tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640521.post8770757763041113434..comments2024-01-06T05:34:00.027-06:00Comments on Blog Meridian: Left to the ImaginationJohn B.http://www.blogger.com/profile/06358811061653958120noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640521.post-56669396999571844462008-02-24T11:55:00.000-06:002008-02-24T11:55:00.000-06:00This is an interesting point...and one that I coul...This is an interesting point...and one that I could wholly believe...it does appear that much of what is "wrong with kids today" stems from underdeveloped executive skills (leading to ADHD or simply lack of any self-control). Like you all have suggested, the heavy use of TV and video games probably has a lot to do with that. I grew up in a small town and later, when we moved to the country, I Gwynnehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16540042878760457834noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640521.post-45074143361929013512008-02-22T08:01:00.000-06:002008-02-22T08:01:00.000-06:00Deja,Because I happen to know more or less where y...Deja,<BR/>Because I happen to know more or less where you live, I can say with all confidence that the place where you and your children live in an ideal space for combating this creeping scriptedness. I, too, grew up in a rural area, with scripted toys, yes, but also woods and fields to play in. As Randall said he was told to do by his parents, send your kids out to play. No toys--just their John B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/06358811061653958120noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640521.post-68089425452817371512008-02-22T07:42:00.000-06:002008-02-22T07:42:00.000-06:00I've yet to listen, but I have to tell you, this c...I've yet to listen, but I have to tell you, this chills me to the bone! A mental inventory of my boys' toys suggests that most all of them are of this ilk...Scripted play might even extend into more literally scripted: 1/3rd of their toys are derived from movies and cartoons, and sometimes when I play with them, if I'm out of character or make a mis-step, the boys will get-all-up-in-my-face and dejavaboomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00188116228786800823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640521.post-47981763052911252462008-02-22T05:59:00.000-06:002008-02-22T05:59:00.000-06:00More idle speculation:Something I have noted in my...More idle speculation:<BR/>Something I have noted in my students is that, on the whole, they have difficulty thinking abstractly and conceptually--things like being able to articulate fairly a point of view contrary to their own, discussing a philosophical premise and its implications, etc. This sort of thing is something students are called on to do all the time in college, so it's an ability John B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/06358811061653958120noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640521.post-79844215458645400212008-02-21T22:06:00.000-06:002008-02-21T22:06:00.000-06:00Randall and Sheila,Thanks for stopping by.The peop...Randall and Sheila,<BR/>Thanks for stopping by.<BR/>The people interviewed in the story, as you note, mean by "make-believe" a sort of invention ex nihilo: the transforming of a stick into a pistol or a corncob and some scraps of fabric into a doll, for example. With the toys, as you heard them claim in the story, the focus for the child becomes what s/he can do with the toy as-is; they'd argue John B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/06358811061653958120noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640521.post-72196429845527667252008-02-21T16:08:00.000-06:002008-02-21T16:08:00.000-06:00I will definitely listen to the NPR story, John; i...I will definitely listen to the NPR story, John; it certainly touches on much of what I find "the matter with kids today".<BR/><BR/><BR/>I'll be interested to hear what is said about toy machine guns and Barbies -- because I don't think of those toys as <B>prescribing</B> scripted play. They establish a context, that's for sure, but within that context I believe a multitude of scripts is possible.Sheila Ryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02030653752024764363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7640521.post-89001883142628810632008-02-21T11:24:00.000-06:002008-02-21T11:24:00.000-06:00I'll have to listen to the complete program when I...I'll have to listen to the complete program when I have more time, but please allow a comment born of ignorance.<BR/><BR/>Frankly, I wasn't thinking about Barbies or toy guns as a problem as much as video games/virtual reality simulations. Dolls and toy guns, admittedly geared toward specific genders, nonetheless required children to create stories in order to enjoy the toy. After all, pop guns Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com