Sharks in the Park? Really?
Tonight I watched a story on TV3's News Hub. It showed some kids in a park, running around with IPads held in front of their faces. As they ran it did not look unlikely that they would collide, they were so absorbed in their screens. They didn't notice each other because they were playing with virtual sharks.
Sharks in the Park is an augmented reality game. The screens the kids were looking at were showing a 360 degree view of what was around them in real life, and digital images of fish they were trying to catch and hungry sharks they were trying to avoid. We were told the game was a way to get kids to exercise and still play on their iPads.
I'm not a Luddite. We are a family of self confessed TV addicts, I was watching the news on TV, I have a blog, I'm sitting writing this on my iPad right now. But honestly, where do we draw the line? If I'd watched that news segment with the sound turned down it could have passed as a Monty Python sketch.
Surely the whole point of taking your kids to the park or the playground is so they can play with other kids, take a break from technology, enjoy being outside with nature. A chorus line of Pukehoes could have performed the Can Can in matching boas and the kids wouldn't have had an inkling, they were so immersed in dodging digital sharks.
I'm pretty moderate in my views, so I reckon it's probably not doing any harm but, it just seems so unnecessary! When we go to the park, I don't see many kids sitting on the ground, refusing to move unless they have access to technology. The very nature of kids is that they like to move, explore, play. Surely they don't need an IPad game or app to help them do this, they seem to manage fine without one. For now . . .
I'm no earth mother (I can't even sew on a button and I buy in my birthday cakes), I don't have the skills or desire to live off the grid, or embrace a complete technology free existence, but I do think as a society we need to slow down, press the pause button from time to time.
Recently I have made some small, simple, changes to try to live more slowly, such as, taking some time out from technology, going to the park with my kids more often, making an effort to notice the world around me and spend time truly engaging with my family. It's made a big difference.
Therefore, there will be no sharks when we go to the park. Hopefully we'll see some dancing Pukehoes though?
raisingakiwiprincess.com
Tonight I watched a story on TV3's News Hub. It showed some kids in a park, running around with IPads held in front of their faces. As they ran it did not look unlikely that they would collide, they were so absorbed in their screens. They didn't notice each other because they were playing with virtual sharks.
Sharks in the Park is an augmented reality game. The screens the kids were looking at were showing a 360 degree view of what was around them in real life, and digital images of fish they were trying to catch and hungry sharks they were trying to avoid. We were told the game was a way to get kids to exercise and still play on their iPads.
I'm not a Luddite. We are a family of self confessed TV addicts, I was watching the news on TV, I have a blog, I'm sitting writing this on my iPad right now. But honestly, where do we draw the line? If I'd watched that news segment with the sound turned down it could have passed as a Monty Python sketch.
Surely the whole point of taking your kids to the park or the playground is so they can play with other kids, take a break from technology, enjoy being outside with nature. A chorus line of Pukehoes could have performed the Can Can in matching boas and the kids wouldn't have had an inkling, they were so immersed in dodging digital sharks.
I'm pretty moderate in my views, so I reckon it's probably not doing any harm but, it just seems so unnecessary! When we go to the park, I don't see many kids sitting on the ground, refusing to move unless they have access to technology. The very nature of kids is that they like to move, explore, play. Surely they don't need an IPad game or app to help them do this, they seem to manage fine without one. For now . . .
I'm no earth mother (I can't even sew on a button and I buy in my birthday cakes), I don't have the skills or desire to live off the grid, or embrace a complete technology free existence, but I do think as a society we need to slow down, press the pause button from time to time.
Recently I have made some small, simple, changes to try to live more slowly, such as, taking some time out from technology, going to the park with my kids more often, making an effort to notice the world around me and spend time truly engaging with my family. It's made a big difference.
Therefore, there will be no sharks when we go to the park. Hopefully we'll see some dancing Pukehoes though?
raisingakiwiprincess.com