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We do have a built in video system in our van, we wanted one for our long & frequent trips 7 hours away to visit family.
We have a "rule" that our trip must be 2 hours or more, for it to be turned on.
I do not talk on my phone - ever, while driving nor do I check texts,etc... If my phone rings, I ignore it until I am at my destination.
I can't stand seeing people texting or talking, it makes me extremely nervous.
Maybe it's when I go to a restaurant and see these parents ignoring their unruly children while they stare at their smart phones and I'm just trying to figure out what they are thinking?
I don't think unruly children and smartphones or videos are automatically related, but I agree that it's frustrating to see parents ignoring children who are behaving badly.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PullMyFinger
Put the damn gadgets away and talk to your kids, find out what is going on with them. Kids are not stupid, they act out when they figure out their parents really don't care about them that much.
So stuff them in the back of the van, throw in a movie and ignore them and see what happens in 15 years when it's too late.
As a child, I read in the car all the time. When I was seven, my grandparents took me to Nebraska to visit family. It was a three-day drive, and my mother packed a new book bag for me with books for the trip there and the trip back. I read them all on the way. My family used to tease me because I would become so engrossed while reading (I still do) that they would almost have to shout at me for me to hear them speaking.
My sister fell asleep pretty much anytime we had to drive more than 20 minutes.
I don't think parents need to entertain their children or chat with them everytime they are together in the car. Now, I DO think that kids need to learn to entertain themselves, and staring at a DVD all the time is not good. I think it's a good thing to look out the window and play little games with yourself, like "How many VW bugs can I see between home and Grandma's" (When I was a kid I'd get up to about 100), the alphabet game, or license plate bingo. Those are my general opinions about children. I wouldn't look at a kid watching a DVD on the freeway and automatically assume anything about his parents or upbringing.
We have a tradition that for long car rides I read books aloud while my husband drives. He gets carsick if he tries to read in the car, so I have to be the reader. But I am better at emoting the story anyway, so it all works out. We have read books like The Hobbit/ LOTR and Ender's Game. We have a 10 hour each way trip coming up this summer and will be looking for something that will interest the kids.
Maybe it's when I go to a restaurant and see these parents ignoring their unruly children while they stare at their smart phones and I'm just trying to figure out what they are thinking?
Put the damn gadgets away and talk to your kids, find out what is going on with them. Kids are not stupid, they act out when they figure out their parents really don't care about them that much.
So stuff them in the back of the van, throw in a movie and ignore them and see what happens in 15 years when it's too late.
How do you jump from watching a video in a car to parents not caring about their kids? That's quite a leap. I am having trouble making the connection between one thing and another.
If you see people in a car you see them for 5 seconds. You don't see the entirety of their life yet you are totally comfortable beating them up about their parenting skills and how their kids will turn out.
I would like to suggest to you that you mind your own business and take care of your own kids the way you see fit and let others do the same. Most kids turn out fine whether they watch a video in the car or not.
How do you jump from watching a video in a car to parents not caring about their kids? That's quite a leap. I am having trouble making the connection between one thing and another.
If you see people in a car you see them for 5 seconds. You don't see the entirety of their life yet you are totally comfortable beating them up about their parenting skills and how their kids will turn out.
I would like to suggest to you that you mind your own business and take care of your own kids the way you see fit and let others do the same. Most kids turn out fine whether they watch a video in the car or not.
I can see you don't spend a lot of time actually thinking about what others say. So never mind.
So when they get home after the 10 minute drive isn't the most important time rather that car trip is ? You are making quite a lot of assumptions here with everything. Videos in cars are the exception and not the rule, and most people i know who have them limit their usage.
Exactly. That 10 minute car ride is for EVERYONE to decompress because when you get home its homework, starting dinner, etc etc and so what, the kid watched some tv in the car. I think I felt the earth shift on that one.
I can understand having a video system going for the kids on long vacations/car trips. Makes perfect sense.
But it seems parents are replacing quality communication time with their children with more video time. I drive by a pre-school daycare on my way home from work. Last week I saw a mini-van pull out after picking up their kids. The video screen was on and the driver was texting and driving at the same time. No communication in the car at all.
I think it's sad, that is the most important time for a parent to see how their child's day went, what they learned.
Narcissistic people breeding narcissistic children.
Who knows, she may have had an even younger child in the car who was cranky and just got up from a nap, I would much rather pop in their favorite tape than sit in line to pick up the other kids while that one was still tired and cranky and screaming in the back.
I don't think unruly children and smartphones or videos are automatically related, but I agree that it's frustrating to see parents ignoring children who are behaving badly.
As a child, I read in the car all the time. When I was seven, my grandparents took me to Nebraska to visit family. It was a three-day drive, and my mother packed a new book bag for me with books for the trip there and the trip back. I read them all on the way. My family used to tease me because I would become so engrossed while reading (I still do) that they would almost have to shout at me for me to hear them speaking.
My sister fell asleep pretty much anytime we had to drive more than 20 minutes.
I don't think parents need to entertain their children or chat with them everytime they are together in the car. Now, I DO think that kids need to learn to entertain themselves, and staring at a DVD all the time is not good. I think it's a good thing to look out the window and play little games with yourself, like "How many VW bugs can I see between home and Grandma's" (When I was a kid I'd get up to about 100), the alphabet game, or license plate bingo. Those are my general opinions about children. I wouldn't look at a kid watching a DVD on the freeway and automatically assume anything about his parents or upbringing.
Many people make that correlation though.
I was the exact same way, I would bring a whole series of books and read them or sleep. Once I got old enough though it was headphones and cell phone and one or two books.
My brother is the opposite, he likes to talk and look at things and such.
I'm not against tv's in the cars, but I do agree with limiting their usage, like limiting them to long car trips or waiting in line somewhere for a line time like pick-up lines for school. Some parents show up super early and wait 10-15 minutes, if I can't expect myself to sit for that long without using my phone to entertain me, I wouldn't expect my child to sit that long without anything to do either.
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? You are making quite a lot of assumptions here with everything. Videos in cars are the exception and not the rule, and most people i know who have them limit their usage.
