got away from the screens and focused on each other, on faces and people. Spend some time this week away from the screen. Talk to your friends and family. Look them in the face. It will make all the difference in the lives of your children.
Read the original article
Read the research article
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