When we say “don’t do it” to a child, it’s like begging them to continue their behaviour. Not because they’re evil or want to make us angry, but simply because that sentence doesn’t make any sense without a “why”.
“WHY IS THAT NOT OK?”
I used to ask a lot of questions when I was in school, such as “Why are we not allowed to be in the computer room without a teacher present?” All I heard back was “Because that’s the rule.” Now I understand why we had that rule. But back then, it felt really unfair – and it was tempting to break some rules just because of the lack of explanation. There had to be a reason, them telling me “no” had to mean it was something exciting – and we wanted to find out!
It’s complex today. Kids have more freedom, and what I mean by that is; the whole world is only a click away on their devices. But that also raises a lot of questions. Such as “Why can’t I trust everything I read, listen to or watch online?”
EVEN THOUGH SOMETHING SEEMS TRUE, IT MIGHT NOT BE.
As adults, we have been taught and we’ve experienced that what we see online is often a twisted version of truth, no matter which format it’s presented in. My (perhaps addictive) interest in online life and social media has led me to see many documentaries about the subject, and how it effects us.
But what especially caught my interest a few weeks ago, was when I watched some documentaries about young adults who grew up with full access to the internet. They had a clear message: They wished someone had told them WHY we need to be critical about certain things online. Why some content isn’t good for you, why some people spread fake news online, why it isn’t nice to bully others in social media. Adults need to tell kids the real reason for why we’re telling them no.
On Momio we’re trying to explain the why in every warning and timeout, but also in posts by our police officer Jack. That alone is not enough. I can often tell when kids have been talking to their parents and asked them for an explanation too. When they come back to Momio – they seem to have a much deeper understanding for why what they did was wrong, and they use this experience to help other kids when they’re doing/watching/sharing something that isn’t good for them either. They help each other out!
So we just have to start somewhere, and do our bit of the puzzle as well as we can. Together we can make a difference, and make sure kids are safe and happy online – and offline.