Forced Adulthood And No Play, Makes Johnny A Very Dull Boy…

Forts, Barbie, Lego, Puppy-In-My-Pocket, Hopscotch – all forgotten terms in the vocabulary of children today. Gadgets, Google and social sites such as Facebook are leading children to mature much faster than in previous generations.

The majority of parents in a recent poll – where 2000 parents with children aged between 8 and 12 were surveyed – admitted they are concerned their children are growing up too quickly, and 77% blamed the web!

Children don’t know how to play anymore – not anything besides Candy Crush at least… The typical 10-year-old now has an iPad and a TV in their room and a phone or tablet permanently attached to their tiny hands. More than 70% of children under the age of 12 years old now search the web unsupervised. In an era of technological and media advances, children are often portrayed as little adults. Let us face the facts though dear parents: even at the age of 18 when most of us left the house to study or start our own lives and careers, we were not nearly equipped, or grown up enough to understand the stresses that adulthood kept a secret from us.

With adult stresses, come ailments and if children are offered the opportunity to experience these, they will also be heavily affected in a very negative way. Psychiatric units these days look like Willy Wonka’s sweet shop, filled with a special breed of troubled youngsters. From depression, ulcers, sleep disorders and eating disorders to suicide tendencies… Yes, these are the ailments of adult stresses that take their toll on the youth of today. Teachers, how many learners sit in your class each morning bright-eyes and bushy-tailed thanks to the anxiety meds and mood stabilisers? In saying that, I am not implying that there aren’t children who truly have medical conditions that don’t require medication or professional help, but the amount of children who are on meds by the age of as young as 4, is shocking!

And this all forms part of the fact that children don’t have the one responsibility that they actually have to account for: just being a kid – riding a bike, baking cookies in the mud and running around like little lunatics outside with their friends playing touchers. Play is such an important part of childhood and must not be hurried or transformed into a job. In essence, pure play is needed to reduce stress and experience joy. Joy is licking an ice-cream cone on the grass and not worrying that it is not an organic one that is going to make you pick up weight at the age of 8! Adults must not turn play into work and children shouldn’t be taught in times where they are playing. In effect, play fosters creativity better than toys bought at the latest Reggie store. Self-expression is very important. Childhood is a significant part of life, and it should be both respected and valued. Children are entitled to their childhood and should not be hurried through this stage.

Parents, also don’t forget the old-fashioned important aspects why your darlings should play outside:

1. Builds up their immune system:
   It’s no surprise that many children that are raised on, or around, a farm are generally healthier than those that aren’t. This is because on a regular basis these children are exposed to dirt, animals, pests, bacteria and everything else that send modern-day parents running. While we like to think that dirt, animals, pests and bacteria do more harm than good it’s actually the opposite.
2. Provides exercise:
   Playing outside provides children with something many children don’t get enough of anymore – exercise. Exercising while having fun is the best kind of exercise, and that’s exactly what playing outside does and it prevents you having to buy your little tyke garments from Rent-a-Tent…
3. Stimulates the imagination:
   Sadly, one of the things that today’s children are lacking is an imagination. This is because we’re in the technological age – today children are literally shown everything. Why go outside and play cops and robbers when we can watch a movie about it or play a video game?
4. Promotes problem-solving skills:
   Children who play outside learn how to solve real life problems better than children who are always in their rooms playing video games or secluding themselves. Your boss isn’t going to help you solve your shopping problems one day!
5. Provides Vitamin D:
   It’s important that children get Vitamin D, which is provided by the sun. Vitamin D helps promote better moods, energy levels, memory, overall health and more, it will also help you save significantly on the Dis-Chem bill. Just 10-15 minutes out in the sun will do the trick!

Be a responsible parent and do the right thing, if you want to raise an adult, adopt one!