A different type of childhood

[Wing Commander]

Kids today.. . . A familiar groan from some of us oldies.

But there seems to be a generational shift in how they play nowadays, and their time tends to revolve around a mobile phone. And they become selfish, aggressive and antisocial.

When my grandchildren come to stay - which can be often during school holidays - they are banned from using screens.
Initially there are a few moans, but it's amazing how quickly they turn back into old-fashioned children of a previous era.
They are encouraged to climb trees, ride bikes, build dens, play with mud, explore ponds and generally get filthy, etc., etc.... (not to mention shooting and model flying ) ... and they love it.

It's great to hear them laughing together rather than seeing them squabbling.

Was your childhood like this . .
vvv

 

[Mike Woody Watkins]

I had a great childhood doing all of those things !

Everything is so risk averse these days and parents are just so busy, it’s all very sad !

 

[RatBashingBrickie]

Try teaching the little….darlings!

 

[Inca]

At 14 +/- a year I cycled alone from Sheffield to Burnham on Crouch, Essex, spending my nights in YHAs. You’d be 1) mad and 2) arrested for child endangerment allowing your offspring to do that these days. Different times in the 60s.

 

[RatBashingBrickie]

At 14 +/- a year I cycled alone from Sheffield to Burnham on Crouch, Essex, spending my nights in YHAs. You’d be 1) mad and 2) arrested for child endangerment allowing your offspring to do that these days. Different times in the 60s.

Blimey! I thought a trek from Boston to Cambridge was far enough?

 

[Mike Woody Watkins]

During the school holidays my mum would let me go off all day and play (and get up to mischief ). The only rule was, on pain of telling my dad, was to be home tea time, usually 5’o’clock.

 

[Inca]

Blimey! I thought a trek from Boston to Cambridge was far enough?

It took me 4 days, cycles in the late 60 weren’t what they are today. All my worldly goods in a saddle bag; panniers - what are they?

 

[JacquesC]

Kids today.. . . A familiar groan from some of us oldies.

But there seems to be a generational shift in how they play nowadays, and their time tends to revolve around a mobile phone. And they become selfish, aggressive and antisocial.

When my grandchildren come to stay - which can be often during school holidays - they are banned from using screens.
Initially there are a few moans, but it's amazing how quickly they turn back into old-fashioned children of a previous era.
They are encouraged to climb trees, ride bikes, build dens, play with mud, explore ponds and generally get filthy, etc., etc.... (not to mention shooting and model flying ) ... and they love it.

It's great to hear them laughing together rather than seeing them squabbling.

Was your childhood like this . .
vvv

View attachment 848609

Yeah !
Add plenty of reading actual books .

Our family chose to 'dispense' from TV so that was only on rare occasions at other people's homes or during the holidays as a special 'treat' at my gran's.

Our own children were frustrated into becoming proficient readers of books by taking them on long trips abroad in our then campervan ... try Scandinavia south to north and back with only a handful of books you can actually understand; it worked wonders although it was not part of a cunning plan . We even bought a few oldies we happened upon in a thrift store in Stavenger; they were gobbled up as well.

They don't read so much now except for the oldest, but we know they can.
Sports, not such a success

 

[Mike Woody Watkins]

…. taking them on long trips abroad in our then campervan .……with only a handful of books…..

I’m sure that would consider child abuse these days !

Good for you though. My parents always said you make your own entertainment.

 

[Chrisj]

Kids today.. . . A familiar groan from some of us oldies.

But there seems to be a generational shift in how they play nowadays, and their time tends to revolve around a mobile phone. And they become selfish, aggressive and antisocial.

When my grandchildren come to stay - which can be often during school holidays - they are banned from using screens.
Initially there are a few moans, but it's amazing how quickly they turn back into old-fashioned children of a previous era.
They are encouraged to climb trees, ride bikes, build dens, play with mud, explore ponds and generally get filthy, etc., etc.... (not to mention shooting and model flying ) ... and they love it.

It's great to hear them laughing together rather than seeing them squabbling.

Was your childhood like this . .
vvv

View attachment 848609

I did all those things and more, we were always out on our bikes, making camps lighting fires in the woods to make tea, rope swings.
When I was 10 we moved to the other side of the town to a house with a 1/3 of an acre so we had lots of exploring to do.
We were told not to stay in all day.
I also did Duke of Edinburgh award I didn’t finish the silver and gold but did most of it. 50 mile hikes at Easter in Snowdonia and the Lake District with all our food and tent for 3 days, dropped off on Good Friday morning after travelling in the night by coach, map read to the base camp by Sunday afternoon 3 coaches went each time plus a service team we had to check in every evening by phone using a phone credit card no mobile phones then.
A bit later on we built a tree house that 3 of use spent the night and cooked, it was fixed with orange bailer twine (no nails)
Here is some pictures of it some years later when others had modified it from the way we had it, it was put between 3 trees and about 30 ft to the floor .
The platform below was not ours.

 

[Dav1]

I grew up in a heavy industrial town in the 70's surrounded by huge chalk pits, old derelict factories and industrial sites. We were always playing in them and a large WW2 AA emplacement and barracks near by. Most of us boxed so we'd always be fighting and playing games that you don't seem to see anymore. Built go karts, went to the woods with sheath knives and my dad's army Golock to cut wood for bows and arrows etc... Airguns, catapults etc... hence why I'm sure many on here are from the same era.

I use tech now but was a very late adopter as I don't really enjoy it and prefer practical activities.

I feel sorry for the kids today and wouldn't swap my time in those days for anything.

 

[Inca]

Built go karts,

We called them trolleys. Prams in those days had proper wheels not the 4” diameter things used these days. I’m sure I remember the Cubs/Scouts having a road officially closed once a year for the “Annual Soap Box Derby”. Fancy American word to give it more appeal. Fantastic day; concours d’elegance, one-up downhill & two-up races, these days it’s electric scooters, even skate-boards seem to have all but disappeared.

 

[Terminal_Boy]

During the school holidays my mum would let me go off all day and play (and get up to mischief ). The only rule was, on pain of telling my dad, was to be home tea time, usually 5’o’clock.

This. There was a huge area of common land at the top of the road I grew up on and we’d be sent off with a small packed lunch after breakfast and not to return before tea time unless there was an emergency.

 

[Wizwoz]

I endeavoured to give my Grandson a good grounding and he thrived for it. Sadly as he grew older his Christmas list went from a tool kit to a FIFA 2020 or whatever PS game. He's a good lad tho..
He likes a nice watch but it kind of saddens me that he'll never know the joy of owning a penknife.

 

[Aja]

When was 12 maybe 13. I would go fishing overnight with my younger brother sometimes for 24 hours. It was over an hour away by bus. If we weren’t fishing we’d be climbing trees. Making dens. We would cycle 1.5 hours away and go swimming. All without a mobile phone.

 

[Margaret13]

Yes played out in all weather, board games with family and friends, went to school with no lift from dad or a phone to say l was there safe, great times , chatting about your day at the dinner table,

 

[PestWeForget]

I completely agree, I am sick to death of seeing my kids on tablets. In my opinion the most damaging invention for children to date is smart devices. I've called an outright ban on buying any more tablets, the only trouble being is that they do need a phone when going to secondary school, so they'll just use that instead and if you just buy them a 4g Nokia 3310, they'll likely be bullied for it or will feel left out.

It's so frustrating that all kids are completely addicted to this rubbish and parents feel like there is nothing they can do about it other than set limits on screen time.

They literally sit there scrolling and giving likes to content creators who make huge sums of money from kids that do absolutely nothing all day with their own lives. It makes me so sad that all kids do this, and therefore going around to knock for their friends days are so rare. It really feels like they've been robbed

 

[David1]

Oh the irony, people moaning about kids on the phones and tablets all the time, wonder how many are on their tablets now reading and replying to this post. Not me that’s for sure. I’ve got better things to do. oops

 

[PestWeForget]

Oh the irony, people moaning about kids on the phones and tablets all the time, wonder how many are on their tablets now reading and replying to this post. Not me that’s for sure. I’ve got better things to do. oops

Trouble is, anybody reading and replying to this thread are most likely adults. Children's brains are under developed and it is a well known fact that smart phones and tablets arouse dopamine receptors which make it a powerful and addictive drug for them. Not to mention the online bullying and being subjected to a distorted version of reality and self image.

We don't have to worry too much about that if we are relatively well balanced mature adults do we?

 

[pjgtech]

Ho Yuss, I grew up in the late 60'sand 70's as a kid in South London, pretty urban environment.
But we all knew each other in the neighbourhood, if one kid played up, their parents would eventually get told about it.
Coppers really did give you a slap if you were cheeky, teachers really did throw blackboard rubbers at you if you misbehaved!
We carried penknives and Gat guns, but no-one got stabbed.
School holidays were best, we were allowed out all day, usually on our bikes, down the park (Peckham Rye, Dulwich or Greenwich) playing football or cricket, building dens, climbing trees, scrounging materials for home made go karts, usually old prams.
There were "adventure" playgrounds, which were just jerry rigged dens, on waste or common grounds, with basic play apparatus, swings, slides, the occasional rope slide, etc, not a lot of Elf n Safety about either!
I seem to remember lots of old bomb sites, demolition sites, abandoned buildings, etc and building sites, which in those days were not always cordoned off, so we would often roam around them.
Had to be back home by either teatime, or before it got dark, whichever came soonest.
As you say, no tablets, no compooters, no smart phones, no T'interweb, not even more than 4 channels on tv, but lots of comics, magazines and books to read.....
Appy dayz....