Chasing Childhood Parent Guide

Children today are more scheduled, more supervised, and more tested than any generation before. They also have higher rates of anxiety, depression, and suicide than any other generation. Chasing Childhood looks at the disappearance of childhood in American culture and makes the case for the importance of free play, freedom, and letting go.

Chasing Childhood is a timely documentary with an important message: let kids be kids. As a former Early Childhood Educator, I have seen firsthand what happens when children are overburdened with extra curriculars, screens, and expectations. Now as a current university student I also see many of my peers struggle with perfectionism, overachievement, and anxiety. This documentary takes a hard look at how these issues arose in our culture, and what is being done to reverse it. The entire narrative is framed around the story of Savannah Eason, who crumpled under the pressure to be the best and ended up dropping out of college and entering rehabilitation for marijuana addiction as a young adult. Her mother, Genevieve, is now an advocate for free play in schools and communities in Connecticut, trying to prevent other children from going through what her daughter did.

As a documentary, I think that Chasing Childhood is affective. It presents the facts, tells stories of real people, and tugs on the heart strings. I do think they could have closed out with action items for the audience to be able to help the causes presented, as they mostly leave it open ended. That said, I do recommend this film, especially for parents and educators to be able to understand the need to change our attitudes toward childhood.