No More Show

Over the last eight months my wife and I decided to be more laissez-faire when it came to our three children's (ages 14, 7 and 5) television and computer screen time.  While we still were very selective in what they were watching/playing, we let them choose, for the most part, when and how long they could participate.  Our hope was that given the free range to choose their activities, they would find their own balance.  After nine months of this experiment, we decided it wasn't going the way we hoped. 

We found that watching show and noodling around on the internet trumped most activities, especially any that involved creative expression.  The kids just rarely got flat-out bored, which we have found can be a necessary precursor to a creative breakthrough.  It was always just easier to go be entertained.

Last week we pulled the plug on the computer and idiot box.  Besides some very weak protests (almost just like they were going through the motions) the kids have responded better than I ever imagined.  In addition to strict guidelines for the kids, my wife and I have also agreed to limit our laptop surfing adventures.  Our goal is to create more harmonious experiences as a family, and become ‘creators' rather than ‘consumers', ‘doers' rather than ‘watchers.'

Over the weekend the boys joined me in meal preparation on a couple of occasions and it was a great experience; one that never would have happened if they could go veg in front of the computer if given the choice.  On Saturday evening the whole family was in the kitchen creating dinner, and not only was it great fun, but the kids ate (and enjoyed) some food that they would normally complain about!  It's amazing that when they help with the prep how much more they're likely to want to try it and even enjoy it.

Last night the whole family gathered in front of the fire and had a blast creating picture cut-out collage puppets.  This was my wife's idea.  We gathered a stack of old magazines, several scissors, some cardboard, popsicle sticks and glue.  We cut out fun pictures, glued them to the cardboard and pasted a stick on them. It was a great way to spend time together and the creations were incredible!  The boys lost interest first, but enjoyed the fire nonetheless.  And it's a project that we'll continue, perhaps creating some plays to go with our new props. 

My heart is open thinking about this - such a wonderful alternative to me and my wife surfing the internet for an hour after dinner while the kids watched a show or played computer before bedtime story.  And this was just one evening.  I can't wait to find what other activities we come up with moving forward.  I envision a lot of stories, more art projects and lots of games.