Ban iPads & Tablets For Children

[londonmummyof1]

Is it just me, or does the iPad generation bother anyone else?

We went on a family holiday to Spain with my husband and almost 3 year old daughter, and at breakfast, lunch and dinner it’s the same sight - parents bringing out iPads for their preschool children to sit and watch - while eating!?! This is something I have never seen before and I absolutely do not agree with. I think seeing the scale of the problem during this one holiday shows what a problem this is. The thing is, the children aren’t even given the choice of asking for the iPad or to watch a show, it’s just slapped down in front of them and then they are glued. No interaction, just plugged into this simulated world, at the prime time in their life they are developing their language, speech, behaviour and personality - under the age of 5.

We did not bring an iPad for our child on holiday because we wanted to play in the swimming/splash pool, go to the beach etc and we spent such quality time with our child with memories we will keep forever.

This did not happen 20 or even 10 years ago - what did parents do with their children then? God forbid did they COMMUNICATE with their children at the dinner table?

What is happening to this world? Why not have a conversation with your child or bring a sticker book or story book for them to look at if feeding time is difficult. Every parent has been there with challenging mealtimes, but lugging the iPad around during 3 mealtimes, that’s a minimum of 3 hours your child is in a zombie state of mind, you’re starving them of developing their speech and ability to play by themselves and entertain themselves through play.

Do parents understand that too much screen time is extremely damaging to young children and can pave the way to obesity and development issues later in life?

I feel so passionate about this topic, as I’ve even seen some parents putting their children in pushchairs by the swimming pools glued to an iPad, when they could be swimming and having fun with their parents or siblings.

Parenting can be really tough, but somehow I think government intervention is required as this is such a vicious cycle, what future are we preparing our children for???

Simple alternatives to iPad/Tablet entertainment:

Play doh
Stickers
Books
Playing cards
Colouring books
Drawing

Absolutely BAN iPads & Tablets for children.

The world is full of technology. When it comes to our children finding jobs, the world will have this all intercepted into it.

They're going to need computer/ smart device skills so making the second nature could be an advantage.

@kitten

"before they were invented"

Eeeexactly. We also managed without washing machines, heating, electricity plumbing...

I definitely agree that iPads and tablets should be used less, but that's for everyone, not just for children. As a person with a visual impairment though, technology has opened up so many doors for me and for everyone else who uses an Apple product with a visual impairment, I would hazard to guess. Very little accessible information was around before, and only 3% of all material is in accessible format for visually impaired. This is why The treaty of America's from the world intellectual property organization was working so hard to be ratified by so many countries to gain access without permission for printed materials to be made into other formats for visually impaired. Anyway, Apps like being my eyes, which link you up to a side of volunteer cited, volunteer, tap tap see, which describes pictures, and lots of other things have enable people to be more independent. A lot of isolated people who were not able to leave the house, also have been able to make friends. This also goes for children with disabilities Who may be isolated in their area. Think of children who have XP, who can't go out in daylight. I don't personally know of anyone, but I would imagine that having an iPad would also open many doors to them.

And yes, we all managed before technology, I grew up before cell phones became very popular. They were just starting to in my final years of high school, but they weren't the type of phones that had the Internet on them. In our dorm, we had no Internet, so we actually had to talk to each other, read books, and other things, but we were at a special-needs school so had access to Braelin audiobooks, other activities that we could all participating. I was a cheerleader, did gymnastics, was on the swim team, all kinds of things.

But I also remember learning French, Spanish, and the German without being able to access a dictionary, or newspapers because I couldn't see them, etc. thankfully, my mother is France, we had connections with people who were German, including our next-door neighbor who made brownies for me every time I would go over there, and I grew up in Florida so we're surrounded by Cubans and Puerto Ricans and other people who spoke Spanish. I had to learn by immersion

@zzzzz You made a very nasty assumption about my 'unlucky' comment. You know very little about me but chose to make that assumption. I'm not gong to start telling my life story to someone like you, let alone thousands of mostly unsympathetic mother's on here. This place is not know for its good will but for its gang warfare.

Most people on here who belittled the OP and rounded on me (plus maybe others I haven't seen) are more than likely people with noses out of joint for having their parenting style exposed for what it is.....lazy. I don't mince my words. If you don't like that, tough.

Who are all these people not talking to their children at the dinner table? Most parents are not sitting down to dinner every evening to eat a home cooked dinner and chat with their kids without any technological intrusions. Most parents are therefore lazy and are letting their kids down. If you feed your kids at a different time to you, if you feed them microwave dinners, if you feed them rubbish, if individuals have gadgets at the table, if you don't engage in conversation with your kids, if you don't correct bad table manners, etc, then you are not dong your job. Fact!

The amazing thing about kids is that they don't stay kids forever....they eventually become adults! Yes, amazing isn't it, but clearly some here think their kids using tablets at the table and not being engaged in conversation is going to somehow fix itself on the strike of midnight on the night before their eighteenth birthday. As if by magic, those placated and dumbed down zombies who you have ignored are gong to turn into capable and interesting people who could, say, take someone on a dinner date, host a dinner party or enjoy a family dinner with their own children. You know, all the things you have enjoyed. Sorry but skills like holding an interesting conversation over dinner and eating nicely do not happen by magic, nor do they happen overnight. They take years of 'puppy training' to hone. Years of effort. Years of parental frustration. Years of saying , 'Don't do that', 'Sit up', 'Don't eat with your mouth open'. It's a lot of effort and it's often painful but what is the long-term future for the alternative approach of resignation and gadget placating? You deep what you sow. If you fail to train your children these basic yet essential life skills, you will regret it as your child will become an inept adult when all they needed was your time and determination.

Silicon Valley parents....the adults who are at the forefront of technology....raise their children without technology. They give them the kind of childhood I have given my child....old fashioned, free-range and natural. They're not stupid. They know the harm technology does to children and they know that children do not need any technology to develop the skills that are most sought after in all fields of work....problem solving, creativity, imagination. If you submerse your child in technology, all you are turning them into is users of technology. If you force children to learn computer coding, all you are doing is creating a robotic mind. Coding can be learn quickly in adulthood. A free thinker is created in childhood.

Eating in a restaurant is not the same as eating at home. It is a completely different environment and creates difficulties for a child with autism that they would not have at home. What you see in a restaurant does not tell you what you would see at home.

People use tablets and phones because things have moved on. Same with washing machines and dishwashers etc. What makes me laugh is the people who claim that the use of tablets is damaging etc yet spend lots of time looking at this type of technology to research into how damaging it is Surely you should pop down to the library and have a look in some index cards and encyclopaedias....

@PathologicalDemandAvoidance you said you can't expect a child that wasn't taught social skills and manners to magically hone those skills as an adult. That's fair enough, despite your sweeping generalisations and assumptions about using tech and the lack of these skills.

In the same way, you can't expect an adult that was never on the computer,or used a tablet or phone to magically gain those skills either. Especially not fast enough and proficient enough to use them in a job. Speed typing comes with practice. Knowledge of operating systems and troubleshooting come with practice and tinkering and things going wrong. Basics like Excel,PowerPoint etc can be learned but proficiency comes with practice and experimenting.

You say you homeschool but those of us that don't have kids with accounts for apps and websites given by the school to practice languages,times tables ,any subject really. Homework involves research. Special projects involve presentations. Some secondary schools put their homework online.

Meh. My mum
Used to say the same about me reading all the time. I always had my head in a book-she would have preferred me to go out and play.

I'd say what's really more destructive is when they get a bit older and the use of social media. To me that lets other people 'in' to your home and their space all the time. My 11 year old struggles to put that down and has at times disengaged with us a bit too much. So that's when limits are needed. Not when they are watching a bit of Peppa pig or whatever to allow parents to make dinner or have a meal out with no tantrums.

If it’s monitored and given in small amounts it can be good trouble is it’s often not

I work with children and a police officer who I work with told me sexual assaults have gone up in primary age children and this is directly linked to smart phones and I pads

Why would you not police them and why would and 7,8 year old need a smart phone you couldn’t even convince me a 10 year old needs one

The issue is not children haveing them it’s that a steady group of parents think

Either
A- children should have complete privacy and refuse to monitor

B- not my Johnny he’s very mature would never look at a lady having sex with a zoo animal (sorry to be graphic but this is what’s on line if you don’t check what their doing)

And I see thread after thread about why a parent wouldn’t ensure the child gets a good notes sleep and take a phone away they usually answer -b

Ect

When my son was younger I was amazed how many kids were sitting at the holiday club he went to on phones in the corner

Their with adults their safe so why would they needs their phone it wasn’t if their was not loads of activities laid out and of course how would anyone know what they were looking at

"Years of saying , 'Don't do that', 'Sit up', 'Don't eat with your mouth open'. It's a lot of effort"

No that wouldn't be. Not compared to the amount of effort that some parents ( who you are calling lazy) have to put in with their children with severe disabilities.

Oh and check out the threads of parent
A
When phones are removed at sleepovers apparently they need phones in case the house burns down dispite their being a adult

this wanting to be in contact with out child 24/7 is not healthy

PathologicalDemandAvoidance

Why are you STILL labouring under the misconception that there are only two schools of thought? That there’s only parents who “submerse” their children in tech and those who eschew it completely?

Most of us have raised well rounded children without the need to “train” like an animal.

Silicon Valley parents....the adults who are at the forefront of technology....raise their children without technology

Actually incorrect. They “limit” the use of tech. Very big difference. I guess my ex could be described as being “at the forefront of technology” in the UK. He’s not interested in banning tech, what he is interested in is having a well-rounded child, a child who can make their own choices and embracing tech for all the positives it can bring.

If you force children to learn computer coding, all you are doing is creating a robotic mind. Coding can be learn quickly in adulthood

Complete and utter nonsense. You show a patent lack of understanding.

The arrogance that YOUR way is the right way to parent is outstanding. By all means be assured that your way is the right way to parent your own child. Don’t extrapolate that out to everyone else.

Why would you not police them

We do.

and why would and 7,8 year old need a smart phone you couldn’t even convince me a 10 year old needs one

Because when ex and I separated she asked if she could use an old one to have to text the other parent from the other house. It’s worked incredibly successfully for us.

I think moderate use is ok but I don't really like them to be honest. My lo is a chatter box but doesn't speak a word while watching the iPad which makes me sad. I let my lo watch a couple of cartoons on it while I shower and get ready in the morning because he sits still on my bed and not up to mischief while I'm out the room! But I never take it out he house and take toys instead so if we go somewhere to eat or someone house he can play with those. I also read that you shouldn't watch any kind of screen while eating because it can interfere with your brains signals for when you’re full and you can over eat. I've noticed that myself if I eat dinner while I watch TV so I don't let him watch anything while eating and try to avoid it myself (but I'm less disciplined with myself!) . I think like anything, moderation is key.

Extremes are never good,in anything. And while you will find them , most parents just plod along nicely in the middle,figuring things out and doing their best.

In the same way, you can't expect an adult that was never on the computer,or used a tablet or phone to magically gain those skills either. Especially not fast enough and proficient enough to use them in a job. Speed typing comes with practice. Knowledge of operating systems and troubleshooting come with practice and tinkering and things going wrong. Basics like Excel,PowerPoint etc can be learned but proficiency comes with practice and experimenting.
this is hilarious. So children who can swipe a screen or press a button are bound for a stellar coding career (or more likely a job in a call centre)
Most serious coding/IT is off-shored. The act of coding is mechanical once the analysis of the problem, the writing of the requirements has been done. I worked in IT as a career many years ago because I had an aptitude for it - a certain kind of thinking.
To use technology needs a few weeks on a course (if the adult really has never used a computer) and there are techies for the troubleshooting/ operating systems.

JacquesHammer
You can buy £5 phones that only text and have so internet you could never convince me why a small child needs a phone of their own

How patronising. Worry about your own children. What people do with theirs is none if your business

JacquesHammer And I not saying you haven’t done this btw as I have no clue what phone your child has

@drearydeardre not so hilarious when you're the only kid with a piece of handwritten paper when everyone has a PowerPoint presentation.
Not so hilarious when more than half the class have finished typing their work and you're still on the first to lines.
Not hilarious when you have to ask for help for every bit of punctuation.
Not hilarious when something shows up on the screen and you freak out even if it's a simple OK/CANCEL situation.
Not hilarious when you lost your work because you didn't know how to save it.
Not hilarious when extension work or games to help you learn more are only accessible online.
Not hilarious when you have homework that requires some research (which can start as early as y1).