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We were born to mothers who smoked, our cribs were covered with lead-based paint, we rode in cars without seatbelts, on bikes without helmets, and drank from the garden hose instead of having bottled water. Thus claim the lyrics of a popular country song, "A Different World," by Bucky Covington. And despite all this, croons Bucky, our generation not only survived, but we turned out all right.

Granted, some of these practices clearly aren't safe, but one line in the song beckons us to consider if some things weren't really better then: "[we] had three TV channels you got up to change; No video games and no satellite; All we had were friends and they were outside, playin' outside."

I grew up in that "Different World," and I'm raising children in this high-tech one. My children would play video games and watch TV all day if I'd let them! But I'm the parent, so I'm responsible for having alternative activities for them, and some of the "old-fashioned" things we did as children are still great fun for any generation. Besides, it's vintage, retro, old-school

OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
Children get very creative on their own when just sent outdoors, but here are some good old-fashioned ideas to help:
1) Get a real magnifying glass and a scrap piece of wood and show them how if you hold it at the right angle from the sun, you can burn your name or other designs onto the wood. (If you're worried they might hurt themselves, remember, "we turned out all right!") You can also burn the edges of a piece of paper, crumple it up, and make it look worn and old-perfect for drawing a treasure map on.
2) Get a magnet and drag it through sand: it picks up the iron filings, which can be collected in a box and played with for hours.
3) Keep an adventure journal/scrapbook. Use a blank-paged book where you can either draw, write, paste pictures, leaves, pressed flowers, or whatever into. There are endless possibilities with this one!
4) Build a fort. When children actually take part in building their own fort-even if it's just out of cardboard boxes-they will play with it much longer than the store-bought ones! Or, just give them a hammer, some nails and some wood and see what clever things they come up with.
5) Build a tent from old sheets, and if weather permits, give them a flashlight and sleeping bags and have a backyard campout.

INDOOR ACTIVITIES
Things to make and do (it raises the interest level considerably when children make these themselves!):
1) Edible Play Dough: Mix 1 c. peanut butter, 1 c. corn syrup, 1 c. powdered sugar and 1 c. powdered milk. You can play with this and eat it too!
2) Giant Bubbles: Combine 6 c. hot water, 2 c. liquid detergent and c. corn syrup, pour into large plastic container and shape bubble wands from old coat hangers.
3) Face Paint: 1 tsp. cornstarch, tsp. cold cream, tsp water and food coloring. Makes 2 teaspoons; repeat for different colors.
4) Shimmering Body Glitter: 1 T. aloe vera gel, food coloring and glitter. Mix until desired tint and sparkle level achieved.
5) Make puppets and a puppet theater.

There are many other classic "old-fashioned" activities as well: playing card games, board games, jigsaw puzzles, paint-by-number. At first your children might think these things are "lame," but once engaged, they find it every bit as entertaining as we did in that "Different World" we grew up in.

Learn more about this author, Deb Z.
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