You do know if we are not careful, we would have let our children waste their childhoods away staring at screens and not the kind that your grandmama told you not to slam on your way out.
I hear so many of us parents complaining about how our children don’t know childhood as we did, yet we continue to let them waste their time away on electronic devices instead of pushing and encouraging them to go outdoors or explore other creative outlets of play.
*insert black lady emoji with raised hand*
Living in a relatively “safe” neighborhood I do not trust my children to play outside unsupervised for a number of reasons. Primarily the fact that distracted drivers treat the main street through the neighborhood as if it is some kind of drag race thoroughfare, and to think the community thought it better to resurface the tennis courts than to install speed bumps. Add on the fact that we live in a society with predators, and you get the answer to the equation of me not feeling comfortable with just the two of them playing together outside. This puts the pressure on my husband and I to spend time with them outdoors.
I’ve instituted a one charge a week electronic device boot camp where I only charge their devices once a week encouraging them to use their time wisely. One of the activities that I institute when they’ve either used up their charge, or I am trying to save them from the dreaded dead battery prior to the next week’s charge is taking them outside for evening walks.
I find them actually talking to one another, laughing and joking and doing what brothers and sisters do. As the evenings have started to get cooler they are having a great time pointing out fall decorations on neighborhood porches and rushing to find premature fall hued leaves that have fallen to the ground.
I will say I have been enjoying these walks. It’s a time to wind down from the day, enjoy the fall breeze and take in the calm of nature before it gets too cold and then we have to figure something else out, cause there will be no evening walks in the cold.
Have you found effective ways to lessen screen time? Do you allow your children to play outdoors unsupervised?
9 Comments
Amanda
October 13, 2015 at 6:17 pmI don’t allow my kids to play outside by themselves. You can’t trust people nowadays *side-eye*. I’m guilty of not getting out enough for play time with the kiddos but since the weather is getting nicer we may start….Lovely pictures as usual.
Sabrina
October 13, 2015 at 9:30 pmI don’t let mine play outside by themselves either and they get upset sometimes because the neighborhood kids are always running around with not a parent in site. I just can’t be that person. I love your idea of a walk. Today we did scooters and they loved it and I really should do that more often. Great visuals as usual.
kita
October 14, 2015 at 12:59 amI let mine play outside by themselves we have a huge back yard and they know not to go in the front of the house so I am good with that. I still have my windows open though so I can hear them but we don’t go outside as often as we should….I need to be walking too.
Meme
October 14, 2015 at 9:41 amIt took a while for me to allow my boys to play outside alone, but now that I have a teenager and a twelve year old it’s gotten a lot easier giving them a little bit more space to play without Mama or Dad around. We live in a very small gated community so that helps identify the wall they can’t venture out of for any reason. Also, I stress to NEVER go into anyone’s house without permission. In regards to the phones, this is a tough one when they are home on the weekends…very tough! I don’t allow phones until after we all have breakfast together and they’re not allowed (phones) out during conversations or at dinner tables. We are trying to get a system and understand etiquette of phones period but again with a teenager and twelve year old right behind him…tough!
Charlotte
October 14, 2015 at 10:55 amI do not allow my daughter to play outside unsupervised, unless she’s outside in the fenced backyard! I let Neriah use her tablet after school for about 30 -45 min as long as she’s doing something productive with it. ABC MO– USE or something like that. When I was on maternity leave we did get a lot of “outside time” but now that I’m back at work I don’t get out as much during the week. Btw I love the ” one charge a week electronic device boot camp” idea!
Carla
October 14, 2015 at 8:37 pmI have officially cut out tv time during the week and I’m sticking with it this time. My children will watch television, play the game, play on their tablets, or a combo of all three ALL DAY if I let them. Trust me.. I tried it and they did just want I thought they were going to do. My mother would never allow us to do that and if she were alive today and she knew I allowed this to go on, she’d intervene and dare me to say something about it. Next week I’m going to try and incorporate an evening walk a few days a week if I’m feeling a bit better.
And I love that one charge a week idea.
Law_Fal
October 14, 2015 at 10:38 pmLooks so peaceful and that walk is twofold beneficial. It’s a wind down and sneaking a little exercise in as well!
Candace
October 18, 2015 at 7:59 pmWe’re in Brooklyn so…there is no playing outside by yourself but he does use the backyard when the weather is nice. There is no electronics during the week so it’s either a book or some new project we’re working on but summer time around here is fun and the playgrounds make up for it all. I must admit, I am the one normally dragging and not wanting to go to the playground lol #teamhermit
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