Parents, Do Your Research

Every Christmas, I experience the same thing: some parent buys their child something they're really too young to have. It never fails. Whether it's a relative, friend, co-worker or a stranger I happen to stumble across, they'll buy their kid something they can't comprehend.

Gaming consoles

Growing up in the 80's, gaming consoles were a bit different. You had a cartridge, you put it in and turned on the power. That's it. The joystick consisted of a stick and at the most, two buttons. GC's are different now. Maybe not so much the Wii, but the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 are completely different. Delicate discs, comprehensive menus and a joystick that consists of no less than six buttons and multiple sticks. Do parents care that some of the games they buy are inappropriate for their kids? No. Do parents care that their 1st grade child struggles to master their games? No. Can some of the kids manage to "button mash" their way through some games? Sure. But, seeing a six year old trying to play Madden is downright sad. A lot of parents don't research to see what game is best for the kid, they just buy the popular titles. My god son is almost 9 years old and I consider him a super-smart kid. When he comes over, I allow him to play my 360. He plays some of the games well, but the more complex games really frustrate him. Well, they should because he's not old enough to understand the rules/concept of the games and/or he simply lacks the skill to play it. Mix in the high price of the consoles and that most kids don't understand care and maintenance and it can leave you scratching your head.

Cell phones

For the life of me, I will never understand why someone not old enough to drive needs a smart phone. To see a 10 year old with an iPhone baffles me. First of all, the iPhone service plan is expensive. I had one recurring bill when I was 10 years old and it was a subscription to Sports Illustrated. And even then, I paid that out of my own allowance. A kid under 16 having an $80 phone bill and something else to distract them from more important things in life just has to be explained to me. I've heard numerous stories from teachers I know who say that they can't compete with the cell phones in class. Can't kids just be kids and do things that promote creativity rather than something that simply deadens their brain for periods of time?

Clothes

These new old Jordans came out last week and quite a few parents were in line for their kids. Do students really need a pair of $180 shoes? I mean, even if you can afford it, why does your kid need a pair of $180 shoes? Isn't that grooming your child to be materialistic? Aren't there other things kids should be focusing on besides wearing name brand items? I've seen parents complain (locally) about not wanting their kids to be forced to wear uniforms to school. The parents claim that it robs the kids of their identity. When is the last time they walked into a classroom? All of the kids look exactly alike because they're all wearing the same clothes Lil' Wayne wore in his last video.

Look, I know some kids are an exception. Some children are mature enough to be given certain gifts. But, stop getting your kids things simply because other parents are doing it. Parents, do your research. Is your child even old enough to comprehend what you're getting them?

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