Why I Make My Kids Play Outside
I’m not worried if they are bored
I’m a 90’s kid. We played outside every day. We played outside all day in the summer. We came in when it was time for dinner, went back out, then came in for the night when the street lights came on.
We had wooden playsets in our backyards and some kids had trampolines. We all had bikes. Beyond that, we were on our own. We made up games, we played tag, we roamed the neighborhood, and we caught bugs.
I had a Gameboy and a CD player but I don't remember ever being glued to a TV or computer. We definitely didn't own any sort of video gaming system until my little brother got an Xbox when I was already a late teen.
Fast forward to 2022, I now have two children who are elementary school-aged. They have bikes, scooters, a hoverboard, a basketball goal, a backyard playset, a small trampoline, and more. We live in a fairly small and safe neighborhood. We live in a town with nice weather 8 months out of the year.
With all that being said, it is to my absolute disgust when I see a small child outside on our street on a beautiful day with a tablet or phone in their hand. The sun is shining and the world is theirs but instead of riding their bikes up to the empty neighborhood playground, they are playing Minecraft and Roblox on their iPads.
They are using Messenger Kids to call their next-door neighbor instead of walking outside.
And the schools aren’t helping-they send the kids home with a laptop every evening for 20 minutes of reading. “But wait! We own books!” I want to scream.
Whatever this phenomenon is, I absolutely hate it.
Several arguments to be made here:
- Times have changed. Kids are different now, they are into technology. Should I force them to do things they don't like? Maybe they are going to grow up to be video game developers. ALL OF THEM? No.
- Am I as a parent setting a good example of screen boundaries? Also no, I am on my phone a good amount but I am working on my phone a large majority of that time as well. (I know they don't understand the difference but hey, I’m the adult here).
- Am I going to be the only parent on the street who doesn't let their kids take their iPads outside and have a cell phone before they are a teenager? Yes.
I am the parent driving to a new park every week, braving alligator-infested waters in my husband’s old fishing boat so we can have a family day on the water fishing, and buying slip and slides, cheap plastic Walmart pools every summer, and chalk and bubbles from the dollar store.
I can still hear my mother saying “bored is good” to me as a kid. She didn't buy any of those above-mentioned things and I didn't die of boredom; I made friends and we collected rocks. We played kickball, sat on the sidewalk, played MASH, and stared at the sky while we ate popsicles all summer.
Is that not possible for my kids? Is no one else going to join me in trying to save them from this screen addiction? I am truly worried that the other kids will stop coming around, they won’t want to be bored like my poor, deprived children.
I don't want to push their friends away. That is why I am at this crossroads, do I force them to be different or let them join in on the mind-numbing of it all?
The youth that no longer plays.
I don't think I can do that. It is awfully hard making friends when you have strict rules but I believe in my kids.
Let them be bored. Put on the sunscreen and send them out.
Thanks for reading! You can read more of my thoughts here.
I also recently read this great article by Crystal Mathews, How To Live A Healthy Lifestyle When You’re A (Busy) Mother and you should check it out too!
