Every generation since the 1950s has experienced a decline in free play. During the holidays in my parent’s generation, kids left the house in the morning and were told to be home by dinner. They went out into the streets, met up with other neighbourhood kids and played all day long. During my own childhood things were a little more supervised, but we still had ample time to play beyond the watchful eyes of our parents.
Today most children are rarely left to their own devices. In an attempt keep our kids safe and provide them with all they need to ensure they have every chance for a happy, successful life, we fill up their days with activities, structured opportunities to learn and seductive screen time. However, as well meaning as this approach might be, there is increasing evidence that it may be doing more harm than good.
Mental health issues including anxiety, depression, suicide and narcissism among teens has reached epidemic levels and new research suggests this may be related to a steep decline in free, spontaneous play in childhood. For most of human evolution, children learned through autonomous, self-directed play. Parents weren’t involved in every aspect of their daily lives. Kids played in groups, invented games, made up rules, negotiated, experimented and explored their world with minimal parental interference.
Click here for Christina Lavers' article, https://wakeup-world.com/2016/...m_source=getresponse
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