All Work and No Play: Why Your Kids Are More Anxious, Depressed

The article "All Work and No Play: Why Your Kids Are More Anxious, Depressed" by Esther Entin is about how children and teenagers nowadays are getting more depressed and having anxiousity because they have less time to play and their parents are taking more control of their life. In the article it says, " Play time is in short supply for children these days and the lifelong consequences for developing children can be more serious than many people realize."

Parents who like to control their childrens play time and hover over them are a big part of the problem. Peter Gray, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology (emeritus) at Boston College says, " It is hard to find groups of children outdoors at all, and, if you do find them, they are likely to be wearing uniforms and following the directions of coaches while their parents dutifully watch and cheer." Gray cities a study which assessed the way 6- to 8-year olds spent their time in 1981 and again in 1997.

Researchers found that compared to 1981, children in 1997 spent less time in play and had less free time. They spent 18 percent more time at school, 145 percent more time doing school work, and 168 percent more time shopping with parents. Adding to the problem, Gray notes, is our increasing emphasis on schooling and on adult- directed activities. Preschools and Kindergarden have become more academically- oriented and many schools have even eliminated recess.But there are five ways play benefits kids, and in the article one of them ways Gray notes, "...in school, children work for grades and praise and in adult- directed sports, they work for praise and trophies... In free play, children do what they want to do, and the learning and pschological growth that results are byproducts, not goals of the activity."

I do feel that adults like to know try to control there childs life. Nowadays when i go outside and see children playing it's because they are playing with their parent or at practice playing soccor or any type of activity. Many parents are scared for their child, and since they are scared they are going to live in the shadow of fear and hover and protect their child as much as they can. After that shooting in Connecticut at Sandy Hook school of course more parents are even more scared for their child to walk out of the door.

When my mother sends my little sister to the store I sometimes fear if within the 5 to 10 minutes she's gone will she be ok or if something will happen. But at times I have to realize that she is getting older and that i can't always protect her and that living in fear of others may effect us in a bad way.
Maybe if I keep hovering over her she may think that im being over protective and may effect our relationship. Parents have to soon realize that they can protect their child as much as they want when they are young, but as they get older you can't protect them as much as they could when they where smaller.