Raising our kids in today’s society is no joke! As parents, we can’t even begin to raise our kids the way we’ve been raised because it’s a totally different world that we were raised in. This is why it’s vital every parent should watch the Childhood 2.0 movie.
About Childhood 2.0 Movie
For the first time in history, mental illness and suicide have become one of the greatest threats to school-aged children. Many parents still view dangers as primarily physical and external, but they’re missing the real danger: kids spending more time online and less time engaging in real life, free play, and autonomy. What are the effects on the next generation’s mental, physical, and spiritual health? Childhood was more or less unchanged for millennia, but this is CHILDHOOD 2.0.
Childhood 2.0 is required viewing for anyone who wants to better understand the world their children are navigating as they grow up in the digital age. Featuring actual parents and kids as well as industry-leading experts in child safety and development, this documentary dives into the real-life issues facing kids today — including cyberbullying, online predators, suicidal ideation, and more.
My Review of Childhood 2.0 Movie
I went into this movie feeling like so many other parents…
thinking this doesn’t apply to my own kids.
I’ve taught them right from wrong. I’ve warned them of the dangers of the online world. Shoot, I monitor their actions online quite a bit.
BUT HERE’S THE THING…
I can’t watch them 24/7 with their electronics. I can’t be everywhere all the time. I definitely don’t want to be the parent who blocks them from everything. Plus, the kids will find a way to view it or use it elsewhere.
But when I did scope out my kids’ accounts after watching this movie in more detail than normal, I did see some things that alarmed the living daylights out of me!!
My son had posted on his profile:
- A retarded streamer trying to make people laugh.
- A person wanting to jump off a cliff.
Now mind you my son has struggled with depression in the past. I know for a fact that he’s talked about it with some of his friends. So you can bank, I went into hyper-mother mode here. I asked him why he would post that on his about his section.
His response was nonchalant, “It was a part of a dare.”
Immediately, I’m thinking about how there are people who target these kinds of kids to accomplish all kinds of malicious acts. I begin to wonder if he has a target on his back.
I’m equally concerned that he may be going back down a spiral again and just not talking to me about it this time since some of his family members were nowhere close to supportive of him getting the treatment he needed. So he decided to not pursue it anymore. But the part of me who has gone through this battle for most of my life is scared to death that his other family members will COST HIM HIS LIFE. But that is a family issue that I’m dealing with!!
Childhood 2.0 Points Out The Reality Our Kids Live In
I grew up with a rough childhood. I dealt with several forms of abuse, torture, being stalked for many years on end, and being bullied in person. But here’s the thing, all of those issues I could physically tackle IN PERSON. And other than a few gangs, it typically was only one person giving me issues.
Our kids are fighting or feeling like they are taking on large numbers of people. They are being harrassed by groups of people all at once, and their is no escape UNLESS they turn off their electronics.
While this can be an issue for adults, it’s less likely because many adults are extremely cautious online. Whereas, our kids do not have that internal buffer in them to stop them from taking chances or going down rabbit holes they should avoid.
I had a parent argue with me on Facebook that stated talking to preteens about sex was to young. I wanted to scream it’s TOOO LATE. It is! Our kids are seeing sex advertised all over the place. They are also being taught that it’s merely an action that two people do together. We need to teach them EARLY in life the value of sex within marriage.
Sadly that’s how I felt due to my sexual abuse until my first marriage, and then I realized what sex is truly about. Now I wish I could CLEARLY teach every person how much more powerful sex is with someone you fully love and intend to spend the rest of your life with.
I’m grateful to have the Internet in our lives because it has allowed me to work from home. It’s allowed me to make honest connections with people who are like me. It’s allowed me to homeschool my kids with ease. There is a long list of reasons why it’s such a wonderful thing.
Childhood 2.0 Brings Up Other Points
HOWEVER, like everything else there is a very serious dark side to it all as well. We have to train our kids how to have a balance in it all. The Childhood 2.0 movie also made me think about how addicted we’ve all become to our electronics. It saddens me greatly.
But we are striving to make a change in our home. My husband is being more diligent about helping me to track my son’s actions online. My son is still doing some things that I do not approve of (such as cussing like a sailor!!), but he knows he’s being watched more. I think that in a way does make him feel a bit safer, and more in tuned to the things he’s willing to do online.
Help Break the Need to Be ONLINE ALL The Time
We have been attempting to spend more time together as a family doing things OFFLINE. We are trying to showcase to our kids that they don’t need to be glued to their technology to savor life.
We are also having even MORE discussions about proper online usage. I wish I could say I guarantee it’s making a difference, but the reality is that kids are going to do as they wish. If they feel like they have to hide things, that will make the problem that much bigger.
I almost feel like I’m living in a catch-22 world. As much as I want to protect my kids at every turn, I know I can’t. I have to trust in God to protect them. I have to trust in them that they have listened to my teachings. I have to trust that they know that my requests are given out of a place of love rather than just trying to control them to death.
I recommend all parents to watch Childhood 2.0 because we all need to be in the know. The more we know the more we can do to help guide our kids.
Check out Childhood 2.0 Movie Website
Learn more about this movie and how you can watch it by visiting their website. You can also join their Facebook group to stay even more in the know about how to protect your kids and yourself online. They have also created a wonderful guide to use after watching this movie.
Talk to me in the comments:
What scares you the most about raising your kids in this Childhood 2.0 world?
I’m not a parent yet but this is so so important. I hope you’re okay 💕
My kids are grown but I teach in a middle school. I might have to check this out. Thanks.
I certainly hope you do and I hope you encourage as many parents as you can to watch it too.
Thank you for stopping by and commenting. I hope to see you again soon.