“I’m sooooooo bored!” said my seven-year-old daughter. It was the 101st time that the three words had come out of her mouth since her summer vacation began six days ago. I can still remember how excited she was when she knew this semester was coming to an end last Thursday. Then, how come she felt bored so fast? And what can we parents do to help our kids so that they can spend a colorful (at least not boring) holiday? Here is what occurred to me when I thought about this question.
First, screen time is necessary, I suppose. There are countless articles and short videos trying to persuade parents into believing how harmful it is for kids to use phones, tablets or other gadgets and how beneficial it is to stay away from them. Yet I can’t agree. The society has turned into a digital one when our kids were born. How are they able to stay away from those gadgets? Nobody can live without them. So, if we adults do not put our phones aside, why should our kids do? I’m not saying kids should spend as much time as possible on smart phones or tablets. Getting addicted to them will absolutely do harm to kids’ physical and mental health. But this is just like any other thing in the world: Food is necessary, but too much food is bad for our health. Water is essential, yet drinking too much water can be dangerous. Therefore, it is also necessary for kids to spend some time on these devices, say, 60 to 90 minutes every day. Also remember, too much screen time is harmful, so we’d better make some rules and stick to them.
Next, reading books is a wise choice, too. Don’t just ask your child to read. Why not take up reading as one of your hobbies? People of all ages can have fun and benefit from reading, as a matter of fact. Select interesting books and get started!
Third, don’t forget to add travelling to your “to-do list”. Almost all children like travelling. Letting them help out with the preparation will surely add pleasure and fun to their trip. Keep in mind that never do anything that may spoil their holiday fun, such as talking about their studies. Topics like that are not supposed to be mentioned in front of children while they are on holiday, which is what I call “Travel Manners”.
Apart from what’s mentioned above, there are many other different ways of spending the two-month vacation. What I consider the most important is that we parents must remember: For our kids, VACATION IS VACATION. Never make it a “post-semester” or a “pre-semester”. Studies are important, but raising a happy child is of greater importance. Am I right?
中文翻译如下：
“我太无聊了！”我七岁的女儿说。这是六天前暑假开始以来，她第101次说这句话。我还记得上周四，当她知道这学期即将结束时，她是多么激动。那她怎么这么快就觉得无聊了呢？我们父母能做些什么来帮助我们的孩子，让他们度过一个多彩（至少不无聊）的假期？以下是我思考这个问题时想到的。
首先，我认为电子产品时间是必须有的。有无数的文章和短片试图让家长相信，孩子们使用手机、平板电脑或其他电子产品是多么有害，远离它们是多么有益。但我不同意这个说法。当我们的孩子出生时，这个社会已经变成了数字社会。他们怎么可能远离这些小玩意儿呢？没有它们，任何人都无法生存在这个社会上。所以，如果我们成年人做不到不玩手机，为什么我们的孩子却要做到？我的意思并不是说孩子们可以无休止地玩智能手机或平板电脑。对这些东西上瘾绝对会损害孩子的身心健康，但这就像其他任何事情一样：食物是必需的，但吃太多会对我们的健康有害。水是必不可少的，但喝太多水可能会带来危险。因此，孩子们确有必要花一些时间在这些东西上，比如说，每天60到90分钟。不过还要记住，过多的电子产品时间是有害的，所以我们最好制定一些规则并严格遵守。
其次，阅读也是一个不错的选择。不能只要求你的孩子阅读，大人不妨也把阅读作为爱好之一。事实上，各个年龄段的人都可以从阅读中获得乐趣和益处。选一本有趣的书开始阅读吧！
第三，别忘了把旅行列入你的“假期必做事情清单”。孩子就没有不喜欢旅行的。旅行前让他们帮忙做准备工作肯定会给他们的旅行增添乐趣。记住，永远不要做任何可能破坏他们假期快乐好心情的事情，比如谈论学习。在孩子们度假时，这样的话题不应该在他们面前提及，这个东西我称之为“旅行礼仪”。
除了上面提到的，还有许多其他不同的方式来度过这两个月的假期。不管是哪种方式，我认为最重要的是我们父母必须记住：对孩子来说，假期就是假期。永远不要把它变成“对上个学期的巩固”或“为下个学期预习”。学习固然重要，但养育一个快乐的孩子更为重要，对吗？（作者：张永青 ）
责编：张涛
统筹：曾裕忠
审核：王联福
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