Article: Is your home making your child dumber? The case for a home makeover
Is your home making your child dumber? The case for a home makeover
Modern parenting ideals prioritize extra safety and convenience, resulting in passive, modern, adult-centered spaces and toys that limit children's natural development.
We define these spaces as:
Overwhelming
The abundance of colorful, noisy toys is overwhelming and hampers concentration, creativity, and relaxation/whining down.
Restricting
This crib/playpen is too large/bulky and limits children’s ability to move, explore freely, and develop essential motor skills.
Non-functional
The non-functional water tap hinders independent experimentation and learning, as adults prioritise aesthetics over functionality.
Adult-Size
An adult-size high chair/high shelves restricts a child’s independence by limiting reach, freedom of choice thus hindering their confidence in execution.
The consequences:
As a result, children experience delays in the following four crucial areas of development, which also lead to negative long term effects in teenhood then adulthood.
Sensory Overload
In childhood:
- Overwhelmed developing senses
- Difficulty processing information
- Shorter attention span, lack of focus
- Disrupted sleep
In adulthood:
- Chronic anxiety and stress
- Social difficulties (issues processing social cues)
Reduced Movement
- Obstructing barriers i.e. limited exploration
- Reduced physical development & active play
- Increased risk of chronic diseases
- Musculoskeletal Issues, (posture/flexibility issues)
Cognitive Hindrance
- Limited exposure to stimulating real-life activities and educational opportunities
- Difficulties playing and creating independently (no room for imagination)
- Learning difficulties such as dyslexia & ADHD, etc.
- Lower cognitive functioning, memory & problem-solving issues
Unregulated Emotions
- Frustration while struggling to navigate cluttered spaces & physical barriers to free movement
- Difficulty calming down
- Limited to no decision-making
- Mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, & substance abuse
- Difficulty in relationships, uncontrolled emotions
- Low self-esteem/confidence
At Stepuptots we looked at alternative space designs and have found that child-centered spaces outperformed modern space designs on many fronts.
