It may seem like yesterday when your child was just a toddler, still wanting to hold your hand while crossing the street and enjoying a hug in public. But suddenly you blinked and your toddler is now a tween or teenager, and is spending more and more time with their friends and devices. You may wish that you could turn back time, or maybe you’re more concerned with how fast your teen is maturing. Every parent feels like their child grows up too quickly, and in this technology-driven age, it may feel even more like this. But the truth of the matter is, children have always grown up quicker than most expect or wish.
Back in the Day
It may have felt like a simpler time when you or other generations were growing up. Playing outside till the sun goes down, riding your bicycles around town, playing dress up with friends. And for most children, this is the norm of growing up. But in all reality, most children always end up maturing faster than what is ideal. For older generations, some teens even had to dropout of high school to help provide for the family, or were even younger when they had to start working. Added responsibility is always a layer of maturing for your children, no matter their age, that will slowly open up their world to not just themselves.
Taking Ownership
Part of growing up is also slowly realizing there’s a whole world around you. Most children grow up focusing on themselves, and then start associating other people, family, friends, pets, and the world in a bigger picture. For a lot of kids today, they reach this level of maturity at a seemingly faster rate than other generations. There are middle schoolers who are working against global warming, kids creating arts and crafts for a charitable cause and so much more. Children may be growing up into the world mindset faster than in previous generations, which also tends to lend itself to maturing quicker as well. Having that global scale of the world in a young child’s mind earlier will most likely grow their skills and worldview quicker too. It may seem like a lot to put on a kid’s shoulders at a young age, but children are going to become interested in certain topics no matter what you do, so harnessing that learning and curiosity now can have a much greater impact on your child’s life than stifling it.
Focusing that need for maturity and growing up in your teen, tween, or even younger child can help them foster a more positive outlook on the world. Technology and social media can suck a child into more baseless thoughts and actions, but there’s also a lot of good that can be utilized with social media.
Katie Kyzivat