Search the Community

I'm not sure if this is already being discussed, but it's something that's been on my mind for a while and then I read the article linked and it made me think even more about it. I have a three year old who already knows how to handle a tablet. I'm worried, currently, about how her using the tablet will affect her, as there are studies that show lowered attention span, hurting social skills, etc. But, I also know touch screens are the future. My kids will use them in school and work, and I don't want my kids' learning to be hindered because they spend all their time using the new-fangeled technology that is totally foreign to them, making them focus on learning how to use it, as opposed to using the software on the device. Of course, I also think about the future (when I'm feeling brave). What will my kids encounter on the internet much younger than I did? How will that affect them? So, where's the balance? Those of you with kids, how do you do it now? Those of you in my situation, or who have no children, any good theories? As the article points out, we really can't 'know' what to do, as we're pioneering this, but I've always thought kicking around a hypothetical helped in real world situations. http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/parenting/wp/2014/09/29/parenting-as-a-gen-xer-what-its-like-to-be-the-first-generation-of-parents-in-the-age-of-ieverything/