"Despite the many advancements we've made when it comes to understanding mental health - especially children's and teens' - it still feels impossible to find an entirely safe place for our young people to just be. Every day, there's some TikTok or Instagram reel or Reddit rant bitching about how teens are too loud, how tweens are too rude, how little kids whine too much. Everyone seems quick to push teens and tweens out of spaces,"
"But if you're wishing your kid could have some of that same independence you did as a kid - if you're wishing your kid could have an afternoon with their buddies that looks like a montage in a Disney Channel movie - then a mall is a really great place to start. It teaches them how to use money, it teaches them how to be respectful and speak up in public, it teaches them how to order food."
Nostalgia for the 1990s motivates many parents to recreate analog experiences and childhood independence for their kids. Malls can function as accessible, semi-supervised spaces where tweens socialize, practice money skills, and learn public manners. Modern culture often excludes young people from public places while criticizing their screen use, leaving few neutral venues for unstructured peer time. Allowing supervised mall outings can offer autonomy without full parental abandonment. Practical benefits include handling purchases, ordering food, and speaking up in public. Thoughtful, staged freedom in familiar public settings can support social and emotional development.
Read at Scary Mommy
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