We live in a world where everyone voluntarily carries a powerful tracking device with us everywhere we go. Most of us wouldn’t dream of giving it up. We love the fact that “getting lost” has become a thing of the past. We enjoy being able to tag our location in travel photos with a single tap. We’ve gotten used to the luxury of taking an Uber any time of the day or night. There’s no doubt location tracking has incredible benefits. But in the realm of parenting it can also create tension, resentment, depression, and some downright nasty arguments. Teenagers can feel controlled, spied on and … [Read more...]
Parent-by-Numbers: How to Develop Family Tech-Life Balance
A recent obituary hit me surprisingly hard: “Paint-by-Numbers Maestro Dan Robbins Dies at 93.” The mere mention of the paint-by-numbers inventor transported me back to my childhood dining room table where I would sit for hours engrossed in my latest "masterpiece.” You could say I was addicted to that low-tech pursuit. I thought of that addiction while reading Adam Alter’s recent book, Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked. Thirty years from now, whose obituary might send today’s kids back to a passion or hobby in our current homes? Some kind of … [Read more...]
Virtual School: ‘Almost School’ or Online Lesson for the Future
Based on my parenting experience, I immediately associate the word "virtual" with meaning "almost." That there's been a diminished effort, something watered down or, very simply, done half-assed. And, to date, my inclination to disregard anything my kids say is virtual has been proven right. Virtually every time. Everett, my 5-year-old “picked up virtually all the LEGOs.” Then, after tucking him in, my bare foot steps entirely on one of those little, yellow character heads. Yosef, my oldest, said he “did virtually all of my math.” Never mind his weekly progress reports littered with … [Read more...]
Balanced Worldview in Children Helps Them Cope, Understand
"Everybody’s crazy, drive safely.” That’s the mantra of my mother I remember best from my teenhood. Granted, her negative, imbalanced worldview was simply a way to contain her anxiety as I began to drive. Her words returned to me recently as my children increasingly navigate the internet, originally dubbed the “information superhighway.” Like most parents, my wife and I implemented age-appropriate internet restrictions as our children grew. But we learned that as children age, they need to develop the same critical thinking skills adults use when wading through the sea of clickbait … [Read more...]
Curiosity: Parents Need to Nurture It in Today’s Wired Children
“So is every day a sunny day?” That is the question that stumped my father several decades ago when I took my first airplane flight as a child. Once we ascended through the dark gray clouds, I was stunned that the sunny blue sky reappeared in all its glory. My concrete-over-abstract brain at the time thought a gray sky meant the absence of the sun, not just its obstruction. Hence my question. “Well,” my father replied, “I guess you could say that.” Little did I know that by welcoming my question and exploring its meaning through a series of follow-up questions, he fostered my … [Read more...]
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