Thursday 7 November 2013

I'm bored...Lawrence High School

Children of this generation use this phrase a little too often, isn't it? They are used to having things ready made and have no patience to experience something different, out of the ordinary. They do not know of a life without the computer, internet, mobile phones and now smart phones. Playing games on the phone and chatting discretely over Facebook, it is no wonder that when placed in real-life social environments, many children find it difficult to cope.

A mother of a 10 year old laments that her son does not want to come out in the open to play. He feels that the playground is dull and boring. This, when there is about 2 acre of open space in the gated community with exclusive areas dedicated to playing sports like badminton, football, to run or cycle. Finding same age friends is also not a problem in the complex of 500 odd apartments. 

Is the new age or technology solely to be blamed or are parents equally responsible for such a scenario? It seems like the parents have a greater role to play as care-givers. For, when the child demands a new toy  don't parents rush in fulfill the demand even when it seems a little unreasonable? When the child refuses to eat food, don't the parents easily turn to video games or T.V to distract the child? 

I-phones and I-pads easily find their way into the hands of kids as young as four or five and sometimes this is even talked of proudly in social gatherings. Why should you then blame the kids for falling prey to technology when we ourselves have no control over our usage? Kids after all imitate the parents and they are also sensitive and smart enough to pick up the vibes and unsaid words.

As parents, we have a far more difficult and responsible job in bringing up our children as grounded, happy and thinking individuals who are not slaves to technology but are smart to use them judiciously and correctly. Starting them off on good habits early on is extremely important and a little discipline is expected on the part of the parents too. A good and healthy eating practice, inculcating a love for books and reading, playing outdoors, etc are some of the things that need to be made as a routine in a child's life. And, it is never too late to start too!

Lawrence High School, located at HSR layout, Bangalore, focuses on educating children with traditional values to adapt and excel in the world. To know more about Lawrence school, please visit the website http://lawrenceschool.in/ and join us at our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lawrence-School/ 

No comments:

Post a Comment