Naturally Not Natural: Toddlers" Harness and Wrist Straps - A Necessary Approach to Safety?
It is known that childhood in Britain is becoming more constrained than ever in what concerns contact with nature.
The exhaustive pressure of health & safety regulations, dramatic stories emphasized by media and a growing parental lack of confidence are pushing our children, from the very beginning, to fear taking risks and explore the outside world.
We all remember the times when it was natural to climb a tree.
Yes, there was always a very high possibility of hurting ourselves either scratching our knees or even breaking a finger; but that was not the point.
The point was that we did not fear taking risks.
We were taught that accidents could happen but we were free to explore and investigate the living world around us.
I have managed day nurseries and children's centres for quite a few years now.
It has always been difficult to convince even my best practitioner that a child wanting to climb a tree was OK and that by trying to discourage the child to do it, we stop him/her taking risks and wanting to explore the unknown.
Today, as I was walking through the park with my two and a half year old, I saw a parent passing by with a child that was around 20 months old.
The mother, busy on her mobile, had a wrist to wrist strap for toddlers.
The child wanted to pick up a dead leaf from the floor and was trying so hard to reach it...
but he couldn't because he was strapped.
The mother, who had her hands busy between her mobile, pushing the pram and controlling the safety strap, was not concentrating enough to see what was happening.
In my mind I was wondering why someone would take a child to the park in first place if the child is not even allowed to walk, run, bounce or pick dead leaves from the ground.
What is the fascination about safety wrists straps? What is the purpose? In what way is it supporting a child's development? It is not that I think that we are worse parents than our parents or grandparents, but the truth is that there was no such thing as wrists straps in those days and children were simply taught rules such holding hands with an adult or being careful when walking in public spaces.
It does make me sad, as a mother and an Early Years Professional, that as a society we allow gadgets such this wrist safety strap to take over our confidence and make us believe that we need them to be better and more sensible parents.
I tell you what - we don't!
The exhaustive pressure of health & safety regulations, dramatic stories emphasized by media and a growing parental lack of confidence are pushing our children, from the very beginning, to fear taking risks and explore the outside world.
We all remember the times when it was natural to climb a tree.
Yes, there was always a very high possibility of hurting ourselves either scratching our knees or even breaking a finger; but that was not the point.
The point was that we did not fear taking risks.
We were taught that accidents could happen but we were free to explore and investigate the living world around us.
I have managed day nurseries and children's centres for quite a few years now.
It has always been difficult to convince even my best practitioner that a child wanting to climb a tree was OK and that by trying to discourage the child to do it, we stop him/her taking risks and wanting to explore the unknown.
Today, as I was walking through the park with my two and a half year old, I saw a parent passing by with a child that was around 20 months old.
The mother, busy on her mobile, had a wrist to wrist strap for toddlers.
The child wanted to pick up a dead leaf from the floor and was trying so hard to reach it...
but he couldn't because he was strapped.
The mother, who had her hands busy between her mobile, pushing the pram and controlling the safety strap, was not concentrating enough to see what was happening.
In my mind I was wondering why someone would take a child to the park in first place if the child is not even allowed to walk, run, bounce or pick dead leaves from the ground.
What is the fascination about safety wrists straps? What is the purpose? In what way is it supporting a child's development? It is not that I think that we are worse parents than our parents or grandparents, but the truth is that there was no such thing as wrists straps in those days and children were simply taught rules such holding hands with an adult or being careful when walking in public spaces.
It does make me sad, as a mother and an Early Years Professional, that as a society we allow gadgets such this wrist safety strap to take over our confidence and make us believe that we need them to be better and more sensible parents.
I tell you what - we don't!