A child needs to run, play and explore and the best we can do is watch them from a safe distance without trying to control their every move. Instead we should try to control our fears and phobias.
Our children are actually most at risk from our obsession with their safety, as social psychologist Jonathan Haidt warns.
It specifically mentions that, according to a 2015 survey (Pew Research), parents believe that children should be at least 1 year old to play unsupervised in their backyard, at least 12 to let them alone hours at home and at least 14 to go out unaccompanied in a public park.
However, as the expert explains, it is in our nature to develop skills related to physical activities or socialization. That is why all people are fascinated by dangerous games.
So if we deprive children of the opportunity to play freely in nature, for example for fear of falling and being killed, we simultaneously deprive them of many opportunities to develop basic skills. And unfortunately, as Haidt points out, the protection also extends to schools, where teachers avoid organizing even low-risk activities, such as a field trip to the nearest forest.
No matter what danger we try to protect a child from, by forbidding him from an activity that is useful and appropriate for his age, such as climbing a tree or walking with his friends in the neighborhood, we do not let him learn, know own risks, face and solve problems. In this way, we raise children who are not fully capable of the "outside world" and full of anxiety and fear.
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