The Solution to Boredom

[itsnotmymind]

So I read this link on Tumblr. And on the one hand, I agree that you can't force a kid to enjoy a famous monument. But on the other hand, I think "You're bored! Here, have a screen," is a really bad precedent to set. When I was a kid we didn't have portable screens, and when I was bored (dragged along to my sister's softball games, for example), I played pretend games or read books. Kids are very impressionable, and they don't need to be getting the message that the solution to boredom is phones, gameboys, and more.

Comments

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

I think as far as the photo goes, we also lack context. We don't really know what was going on in that moment, unless I missed something.

As far as the sentiment goes, I do think having the kid try to appreciate things like that, at the very least, is important, and there's something about an iPad not being an escape for every moment. Let the kid play pretend games or read, as you said. Or engage him some other way.

That being said, as someone who's been to Stonehenge.. it really is just a bunch of rocks. Apparently it meant more when you could get close to them, whereas now you're not allowed. I appreciated it on an intellectual level, it was cool to learn the history, but I was expecting this emotional response, to feel spiritually grounded or something. Nope. It was just a rock formation that required further context to fully appreciate.

I remember HATING guided tours as a kid, too. But I still went on them. Interestingly I loved history, but... not in adultspeak. Actually, I still prefer just going on tours on my own; however, I now realize you often need guides to explain what things are. Not to mention that it keeps people walking steadily, as opposed to a Hunger Games-esque every man for his own exhibit deal.* Though I do like digital guides as a sort of compromise.

*That was Westminster Abbey. I loved it, but I actually think if there is a tour option, that would be helpful if I ever go back. Just too many people trying to see the same thing at once, to the point where as much as I loved it, I didn't think I got a chance to love it properly. Although I did visit a few markers everyone else was ignoring, like Chaucer. Poor Chaucer, neglected by all but nerdy little me.

[itsnotmymind.livejournal.com]

I think as far as the photo goes, we also lack context. We don't really know what was going on in that moment, unless I missed something.

Absolutely. I realized after I posted that yes, we really have no idea what was going on in the photo. I was responding to the commentary, not the photo.

I very much enjoyed Stonehenge, but I saw it as an adult. I don't know what I would have made of it as a kid.

There is something a little unsettling about a picture of a kid playing a gameboy in front of Stonehenge, but I think the commentary of "If this was my kid I'd do THIS!" is somewhat missing the point. The problem is the culture and society we live in, the technology that we have access to. Every parent has to walk the line between limiting their kid's screen time without being overly controlling. Every person has to figure out for themselves how much time they wants to spend on phones and computers.