Articles

Social Isolation and Digital Technology: The Pew Study

2009-11-10T01:10:00-08:00

Does the widespread use of digital technology contribute to social isolation in America? Many contemporary social critics think so, but a study published last week by the Pew Internet & American Life Project asserts that this is not the case. Who’s right?

Kids’ Lives & Microsoft Windows: An Analogy

2009-10-28T23:38:00-08:00

The vast majority of kids don’t play outside in their neighborhoods. The vast majority of adults use Microsoft Windows on their computers. Furthermore, if given a choice, most parents would like their kids to play outside in their neighborhoods. Also, about half of Windows users are not happy using Windows, while the vast majority of Mac users are happy. In both cases, people are trapped into doing something that doesn’t make them happy.

Trick-or-Treater Index? What’s Yours?

2009-10-27T19:50:00-08:00

[Note: This article was originally published in October 2008.] In order to rate the child friendliness of a neighborhood, Richard Florida, author of Who’s Your City? and The Rise of the Creative Class, has coined an intriguing concept: the “Trick-or-Treater Index.” The idea is simple: just count the number of trick-or-treaters at your door on Halloween night and you’ll get a measure of how child friendly your neighborhood is the whole year. Certainly, it’s quite simplistic, but I would agree that neighborhoods with lots of trick-or-treaters tend to have lots of children who are …

Buddies for Life

2009-10-20T13:59:00-08:00

I always wished I had a brother. Now, I have three boys. I can see my oldest two really developing a tight relationship for the first time. It’s really nice. My middle son, Nico, is turning two and is just now starting to really play and have simple conversations. He and Marco, who’s 5, are together for hours each day. In fact, they’re with each other more than anyone else in their lives.

Explorers in Our Own Neighborhood

2009-10-08T23:53:00-08:00

Yesterday, my son Marco (5), niece Andrea, and I ventured down the San Francisquito creek bed about a mile from our house to Marco’s preschool. I’m sad and excited at the same time to say that it was a wonderful, frontier-like adventure. I’m sad because we encountered absolutely no one on our hour plus trip down there. In fact, in my many visits to that creek, I’ve hardly ever seen anyone else there. Thus, I feel sad for all the kids who live around here and never get to experience our creek bed as we did. On the other hand, it was wonderful because the creek bed is so beautiful, …

Can Young Children Experience “Flow?”

2009-10-06T19:14:00-08:00

The classic book on adult happiness, Flow, is about an intensely focused, yet blissful, state of mind. We adults experience it when we’re immersed in accomplishing some task so deeply that we lose awareness of all other things, including time. Many adults, myself included, think it is the ultimate state of happiness. Thus, I was quite disappointed to read in my favorite new child development book, The Philosophical Baby, that author Alison Gopnik does not believe that young children (i.e. ages 0 - 5) can have Flow experiences. She believes that infants and toddlers have “lantern …

Still Buzzing the Morning After

2009-09-21T18:43:00-08:00

Yeah, my life’s quite different these days, but it’s still quite good. In fact, I’m feeling so great this morning that I might say it’s never been better. You see, last afternoon and evening, a couple dozen kids played like crazy at a party at our house. They howled and ran and screamed and laughed. They created games of battle and fort building and house and jump-all-over-the-giant-beach-ball and racing cars.

The Philosophical Baby: One of the Most Thought-Provoking Books I’ve Ever Read

2009-09-19T22:46:00-08:00

“More than any other creature, human beings are able to change. We change the world around us, other people, and ourselves. Children, and childhood, help explain how we change.” This quote sums up The Philosophical Baby for me. When I read it, I realized that my ability to change the world, and to change myself, are the two things I cherish most about myself. They also embody my deepest desires for my children. In the book, Author Alison Gopnik helped me connect those abilities I first experienced as a child with who I am today. Thus, I have invaluable insight into the value of …

A Play Day & Parent Seminar at the Playborhood!

2009-09-10T19:36:00-08:00

226 Yale Rd., Menlo Park, CA Sunday, September 27 RSVP to Mike Lanza for the Play Day and/or Parent Seminar Play Day 3pm - 5:30pm Bring your kids to play with us in our Playborhood! See how we’ve transformed our front and back yards into venues for everyday play. Fun activities include the following: draw on front yard white board play with vintage (circa late 1960s) hot wheels track and cars build huge structures with Slotwood, which is like life-sized Lincoln Logs play in sandbox play in fountain (also see this video) play street hockey do the following with our huge playhouse:

Our Back Yard: Open & Playful in a Land of Fences

2009-09-06T10:52:00-08:00

I recently wrote about our efforts to make our front yard into a neighborhood hangout. Well, we have a back yard, too. We live in Northern California, a land of high, unneighborly fences. Beyond our fences on all three sides are four homes with seven kids my kids’ ages. Unlike many parents these days, I have no desire to invest in expensive play equipment, then have it used only by my children and the kids they invite over for playdates. So, my number one goal for the features I installed in my back yard was enticing neighbor kids to freely go around, over, or through our back …