Comments (8)

By Mom Unplugged, June 26, 2007 7:53 pm

There has been a lot of press and controversy surrounding this book. I first heard about it in an interview with one of the authors on public radio’s On Point (click here to listen). I found the interview to be vaguely annoying, in part due to one of the “guests,” but I also felt that the moderator was not handling things well either. However, the subject matter and theory behind the book sounded so interesting that I absolutely had to check it out. It seemed to be fitting for our unplugged family, and for Unplug Your Kids.

This book is coauthored by two British brothers who wanted to share with the world the activities that they enjoyed, and subjects that had fascinated them as children. According to the interview I heard, the authors are frustrated with plugged-in children, interested only in x-boxes, computer games and TV.

The book soared to the top of the best-seller list in England and now is climbing steadily here. Apparently certain subjects were altered to appeal to the American market (ex. cricket was removed, baseball was added). It is really sort of an encyclopedia of activities and knowledge “for boys.” The “for boys” part is what seems to have stirred up all the controversy.

Call me a wimp, but for better or worse, I am a very non-confrontational person and I really don’t want to get into a feminist, nature vs. nurture, girls vs. boys, or any other kind of debate here or anywhere else. All I can say is that the title does not bother me in the least. Might some girls like this book? Yes. Might some boys NOT like this book? Yes. Could/should the authors have called it something else? I don’t know. End of subject. I want to talk about the book, not the controversy.

This book is a bit of an encyclopedia, or guidebook, to certain activities and knowledge that might be considered lost on today’s youth. Even the cover and marbleized end papers of the book recall a bygone era.

The introduction is wonderful and explains the whole premise of this book: unplug your kids! Here is the first paragraph:

“In this age of video games and cell phones, there must still be a place for knots, tree houses, and stories of incredible courage. The one thing that we always say about childhood is that we seemed to have more time back then. This book will help you recapture those Sunday afternoons and long summers-because they’re still long if you know how to look at them.”

Here, here! I so agree!

As for the rest of the book, it contains an odd array of activities (for example: Making a Periscope, Coin Tricks, Charting the Universe, Making a Battery, Marbling Paper, Secret Inks, Making Crystals, and Making Cloth Fireproof) and very diverse information (ex. Famous Battles, Navigation, The Fifty States, Baseball’s Most Valuable Players, The Rules of Rugby, Latin Phrases Every Boy Should Know, Books Every Boy Should Read, Navajo Code Talkers Dictionary, and The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World). There is even a brief, two page section on advice about girls which might offend some, but I found quite amusing (for example: “Avoid being vulgar. Excitable bouts of windbreaking will not endear you to a girl…”).

I have spent quite a few evenings reading this book in bed, and have learned a lot. It is really fascinating to me! The book is too advanced for my just-turned-5-year-old boy and also for my 6-almost-7-year-old-girl. We could maybe try a few of the activities together, but they won’t be reading it cover to cover for a while yet.

When they are older it will definitely be a fun reference for them. We’ll skip the sections on “Hunting and Cooking a Rabbit,” and “Tanning a Skin,” but some of the other information and activities will be perfect later on down the road.

The whole point is simple: kids should be out in nature and experiencing life, not sitting in front of a screen. The aim of this book is to provide a little non-preachy inspiration and some fun ideas for things to do with your kids that don’t involve a screen or a joystick.

If you are at all concerned about the political correctness of the book, or the suitability of any of the suggestions or information, then I would advise you to check it out of the library before buying it. Make sure that you are comfortable with it and that it is right for you.

I, however, love it and think it will be a fun book for us.

Comments (3)

By Mom Unplugged, April 14, 2007 11:57 am

Today I am uninspired as to a post. Yesterday’s rather philosophical post (“Why Am I Doing This?”) wore out my few remaining brain cells.

People always ask me, what my kids do with their time without TV. So perhaps today I will just post some pictures about what my kids are up to these days with all those boxes I am saving for my future fame and fortune on Ebay. Who really needs all those pricey toys anyway?

Comments (2)

By Mom Unplugged, March 20, 2007 12:15 pm

I love gardening. At the first hint of warm weather I begin to have detailed, yet wildly unrealistic visions of the beautiful, picture-perfect garden that I will certainly create this year. This spring I will plant some roses, and I have been researching different types of roses for the past two years (literally). I am not an impulse shopper in any regard, and certainly not where something seemingly as permanent as a garden is concerned.Last year I gave the kids a little patch of dirt to plant. I thought colorful annuals would satisfy short attention spans better than seeds or perennials. We went to the nursery and they got to pick six plants each, any annual they wanted. My daughter picked dainty alyssum as well as a variety of other flowers in pretty pink and purple tones. She is like me, not an impulse shopper. Much to my annoyance it took her close to an hour to make up her mind, even while being hurried along by me. My son (a typical “buy-the-first-thing-you-see-then-leave-as-quickly-as-possible” male) headed straight for the brightest flowers he saw: marigolds in varying shades of bright yellow and orange and rust. He chose five marigolds and a mint plant, because he liked the smell.

The deal was that they had to plant them themselves, and then water them everyday on their own without reminding. I had my doubts about the odds of their survival and felt grateful that my role in this life was to be my son’s Mom and not one of his marigolds.

Much to my surprise, the gardening experiment was a resounding success. They watered faithfully and I even taught them how to weed and deadhead by helping me. They kept their garden looking tidier than mine.

Now, every time we drive by the nursery they want to go and look at flowers. I have to explain that it is too soon, but they still don’t fully understand time, even my 6 year-old.

Meanwhile, I peruse garden magazines featuring fabulous, yet entirely impractical gardens for my climate, ability, and available time. I read the David Austin rose catalogue regularly, because this year, I really will take the plunge and order the roses of my dreams. I desperately want a Madame Alfred Carriere.

My kids have already, on their own initiative, planted pots with ancient seeds they found in the garage, and my son just brought home a sprouting Daffodil bulb that they forced at school.

Yeah! Spring is on the way!

(For my tips for gardening with kids, please also see my post: The Children’s Garden .)

Thanks to morgefile.com and photographer julesinky.

Comments (4)

By Mom Unplugged, March 19, 2007 10:19 am

My kids are only 6, 4, and 14 months, but already with my 6 year-old I can see how it is easy to overschedule. I decided, before it was ever an issue, that I would allow one musical instrument (mandatory) and one activity per child. Well, my oldest did ballet last year and wanted to do it again, plus tap, this year. I agreed to the tap since the tap class met right after ballet and it would still only mean one trip to the dance studio per week.

Then, she wanted to try soccer because her friends liked it. My whole life I have been a total anti-jock (like matter and anti-matter!), you know the type - picked last for gym. Maybe it was even YOU the nasty jocky-type who said: “Well, I guess we’ll take HER, (big sigh plus flip of the oh so perfect jocky hair)…that’s OK, I forgive you… but… I digress. Anyhow, being far from a jock myself, I am very sensitive to the fact that I should afford my children every opportunity to do sports if they want to. After all, they say it IS good for you, right? So I said yes to the soccer (Saturday).

Then my 4 year-old son wanted to try soccer too…and dance! So just to be fair, I enrolled him in soccer and ballet too. Unfortunately his ballet is Wednesday, my daughter’s is Tuesday. Plus, their school offers an after-school art class one day a week (Thursday) that they absolutely love! We are now in three activities each, not including the musical instrument that they will do in the future, not including girl scouts that my daughter wants to do too, not including gymnastics, not including horseback riding, not including blah blah blah. You get the picture.

I rationalize this year’s situation by saying to myself that soccer season was only through October so it was a short commitment, therefore they are really only in two activities each (art and dance). I have not told them about the existence of T-ball or Little League. Until they hear about it from their friends and express an interest I am not going there!

They are 4 and 6! I want them to act like 4 and 6 year-olds. I want them to play, imagine, run around outside, lie on their backs and watch the clouds, build sofa cushion forts … not race from dance, to girl scouts, to sport, to art, to music, to whatever!

So next year, I am going to try and enforce my rule. If my daughter wants girl scouts, then dance or art have to go. We live in a small town with very few choices. What do people do in larger places where they have a whole smorgasbord of fun, educational activities to choose from?

I can see that it can become more and more difficult to avoid the overscheduling issue as children get older. However, I refuse to let us get sucked into that trap. I don’t want my kids to need their own personal secretary before they are even out of elementary school. I don’t want to give up family dinners because so-and-so has practice. I don’t want to spend my afternoons and evenings driving all over town.

And what will happen when the baby gets older and wants to do dance and soccer and art and music and Japanese lessons and baby spelunking and luge team and blah blah blah? That will be three kids who all have different schedules and needs. NOT AN OPTION!

I hope I have the strength to say NO despite the fact that their friends will have increasingly more complex schedules. Am I denying my children educational opportunities with this attitude? I really don’t think so. I think and hope that my children are the ones who will benefit from having a chance to check out ants and dig in the dirt while their friends are all off doing karate and whatever.

What do you remember most fondly from your childhood? The ballet lessons or building snow forts with your little brother and the neighborhood kids?

Comments (4)

By Mom Unplugged, March 18, 2007 12:37 pm

It is another lovely day here in the Arizona mountains, but cold air and a winter storm are headed our way. We need to enjoy this warm weather while it lasts, so today is a great day to be outside on the deck with a cup of tea, some magazines, a pollen-filtering mask and a big bottle of Claritin. What a perfect time for that magazine post that I have been planning!

In general, I am not a fan of “mom” magazines. When I read the big-name magazines, I feel belittled, inadequate, talked down to, stupid. I dislike the “Must Have Toys” sections, obviously sponsored by major manufacturers like Fisher Price and which feature all the loud, flashy, obnoxious toys I hate. I do not spend my days wondering how to decorate the perfect cupcake or whether my little ones are following the latest trends in kiddie fashion (am I supposed to?).

For those of you looking for some alternatives, check out the following:

Wondertime (“Celebrate Your Child’s Love of Learning”): Pretty new publication, unfortunately dubbed by the New York Times at its debut as a “magazine for education-obsessed parents of the very young”. As a parent who obviously cares about education, I find this target audience description to be rather demeaning. However, I have looked at one issue of Wondertime, and it is not bad (See? I guess I AM the target audience!). There was some thoughtful content and the photography was appealing. Although it is put out by Disney Publications, I saw not one single “Disney Princess” or Baby Einstein product. Wondertime has just been nominated for an “Ellie.” If you are not ready for anything too radical, start here. This one seems a little more mainstream than the other two I suggest.

Brain Child (“The Magazine For Thinking Mothers”): I used to subscribe to this one, but it piled up unread and fell victim to my magazine subscription tidy-up. Brain Child is radically different from the traditional “Mom magazine.” Three or four years later, I still remember a fascinating article about a women’s prison and its revolutionary new child-care program. The articles are sometimes edgy, often controversial, but they do promote thought and debate.

Mothering (“Natural Family Living”): I have only looked at this one a few times. I like a lot of the ideas they promote, however I found it a little too “crunchy” for me. I felt like a disappointment as a reader since I could never live up to the “natural,” eco-friendly expectations of this magazine!

I am sure there must be other alternative magazines out there that people more “with-it” than me can recommend. Is there a cool and different parenting/mom magazine that you enjoy? If so, please leave a comment and I will add it here. Thanks and have a peaceful Sunday!