Tips for Dealing with Kids and Commercialism at the Holidays
After learning a song about climate change at school, my nine-year-old has been following us around the house turning off a light the minute someone steps out of a room. She has also been heard to make comments like, “Daddy, you shouldn’t buy a new TV because it makes more carbon dioxide, and that doesn’t help the polar bears.” I am thinking this could be a good time to make links for her between those cute polar bears and the pollution created in the manufacture of plastic toys. Yet I know this knowledge will likely be cast aside as the holiday season approaches. Sofie naturally succumbs to the childlike quality of always wanting more stuff – the latest doll or fashion style, new books, another adorable stuffed animal. And many of those wants come from advertising, whether it’s via TV, a store circular or word-of-mouth (a.k.a. her friends). At the holidays, … Continue reading
