A letter to Parents and Grandparents about the summer.

A letter to parents and grandparents about the summer…… As both a pastor and a lifelong educator, I find myself increasingly concerned about the world our children and young people are navigating. In schools, parishes, and families, we are seeing rising levels of anxiety, loneliness, fragility, distraction, and struggle among children and youth. These realities deserve our careful attention, not panic, but thoughtful reflection and courageous action.

For this reason, I have developed a deep respect for the work of American social psychologist and author Jonathan Haidt. Through his research and writing, he has become an important and urgent voice encouraging parents, educators, and communities to examine honestly the impact of the digital age on young people’s mental health and development. As families prepare for the long summer break, his work offers several practical insights that can help make this season not simply a vacation from school, but an opportunity for healthier growth and deeper connection.

1. Make Space for Real-World Play and Independence

One of Haidt’s strongest themes is that children and adolescents need more real-world experience and less virtual life. Summer provides a precious opportunity to reclaim some of that balance.

Children benefit from time outdoors, imaginative play, neighbourhood exploration, bike rides, camps, projects, reading, and even the creative possibilities that arise from occasional boredom. Older youth need opportunities for age-appropriate independence: responsibility at home, volunteer work, part-time employment, or learning practical life skills.

Growth does not always happen through constant supervision or endless programming. Young people develop resilience when they are trusted to try, stumble, adapt, and discover their own competence.

2. Establish Healthy Boundaries Around Technology

Without the structure of school, summer can quickly become a season of endless scrolling, gaming, streaming, and late-night phone use. Haidt repeatedly warns that unrestricted digital immersion, particularly through social media, can contribute to anxiety, sleep disruption, social comparison, and emotional vulnerability. Families need not reject technology altogether, but they do need thoughtful boundaries.

Device-free meals, phone-free bedrooms, scheduled screen breaks, outdoor family activities, and honest conversations about how technology affects mood and attention can all make a meaningful difference. Children pay close attention not only to what parents say, but to the digital habits parents’ model.

3. Protect Sleep, Movement, and Daily Rhythm

When school ends, healthy routines can easily disappear. Yet mental well-being depends heavily on simple human needs that technology often displaces.

Regular sleep patterns, physical activity, family meals, walks, sports, gardening, recreation, prayer, and shared routines help anchor young people during the unstructured months of summer. Healthy minds are supported by bodies that move, adequate rest, and relationships that remain engaged.

4. Invest in Relationships and Meaning

Perhaps Haidt’s deepest reminder is that young people flourish through strong human connection and a sense of belonging.

Summer gives families something often in short supply during the school year: time. Time for conversation, shared meals, visits with grandparents, community involvement, worship, service, storytelling, and laughter.

Parents do not need to be perfect. What matters most is attentiveness: listening well, noticing emotional changes, asking thoughtful questions, and helping children know that they are deeply valued and not alone.

For parents, educators, or parishioners who would like to explore these concerns more deeply, I would highly recommend Haidt’s recent book, The Anxious Generation, which examines how smartphones, social media, and changes in childhood experience are reshaping young lives. His book The Coddling of the American Mind is also insightful, especially for those interested in education, resilience, and cultural change. For a more accessible starting point, several of his talks and interviews available on YouTube on The Anxious Generation are excellent conversation starters for families, educators, and parish communities alike.

A healthy summer is not necessarily the busiest or most expensive one. It may simply be the summer in which families intentionally choose more reality, more connection, more balance, and more room for young people to grow into resilient, hopeful, and deeply human lives.