Kids trust Google more than grandmas

A few months ago I spoke to 8-year-old Sofia (name changed). He taught me about an increasingly common problem. “I hate not knowing things right away,” she confessed, twisting her long hair. “When the teacher asks questions, I just want to google it,” her parents nodded worriedly. They would have noticed the same impatience during their family conversations.

What is the problem? Maybe this: a study Last month, 164 children, ages 7-10, just published in April 2025, showed that they consistently trust Google’s answers than they would ask people. Interestingly, when children were asked if it was good to predict the future, they showed little confidence overall, but still preferred to “Google Google.”

why? I replied that Google has a lot of information (sufficient). Still, they didn’t look back at what they lacked. It’s not just a chance to talk to real people, but more fundamentally, it’s a deeper relationship between them.

Not just this Note span. A groundbreaking the study From Dr. Rachel Romeo’s team at Harvard University (2018) The quality of conversation between children and learning directly shapes brain development, Particularly focus, critical thinking, and Emotional regulation. Their fMRI study shows that children engaged in more and more pre- and post-interactions have strong white matter connections between language and language Execution function area. However, these conversations don’t just build your brain. They are the fundamentals of reinforcing the bond between us and our children in our lives.

1) Think about the difference between sitting in silence. 2) Ask “When do you finish your homework?” 3) Ask “Why do you think your friend is so troubled?” In the first two scenarios, children are not given the opportunity to think through their ideas and have no opportunity to spend their time learning how we Or others think. That’s how you build them Perspective Takering skill and Their feelings of connection. In an increasingly isolated world, that level of connection is important. It is the quality we need to recover.

The lack of ingredients in modern childhood: a productive struggle

2024 article (Dubinsky & Hamid) discovered that children learn best when they are allowed to tackle challenging concepts in an active learning environment. These environments allow more agencies, promote curiosity, motivation. But today’s “Just Google It” culture deprives this important cognitive training and a more positive and positive struggle.

Instead of a passive learning method, I now use what I call “thinking time” and invite a longer period of pause before answering the question. Also, instead of jumping to the answer right away, think about how to find the answer. “What is the best ‘next question’ to ask? What’s the best next step? ”

Does that mean you need to throw it away? Child-raising script? Yes, probably. The thing about the script is that they don’t provide you with much room. As soon as you think you answered with the “correct” answer, your previous child will pivot to an unexpected question. They also tend to follow the train of their interests. This is much more appealing and meaningful than simply going along the same track.

“How many stars are there in the sky?” a child may ask. As soon as you begin to answer, they pivot as follows: “No, how many were I? dinosaur. ”

Yes, it can be crazy, but taking a playful, responsive approach is an opportunity to learn more about and connect with your child’s interests. If you’re too particular about strict scripting of questions and answers, that’s difficult.

Take action: “Two stages of conversation”

So, what should we do? I recommend trying c“Two Stages”

• Whether you have one child or 20 people, join the conversation with a single goal. It’s about noticing and responding to the last question or comment in a way that encourages children to say more.
• Try simple comments like “I didn’t know that” (if you didn’t) or “Please tell me more”, or “I don’t think so.” Explain to your kids: “Why do you think so?” or “How do you know that?” or “Is there a way that could be the idea wrong?”
• Celebrate as children listen to think, discuss and ask questions out loud. That’s the key to building knowledge and skills, and to building relationships with each other.

Walks: The Need for Improving Learning

Several studies including journals Neuroscience (Hillman et al., 2023) show that physical movements enhance the ability to pay attention afterwards. But how about learning? Through Movement? Attractive Danish study Full body and hand movements were used in an 8-week learning session for children, and compared them to traditional movements. As researchers have found, both hand and whole body movements had advantages in the sound of learning letters. Furthermore, whole body movements have long-term benefits.

Consider the difference between Adam, an eight-year-old who asks, “Remember this” while sitting in a chair. In the second case, the entire environment becomes his teacher. If he sees the icicles outside the window, he might connect it to his ideas about the weather and rain. When he sees a child playing on the playground, it may lead to his thoughts about the story of the child falling off the slide. In either case, physical activity itself can help stimulate thoughts.

As a language-language pathologist, I found it “Walking conversation” (speaking while moving) is useful for both learning and improving verbal output. Try it out with the next two stages!

Conclusion

As I say to my family, caregivers and educators: “We’re not just talking in Kids – We talk to them in a way that builds skills and Science is clear. Real conversation builds trust and Skills – And children will assess whether “Dr. Google” is correct.

Certainly, I am not anti-technology. It also doesn’t suggest you stop using Google. After all, where did the quotes in this article come from? At the same time, if they don’t help children develop critical thinking skills and creative brainstorming, they won’t have a measure to sense whether Google is right or not. They also miss the reciprocating and back-and-forth relationships that they build through deeper dialogue.

Start with a 5-minute “two stages”. Let’s see how that goes! What questions do you surprise? What is the next “best step”?

Also consider this bottom line. Children can benefit from both “Google” and “Grandma,” meaning both online searches and talking to adults. Sit with them and look into the information. Please have a dialogue. Discuss what they find as a way to build their critical thinking skills, encourage curiosity, and reinforce the bonds between you.

As a mom of two who are speech-language pathologists and lecturers at Harvard University, I’m always excited to hear how these ideas work for you! ”

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