In the February 2010 issue of Sunny Days we published a story by Meredith Flynn titled The Forgotten Years. In this article Meredith looks at how parents of primary schoolers seem to be without the abundance of resources and support which are available at the other ends of the parenting spectrum - tha baby years and the teenage years. The article contains a reading list which mentions a book called Parenting: A Practical Guide to Raising Preschool and Primary-School Children by Kathy Walker.

Another Sunny Days writer, Susan Whelan, has interviewed the author of this book. You can find her interview here.

When we talk about the concept of childhood we consider far more than the age of a person. We consider the characteristics that make children different from adults, for example the different types of language, knowledge, clothing, and activities of children.

Upon researching the phenomenon of ‘the disappearance of childhood’ in Western civilized society, I was surprised to learn that ‘childhood’ as we understand it is, in relation to the history of western civilization, a relatively recent phenomenon, existing only for the last two centuries. Prior to this, there was a time when children from about the age of seven were quickly assimilated into the adult world, in that they were expected to join the workforce and were involved in or exposed to all aspects of adult life including foul language and even sexual activity. In legal terms infants were regarded more as property - similar to cattle for example. Shockingly, infanticide of one’s own children did not carry any legal penalty (Postman, 1982). Thankfully, over time, society came to recognise childhood as a unique and important stage of life deserving of respect in its own right.

However, by observing current trends in society, it seems that cultural perceptions of childhood have come full circle. Once again we appear to be slipping into the mode of disregarding the importance of childhood through requiring children to assimilate into the adult world at an increasingly younger age.