9 Things Parents Stopped Teaching Kids After The 1990s That Actually Really Mattered
Lyudmila2509 | ShutterstockLessons in school for children changed a ton in the 1980s and 1990s, and the skills their parents taught at home were also evolving along the way.
Many of the things parents stopped teaching kids after the 1990s were things that actually really mattered, and yet, today's parents and families missed out on their lessons entirely. Whether it was writing in cursive or sewing a shirt at home, it's these practical, mindful habits that today's kids lack.
After the 1990s, parents stopped teaching kids these things that actually mattered
1. Handwriting and cursive
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Cursive was officially removed from the Common Core curriculum in schools in 2010, but many families had stopped teaching and practicing with their kids well before that. They might have taught them how to write a signature, but with computers and cell phones growing more popular, cursive and even general handwriting became even less helpful.
While some kids developed the skill on their own while keeping journals or writing letters, most let it go completely. Some even struggle to this day with their own handwriting and legibility because they didn't expect to practice at home.
2. Sewing
The "fix it first" or "do it yourself" mentality of pre-2000s parenting styles predicted practical skills like sewing. Kids were expected to learn this household skill, not just for the sake of building up their skill set but to actually serve the household.
They could sew tablecloths and mend their own clothing, while also developing a kind of intentionality and frugality that many kids in today's convenience culture overlook. Yes, it's about practicality, but the lack of these lessons in families today is affecting more than just their ability to fix a hole in a shirt.
3. Cooking
Overprotective parents today, ironically often the Gen Xers who had endless alone time and freedom during their own childhoods, refuse to let their kids fully cook for themselves. They might bring them into the kitchen and try to teach by example, but most kids don't learn by watching.
Even in school, kids aren't being taught how to cook in home economics courses anymore, so having these lessons at home is even more essential. But it's one of the lessons that kids in the 70s, 80s, and 90s often had to do out of obligation, but are not being expected of kids today.
4. Financial skills and habits
Part of this trio of practical skills, financial habits are something that kids arguably need more than ever today. Even if it's only giving them a basic sense of financial literacy or a single practical tool to budget their money with, it would be better than the deteriorating skills they're facing today.
Yes, balancing a checkbook might be a little bit old school now, but all sorts of lessons could take its place. When should you go to the bank? What kinds of accounts do you need? How do you budget a paycheck? Those are the kinds of questions that are largely going unanswered for Gen Z, unless they know to ask them online or with family.
5. Analog research
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Yes, cell phones and new computers coming into family homes opened a new digital horizon for people, and brought all kinds of conveniences and benefits. However, simple things, like researching something in an encyclopedia or having to go to a library to do a project for school, are all things parents obviously stopped teaching their kids, and they are still essential.
Even general problem-solving from not having convenience in our back pockets is dulling in the face of modern technology. While it might take more time and require more mental effort, it's these analog behaviors and offline habits that young kids today need more than ever.
6. Basic home and lawn care
Many young kids in the 70s, 80s, and 90s were responsible for the household labor and chores that today's parents wouldn't even let their children touch. They were mowing the lawn and cooking food for themselves, even shoveling snow for hours.
While it was grueling and surely the topic of many complaints for these kids at the time, they're better off today. These chores made them more successful, not because they have the actual, tangible skills in adulthood, but because they also had to learn a certain level of discipline and resilience.
7. Social skills out in public
While there are certainly parents today still teaching their children how to fend for themselves socially and hold a conversation, in most families it's not a regular occurrence. Whether they're working too much to be around or not leaving the house enough to practice, young kids today are suffering behind their screens with a lack of social skills.
From ordering their own food to making conversation with strangers in the neighborhood, and even running errands in town that required talking to service workers, kids in the 80s and 90s learned social skills out of obligation. Even when it wasn't comfortable, they had no choice.
8. Handwritten letters
A shift to computers and cell phones in the 2000s created many conveniences and benefits, but it also made essential modes of connection, like handwritten letters, scarce. Not only is writing by hand obviously better for your brain, but the act of sending a letter to someone or writing a thoughtful note seriously boosts our sense of connection and belonging.
On both sides of the aisle, writer and receiver, sending a letter makes us feel seen. It's important, even if it takes more time than sending a text or checking in with a phone call.
9. Memorizing information
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With new cell phones in their pockets and a slew of digital tools to help people remember things, practicing memorization became less and less popular in homes. It might feel like such a small part of childhood that you've probably forgotten about it, but it was essential in the 80s and 90s.
Remembering your own address and memorizing the kind of safety information you would need when leaving the watchful eye of your parents was important. Especially for kids today, growing dependent on their phones means they're nearly helpless without access to this stored bank of information.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a senior editorial strategist with a bachelor's degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.
