Your Tweens Should Still Be Playing With Toys
This mom and SLP thinks that kids are growing up way too fast these days.
Before launching into her hot take on Generation Alpha, TikTok mom and speech-language pathologist, Alexis, knew she was going to ruffle some feathers. “There are going to be some pissed off parents in the comments, I’m sure lol,” she wrote in the caption on her now-viral video.
The subject matter of her video focuses on the ever-present threat of kids growing up way too damn fast. Alexis, a mom who works with kids, wonders out loud when kids as young as 3rd grade stopped playing with toys and started having more “adult” interests.
“As a mom and school SLP, I am unsure when third, fourth, and fifth grade became sixth, seventh, and eighth grade,” she says.
“But rest assured, your eight-year-old should still be playing with toys. It's okay. And as parents, we should be encouraging them to play with toys. Stop forcing these kids to grow up so quickly.”
She goes on to say that she fully understands that the expectations put on kids are different than the ways of generations prior (not to mention a society obsessed with smartphones, influencer culture, and social media) but still believes kids in elementary school should be playing with toys.
“And I realize that kindergarten is now the new second grade, and that's a whole other ball of wax, but we need to be playing. You don't need to be acting twelve when you are nine,” she concluded.
Thousands of TikTok users commented on Alexis’ post, agreeing with her completely and wondering why there are so many tweens skipping such a crucial part of adolescence and heading straight to the Drunk Elephant section at Sephora.
“Yes why do my students have a skincare routine,” one user asked.
“School psych here- 100% agree. I have kindergarteners telling me ‘Barbies are for babies’ 😳,” another wrote.
One user wrote, “I don’t understand why we push play-based learning until PreK, and then once they hit K we never let them play again.”
The OP replied, “Yep! We are play-based in speech as much as possible and the kids thrive. The demand is different so the behaviors are minimal and we make progress bc it’s hands on. Play = learning ... If it were up to the teachers and educators, we would be playing way more. I can tell you that!”
Another kindergarten teacher weighed in and said, “Yes!! I’m a kinder teacher and our curriculum is so developmentally inappropriate. They need play to learn!”
One user theorized, “The internet!! They’re growing up fast bc they have access to infinite worlds and don’t need to imagine anymore.”
“A lot of my 5th graders still like board games, puzzles, coloring etc. I wish I had more time in the school day to encourage that type of play,” another teacher chimed in.
This new phenomenon of kids forgoing toys was made evident during this holiday season when several parents shared their tween child’s Christmas lists consisting of skin care products, $100 shoes, and fancy water bottles.
One mom shared a few items that her 9-year-old had requested for Christmas, including two pairs of shoes over $100, several skincare gift boxes from brands like Sol de Janeiro, and Lululemon leggings.
“This girl's nuts. She's nine,” she says before showing a few more outrageously priced items.
Whatever happened to Barbie, American Girl dolls, and the simpler things in life? Alexis’ TikTok comment section would presume that while the internet and social media do play some role in why kids are on the fast track to adulthood, schools are also a bit to blame for removing play-based learning so early in education.
