Several years ago I started writing notes for Smallsteps to inform her of things. It started with notes on weekend mornings to tell her there was some breakfast waiting for her and she could watch a bit of TV, play or read. Sometimes it included a task, like a few maths problems, a maze, and usually a drawing. This have us a chance to sleep in. Now she is old enough to make her own breakfast.
And write me notes.
That was one from this morning.
She snuck into the bedroom, though she didn't know I was already awake. When she realised, she told me to close my eyes and then read it after she left.
She is getting pretty good at writing in English, though she still makes a few spelling errors due to her pronunciation at times, like with. But she is also going to be a better speller than most native English speakers, as she learns the spelling phonetically. The other day, she spent a couple hours talking to me in English said as a Finn would say it.
She sounded like a Finnish rally driver.
I feel it is going to be interesting to see what kind of effects being language heavy at home is going to make. There was a study many years ago about the differences in outcomes between kids who spoke with parents a lot, and those who went home to empty houses and watched TV, and the variation was clear. Now with changes in technology with screens everywhere, I suspect that it will be even starker.
We have been pretty analogue with Smallsteps, talking to her constantly from birth, reading to her, teaching her to count and recognise letters from a very young age, and including her in LL kinds of conversations. It made a huge difference when she was younger, but those gaps are closing to some of her friends, but her friends now tend to come from households with parents who are also pretty active at keeping the kids off of screens for the most part.
But it is interesting to consider that a lot of the kids who are consuming a lot seem smart, because they can repeat a lot of what they have heard. However, the same kids don't seem to be overly creative, rather they are regurgitating what they have consumed from creative people.
We all copy.
However, I do consider there is a difference forming where the copying is no longer a learning process toward creativity, but a conditioning that restricts creative freedom, narrowing the ability to create. Thinking outside the box has been replaced by repeating what is within it. But because there is such a huge variety of consumables, the repetition goes unnoticed.
We are moving quickly into a phase where people are not skilled enough to create much of use, but will still have to generate some kind of value in order to live. As I see it, human skills might become highly valuable, because most people won't have a strong command of them, after being raised on digital aids.
What we say matters, and what we do matters more. It could be that there is nothing we can offer the world after we have been automated out of usefulness. But if that is the case, we are all screwed. So, I think that spending time developing human interpersonal skills, communication skills, and the ability to engage well, is time well spent.
At least, I will get cute notes.
Taraz
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