We’ve had a couple of nice days lately and in the afternoons, I’ve spent some time reading on the patio. We live in a very nice housing development, or “village.” There are quite a few kids in the neighborhood. But while I was sitting out enjoying the great weather, It occurred to me that I didn’t see any of those kids. If fact, I almost never see any kids — occasionally, you’ll see one walking to the bus stop or maybe home from the bus stop. But you never see them outside playing.
I don’t remember the last time I saw any kid, or group of kids, playing outside. I’m not sure when this all happened, but I just noticed it. Of course you know where this is leading — some extensive research. I really was curious and I discovered it wasn’t just my imagination — kids really don’t seem to play outside much anymore.
Here’s some “facts” that I found interesting:
Only 6 percent of American children, ages 9-13, play outside unsupervised.
A 2004 survey found that 71 percent of American mothers said they played outdoors every day as children, but only 26 percent of them said their kids played outdoors daily.
A 2005 study indicated that 71 percent of adults reported that they walked or biked to school when they were children, but in 2005, only about 20 percent of children did.
But my question remains…. why?
My guess is that fear may be maybe the most important reason. We obviously live in a more fearful society these days. Parents have a lot to worry about, some of the things are real, some are exaggerated, some are imagined — traffic, strangers, crime, bug bites, skin cancer, injuries, animals, etc.
And a lot of kids don’t want to go outside — they’d rather watch the screen of their iPads, or TV, or some video game.
A lot (most?) kids are raised in an overly structured lifestyle. They’re involved in sports teams, indoor play centers, and other extracurricular activities. And some schools seem to assign an excessive amount of homework.
Anyhow, I think it’s a shame — apparently parents have come to the conclusion that all these “threats” are real and organized activities are better for their kids than the goof-around, footloose time I had when I was a kid.
— 30 —
The world is certainly different now. We were outside all the time. Mom knew where we were for the most part. You came home for lunch or dinner. The night time rule was when the street lights came on you needed to go home. We didn’t have much or do much but we had fun!