Photo by Nikoline Arns on Unsplash
After parents, grandparents are hands-down the most common childcare providers for families, particularly for young children. As of 2005 (the most recent data available), grandparents cared for 13.8% of preschoolers — more than Head Start, daycare centers, and nursery schools combined. Additionally, an estimated 3 million older adults are raising their grandchildren as the primary caregivers.
With the amount of time children are beginning to spend in their care, grandparents are becoming increasingly responsible for introducing activities that will help shape the way their grandchildren learn, from as early as age 2. This made me wonder: What might this process look like for grandparents, especially in an era of constantly available screen time?
During my research, I discovered that there are two general types of activities for children: passive and active. Passive activities and screen time consist of the child passively consuming digital content or games with little thought, creativity, or interaction required to progress. This could mean simply watching movies or YouTube videos or playing video games with little educational value or cognitive stimulation. Meanwhile, active games and screen time involve creativity and physical engagement. This could mean puzzles, books, educational games, wooden blocks, and board games or anything else that requires cognitive thinking to move forward. Activities such as playing with dolls, or banging blocks together in a seemingly chaotic manner are actually an incredibly important part of their cognitive development: These activities actually allow toddlers and children to engage in a rational process of making hypotheses, evaluating statistical data, and dismissing prior beliefs when presented with stronger evidence.
As every parent and grandparent knows, It’s becoming easier than ever to put an iPad or smartphone in our children’s laps when they ask for it or when we simply need a break, but naturally, that’s not always what’s best for our kids. In fact, several studies in recent years have shown that too much passive screen time can make kids moody, stressed and lazy. It has also been found that many young children and teenagers use social media and entertainment at the same time that they are engaged in important tasks like homework — yet evidence increasingly suggests that the use of media while engaged in academic tasks has negative consequences on learning. If we want to help our children properly develop essential skills like self-regulation, creativity and learning, we must encourage them to turn passive screen time into physical play and/or active screen time.
I took a random survey of two dozen grandparents from across the world to see how they spend time with their grandchildren and how they view their role in their early educational development. One-third of respondents said they see their grandchildren on a daily basis, while the rest either see their grandchildren on a weekly or monthly basis. Here’s what some had to say about how they spend their time with their grandchildren:
“I have the day with them. This gives me time to help them learn. We count things when [we are] out walking, we learn the names of birds and flowers. We have fun and learn all the time. As a grandmother I don’t need to rush around doing anything; I can just give them my time.” — Tina J.
“Typically I spend my time physically playing with my granddaughter. She loves books, building blocks, imaginary play, trips to the park, cooking, gardening, or anything that involves outside exploring.” — Angie W.
“Playing games, chatting, eating, singing, watching, hugging, reading, laughing, enjoying.” — Vicki G.
“I usually play with them with fun or educational toys, and I read them good books. When we go to the park we play together on the equipment. We sing songs together. We do tea parties together with stuffed animals and dolls. We play with shapes and colors. We play with bubbles, we do chalk drawing or doodles on paper. We try to keep active with active play. We also get enough rest.” — Florence G.
I also asked these grandparents how they view their role within the confines of their grandchildren’s development. Here’s what some said:
“I see my role as a supportive, quiet educator. Young families get so busy in normal daily life that there is often no time for one-on-one quiet time, where lots of learning can just naturally happen.” — Robyn V.
“In today’s society where usually both parents have to work, I think giving my time and attention to my grandchildren is of great importance. Hopefully during those times I can help with whatever they need whether it is listening, playing, helping with schoolwork, or introducing other activities or pastimes or places of interest.” — Carol B.
“I am her primary daycare provider, so I know it’s important to teach her. I try to use our time to help her learn words and how to do various things, as well as let her use her imagination by playing on her own.” — Diana F.
“I have the most important things to give, which are my love and my time. My granddaughter runs to me and says, ‘Play with me, Nana!’ I intentionally use that playtime as an opportunity for learning, and she never ceases to amaze me!” — Angie W.
These survey answers demonstrate what most parents probably already know: Grandparents are incredible resources who are very aware of their important role in a child’s early development. I was not surprised to see that every grandparent who answered my survey revealed that they work hard to keep active play a part of their time spent with grandchildren. As parents, it’s an important lesson to remember, and yet another reason to thank our own parents for helping us create active learning environments for our children.
Patrick Greenwood is the founder of Kontu, maker of Kontu STEM Blocks, a set of magnetic wooden blocks that are designed to encourage STEM thinking in early childhood.