If I had younger children, would I give them iPads of their own? Would I encourage them to spend as much time as they liked using technology? Is this the right unschooling thing to do? I’ve pondered these questions a lot.
Not so long ago, I’d have said, “Kids learn a lot from the Internet and their devices. Books are good, but technology is even better! Yes, there’s nothing wrong with giving young kids unlimited access to the Internet and devices.”
I once wrote a blog post called Should Young Children Have Access to the Internet and the Virtual World? I published it and then later, I put it back in my draft file because I needed more time to ponder what I’d written. Here’s the post:
I used to think that very young children shouldn’t have access to devices and the virtual world. I felt they needed to experience the world around them first. Touch, taste, smell, see and listen to real things before encountering them onscreen. But one day, I realised that my older kids first found out about many things such as trucks and ducks and elephants and planes via secondary rather than firsthand experiences. Although they didn’t have devices, they had plenty of books.
Yes, we had a massive stack of books with attractive pictures that fascinated my little children. Often, I’d sit with a child and turn the pages as I repeated the names of everything. I’d add appropriate sounds: “Look, a sheep! Baa!” My toddlers would repeat the words and noises with delight.
These secondhand book experiences complemented my children’s everyday ones. They expanded their world. They encouraged us to search for real ducks or visit the zoo or exclaim with excitement when my kids spotted their first truck or train. What a thrill it is to see something with our own eyes for the first time!
They also brought impossible experiences into our home, such as travelling to the moon. After seeing pictures of rockets, my kids created cardboard box ones, and then after counting down a few numbers, (not always in the right order), they also shot into outer space.
Our books encouraged dreams of travelling to the Arctic to see polar bears or becoming firefighters or ballerinas or farmers. My kids pointed their toes and twirled and and curtsied and accepted imaginary bunches of flowers. They grabbed the garden hose and bravely faced roaring bushfires.
Books expanded my kids’ vocabulary with delicious-sounding words that they repeated over and over again.
Yes, when all my children were very young, they learnt a lot from books.
We all seem to be happy reading books to our kids, but what about phones and iPads and laptops? Do these play a similar role as books in our children’s learning? Do they bring the bigger world into our homes? Could they encourage us to look for connections in our everyday lives, and create pleasure and delight and foster interests and dreams? Do they stimulate the imagination? I think they do.
Of course, screens are much bigger than books. Not only can we see the fire truck, but we can also hear its siren as it rushes towards the bushfire. We can listen to the train rattling along the tracks. We can enjoy the music while watching the ballerina spinning on the tips of her toes. We can experience the world in miraculous ways. Could this be exciting rather than worrying for all of us regardless of age?
I find it interesting that once upon a time, some people were wary of books. There were warnings:
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- Too much reading ruins kids’ eyesight.
- There are dangerous ideas in books.
- Books discourage kids from being active and getting outside.
I used to think: devices prevent little kids from experiencing the real world, but is that really true? Could I just have been wary of something new?
When something else comes along, will we look back and wonder why we worried about the technology we have today?
One last thought: our ideas can change. Even when we have lots of experience and feel confident in our opinions, we might find ourselves pondering new thoughts and changing our opinions. And that’s okay. Isn’t it better to keep moving forward as we learn rather than hold tight to our outdated points of view?
That post contains a lot of ideas that I’m still happy with. But are there other things that I’ve changed my mind about?
The other day, I made a vlog about screens and technology and shared a few of the thoughts that I’ve been pondering on such questions as:
Should young kids have access to devices?
How do we keep our children away from the dangers that can lurk on the Internet?
Is it important to build up a connected offline family life?
Do parents need to be good examples when it comes to handling technology?
Do we need social media?
Have I changed my unschooling mind about screens?
Something Extra
You can find more of my thoughts about devices in the post, Younger Unschoolers: What About Screens and Technology?
Does saying no to technology until our kids reach a certain age go against the principles of unschooling? Perhaps we should step back from our kids and let them do what they like, trusting they can handle everything. Or do they need our guidance and protection to navigate certain things that might harm their health and happiness? Of course, the aim is not to control our kids. Instead, we should gently hold their hands until they’re ready to let go and run free.
If we decide that our kids aren’t ready for devices and the Internet, do we have to stand firm and say no? Or is there a better way to handle things? Perhaps it’s possible to put technology in the background by surrounding our kids with a rich offline life. Maybe we have to get involved when our children say:
”Will you read me a story?”
”Can we bake a cake?”
”Would you like to come to my tea party?”
”Will you push me on the swing?”
I hope you’ll watch my vlog and then stop by to share your thoughts!
