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Home > Portable Practical Pediatrics > Distraction Free Thinking Vital for Kids (Pedcast)


	Podcast:		Portable Practical Pediatrics
	Episode:		Distraction Free Thinking Vital for Kids (Pedcast)
	Category:		Kids & family
	Duration:		00:00:00
	Publish Date:		2017-12-17 15:43:27
	Description:		[display-podcast] Topic Introduction I've got a very interesting subject to talk to you about today that I discovered while listening to a podcast! Yes, not only do I make podcasts but I am an avid listener of them as well. In this particular podcast, I heard Dr. Cal Newport, a computer scientist, interviewed about the negative effects of interruptions on learning, memory, and creativity. I thought that what he was saying had so much relevance for your children that I couldn't wait to introduce my listeners to his research and ideas. Please take a few minutes to listen to this post that I call Distraction Free Thinking Vital for Kids. The message is so vital for all parents to hear that I don't want you to miss it. Musical Introduction The Essence of Dr. Newport's Research First, a confession. I have not read Dr. Newport's book, Deep Work, Grand Central Publishing, 2016, but I have heard him speak in a fairly extensive interview and I feel I have a good grasp of his main idea! He has coined the term "Deep Work" to describe the kind of quiet uninterrupted thinking time that scientists tells us unleashes our brain's best creativity and important thoughts. The kind of quiet contemplation that so many great thinkers have used to create great works. Dr. Newport says there is good evidence that any interruption to deep work thinking derails and diminishes the creativity of the work we do and degrades our learning ability. I am sure that includes not only your best thinking but also your children's. In fact, deep work is probably more important for your children to achieve than it is for you since you have likely completed your education and they have not! Your children live in a super distracted world Now, let's consider the distracted world your children are immersed in today and how it can negatively affect them. Even in the quiet of their bedrooms, they likely are having their studies and thinking time interrupted by texts, cell phone calls, and popup instant chat requests on their computers. They have likely fallen prey to the idea that multitasking is efficient and desirable. It's not! Working with frequent interruptions is rapidly becoming the reality for today's children. Unfortunately, not only does this short attention span work lead to sloppy thinking, but likely contributes to the growing incidence of ADHD. Let me remind you, frequently interrupted learning is totally new. Just a generation ago, most children's study place (likely their bedroom or library) was devoid of all electronics and communication devices. Likely a much quieter place than the bedrooms of today. A place that was much closer to an environment conducive to producing what Dr. Newport describes as deep work. Limiting access to technology is often unpleasant but necessary I think it is safe to say that every parent want their children to get the most from their education. But for today's children, the constant distraction of technology limits achievement. This is the point Dr. Newport is making. I'm sorry, but you can see that this forces parents to be at odds with their children's wishes to immerse themselves with technology. It's my opinion that you must deal with this issue. If parents keep the goal of maximizing their children's education as their overarching goal, they just can't avoid putting their mark on their children's study environment. Unfortunately, that intervention is likely to lead some conflict. More on that in a moment. I think Dr. Newport's research has illuminated the fact that the fewer interruptions your children have when they are doing their schoolwork, or mastering cognitive tasks or just being creative, the better. Their learning, memory, and creativity will be better without distractions. That means limiting all electronics, phones, tablets, TV's, and possibly even some types of music in the places where they study and think. The current smartphone addiction
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