My first memory of using a computer was in the fifth grade when we could go to the library and play Oregon Trail. On an Apple IIe. With a green screen. A floppy disk. No animation. No color. We thought we had hit the jackpot! I think our school library had two computers at the time and having a computer at home was a rarity.
Fast forward to my senior year in college when I was introduced to this new thing called email. It was such a strange concept but now thirteen years later email is a part of my daily life. It is my main form of communication throughout my day as it allows me to maintain contact with friends and take care of some details of life without disrupting our school day.
I am amazed at how much my children know about the technology. My eight year old is fluent in terms about email, text messaging, and using instant messenger. She uses email and IM to communicate with her friends and her cousins who live far away. It helps her to feel connected to those she left when we moved but it is something that I monitor closely. She has friends who at eight have their own personal cell phones. Of course, she thinks it is very "cool" and the thoughts of her own cell phone dance in her head. I am the squasher of that dream - sorry babe but you are eight!
There are advances in technology every day. I know I will never be up to date on all the latest as I am not very tech savvy. But as my children approach the "tween" and teenage years, it concerns me as to where technology will take us. Where is the balance going to be with IM, email, text messaging, blogging, and the new things we don't even know about yet? How do the conveniences of technology fit into our life and the values of our family? I surely don't want that comic strip to become a reality in our home.
4 comments:
I think about this very topic all the time. It's kind of scary to think about. BUT, that always brings me to the assurance that God was God when there were no cars, and no electricity, and He will be God as our children grow and adapt to society - whatever it brings.
By the way, I went to same said library and played on same computer with same floppy disk...only I played Lemonade Stand!
Oh yes, I agree! For Christmas, my husband bought our oldest son a Playstation 2 along with the Star Wars Lego game. He became instantly addicted and I was like, oh no...what did we do? Thankfully his addiction has eased off now and we put very firm limits on his play time. I think as parents we have to be really careful with all of these technological advances!
I've thought about this MANY times. It is one of the reasons that we plan to never allow our kids to have computers in their bedrooms.
For me it was Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego in the 4th grade.
But I know what you mean about where technology will go as our kids continue to age. I do get concerned about not keeping up with it and feeling out of the loop. I only hope that, as they grow, I can foster communication so that even if I don't always understand everything, they will always feel like they can talk to me about their lives.
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