Community Corner

Mom's Talk: Knowledge is Power and It's Everywhere, But...

Choosing how and where kids learn has become a challenge

There was a time, not the long ago, when there were basically two ways that a child learned—through the so-called “School of Life” or through fancy-schmantzy book-learnin’. But the thing you’re using right now, the computer, has changed all that. First it was the personal computer, then the laptop, and now the smartphone. Now, information, and therefore knowledge, is everywhere. Before, kids went to school and then went outside to play with their friends and learned how things work, whether they were interpersonal relationships, the rule of law or the business world. Now, “life” is at your fingertips. So, how do parents today disseminate information to their kids—if at all?

A mom and a teen respond, first the Mom:

  We are lucky to live where we do because the Washington D.C. area has so much to offer our children. From the time my daughter, who's now 12, was a toddler to as recently as the President's Day weekend, we have soaked up as much culture as we can. We visit the museums, monuments and parks, and take in plays and other cultural events. I always tell my daughter "go, do" because the world has so much to offer. As much as I'd like to be spontaneous it seems we have to plan more because of school, activities, etc. My daughter is not the type to bury herself in a book so I work harder to make sure she learns from the school of life. We also watch a lot of news and talk about what's going on the world. It's tough to strike a balance between shielding her from some of the unpleasantries of life while making sure she has the knowledge she needs to protect herself. Luckily she has good common sense.

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And the teen:

“It takes a village to raise a child,” said a wise person a long time ago. Now as I get older, I am now finally starting to uncover the absolute truth to this statement. Someone can’t just learn everything about life from only one source, whether that source is school, family, friends, or even a community. It’s like only eating food from one restaurant for your entire life. The restaurant might even delicious, but then you will never have the opportunity to try and explore other types of food. Similarly, a child needs to experience and acquire knowledge from a variety of people and places. While I do think that the skills gained in the classroom can translate into real life and even a future job, there is only so much y=mx+b can do for a person. Emphasis should be put on book learning, but parents should not disregard the many other different experiences that can yield knowledge. A child should be able to try all of the different kinds of food this world has to offer.       

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