Brain Dead Kids? Is the computer ruining our children?

Are our kids braindead? Read the article here.

In August 2011, I wrote(View Article) about the lack of imagination that our children seem to have these days.  I listed the internet and video games as a likely cause.  Now, "The Mail" has published their own article.

If you have a 10 year old boy and he has never held a hammer, a piece of wood, and nails in his hands and tried to build something, shame on you as a parent.  You cannot let the sterile inside of a house or computer screen drive your child's imagination.  They must have alone time outdoors, away from you and your spouse.  

If you have a 10 year old daughter who has not done the same as a 10 year old boy, shame on you. Even though few girls take up any kind of building, it is about imagination and creativity.  

Let kids be kids.  This is why I stand so strongly against 3K and preK education.  Once the kids enter the walls of the education establishment, they are in it for the next 13 to 20 years.  In the education system they will deal with structured learning and creativity.  Yes, even the creativity is structured as it is graded and fawned over. 

Yet, if allowed to discover on their own, and allowed to be kids without overly strict guidelines, they garner experiences that no school will ever teach them. They see things through the eyes of the innocent.  This is where they develop curiosity and the desire to learn. 

Don't get me wrong.  The internet is the best thing to come along since sliced bread.  But, it must be used for what it was designed as, a tool, not a replacement for learning, common sense, and hands on experiences. 

Even today, we see parents with their heads stuck in the Ipad, Iphone, or laptop.  I am as guilty as anyone in this sense, and am trying to spend less time online.  

Your thoughts...........