By Matt Pouncy

Unplug and Play Week gets parents and young children singing

Jan 23, 2018 | 4:08 PM

KAMLOOPS — The Interior Savings Unplug and Play Week is underway and is encouraging people of all ages to do exactly that.  Put down your phones or tablets and get out and enjoy one of the events they have planned this week. 

From hot yoga to science literacy fun there is something for every member of your family. 

There were plenty of new sights and sounds for the young families that gathered today to sing interactive songs. 

You could find babies crawling and moving along as their mothers and fathers learned new rhymes and lullabys. 

Two and Out

PETERS: Access hub approach gives North Shore the best opportunity for success

12m ago

One Man's Opinion

COLLINS: Kamloops-Thompson School District continues to face huge uphill battle

Nov 07, 2024

The Creative Edge

PEARCE: What is prosperity and how do we truly define it?

Nov 06, 2024

This wasn’t the first event parents Michelle and John Rutherford and their twins Curtis and Matthew attended this week.

“We came to the locomotion yesterday, they were the youngest by six months but they had fun,” said Michelle.  “They played on the peanuts and watched the other babies, made happy noises.”

For some parents it’s tough to find time during the day for one on one time but programs like baby rhyme time give families an opportunity for some social interaction.

“Learning songs is always great because like they said when you are doing differnet activities, it’s quite nice to encourage them to move along and sometimes it calms them down which is nice too,” said Carol Erikson.

The Unplug and Play Week is a chance to find a balance in our digital world. 

Literacy Outreach Coordinator Fiona Clare says screen time has become a part of our lives but it important to not just use it as a distraction.

“We all need to use screens for work and convenience.  We can do online shopping now and it’s wonderful to communicate with people all over the world but it’s more about that recreational use of screen time,” said Clare.  “So if we are just sitting, checking our phone all the time , snapchatting and tweeting, then we are not out walking the dog and cooking meals together.” 

Clare says it doesn’t matter if you’re young or old it’s always important to keep your brain active.

“It’s through the lens of literacy that we make sense of our world.  It’s how were able to become successful participants in society,” said Clare.  “You know being able to make sense of information, being able to get a job, being able to communicate and it’s a lifelong journey.”

The families in attendance today are helping their children get off to a strong start while having a good time.