When I first started doing research on this topic, I was afraid I would not find enough information to fill a page.  Now after having only looked at two websites, I have enough information to fill an entire book.  Fortunately, it seems that there are more people out there concerned about the negative effects commercialism is having on children than I expected.

The Center for the New American Dream asks this question on their website:  “Is it possible to raise independently-minded kids in this highly commercialized culture?”  Their answer is YES!  Their website contains 115 tips for raising healthy kids in a commercial culture.  I have chosen a few that I find particularly important:

1.  Don’t just turn off the TV, but instead show your kids something better to do.  Suggest reading a book, or sit down and read a book with your children.  You can also play a game like charades, which encourages their creativity and imagination.  Instead of buying new toys, revamp old toys by creating self-made accessories.   For example, you could build a parking garage out of old shoe boxes to compliment your child’s toy car collection.

2.  Arrange for your kids to spend lots of time with their grandparents or other older people.  People of another generation have a lot to offer children.  They can tell stories of what life was like when they were children, before commercialism had a toe-hold on society and culture.  They can also enrich children’s way of thinking by exposing children to alternative ways of doing things, for example:  darning socks with holes instead of throwing them away and buying new ones.

3.  Have children be responsible for age-appropriate chores around the house..  For example, my five-year-old helps set the table, wash the dishes, put toys away, and do the laundry.  My three-year-old helps unload his plastic tableware from the dishwasher and puts them away in the drawer.  This way, children learn responsibility and learn how to make their own contribution to family activities.

4.  Have a no-electric or no-plumbing night so children can learn how precious it is to have electricity and/or running water in the house.  When they have to do without, they will gain a new appreciation of electricity and running water and will use each more sparingly and responsibly.

5.  Grow your own food.  Teach your children about the seed cycle and use plants that you plant, grow, harvest, and re-plant yourself as examples.  Use heirloom seeds whenever possible to promote biological diversity and support sustainable agriculture.  Teach your children to have appreciation for the Earth and all we receive from it.

Take Action!  You can make a difference.  Visit the website for the Center for a New American Dream (www.newdream.org) for sample letters to write to local newspaper editors expressing your dissatisfaction with how commercialized American culture has become and what you can do about it.  You can also find sample letters to send to your government representatives urging them to take legislative action to protect children from advertising. 

Information from this article was taken from Mothering Magazine (www.mothering.com) and the website for the Center for the New American Dream.