Today my youngest bursts from the school doors to announce that her little friend will come for a playdate and bring her iPad.
"Really?" I say. I shrink down, sad and disappointed. All day, I had been so excited because I found paints with glitter inside. I pictured a leisurely afternoon with my children painting quietly in the kitchen.
But crafts can't compete with an iPad, and she's so excited.
"Well," I venture, "I bought a paint set at the thrift store for you. It has glitter."
Silence. Paints or iPad?
The little girl arrives with her iPad. They use it to record themselves and modulate their voices for a few minutes as a cat on the screen mouths the words.
But then. . . but then, the longing looks towards the craft area turn to actual racing to the paints.
I knew it. The mess and texture of paints wins. There's hope for the six year-olds after all.
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What else wins over the iPad?
"mess and texture" - I'm hosting a group of children from our church at the dog sanctuary on Saturday. Part of my plan is to freeze poop - I have lots of it plus some poop freeze, hope they get a kick out of it :).
ReplyDeleteWhat wins over the iPad? Try things involving scent and touch. No iPad can compete with the smell of a flower or fresh-baked cookies. Playing in the mud or anything squishy has got to be a kid favorite, not that I, myself, have outgrown it. A compromise may be to let them take pictures of the spring flowering bulbs each day as a time-lapse project, since the flowers in our part of the country are starting to poke through the ground.
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