From Mud Pies to Touchscreens: Childhood in the 1980s vs Today

Charlene Bekker
5 days ago
16 min read

Growing up in the 1980s was a world away from what we see today. Children’s daily lives have undergone a dramatic transformation, shifting from outdoor adventures and face-to-face play to a more screen-driven, technology-infused lifestyle.

This change is evident in Potchefstroom, South Africa, just as it is around the globe. In this post, we’ll explore how activities, routines, and environments for kids have evolved from the ’80s to the present, and reflect on what these changes mean for creativity, social interaction, and physical well-being. (We’ll even leave you with a nudge to visit our local parks in Potchefstroom to recapture some of that outdoor magic.)

Growing Up in the 1980s: Outdoor Adventures and Imagination

Children playing outside with simple toys, running and laughing together ,a common afternoon in the 1980s. Back then, play was often powered by imagination and boundless energy. In the ’80s, childhood was largely an outdoor experience.

Many adults in Potchefstroom remember long days riding bikes down quiet streets, climbing trees, kicking a soccer ball in a dusty yard, or inventing games with friends until the sun went down. It was normal for kids to roam the neighborhood with minimal adult supervision, engaging in unstructured, make-believe play with peers.

A simple backyard could become a castle, a spaceship, or a jungle in a child’s eyes. As one expert notes, decades ago it was common for kids to “run around outside with minimal adult interference,” roughhousing and role-playing freely. Technology was limited to perhaps a radio or a family TV set, so most play was face-to-face and physical.

Friends would knock on each other’s doors to ask if they could come out and play. Games like tag, hide-and-seek, or kicking around a ball required nothing more than imagination and willing playmates. This hands-on, active play helped kids learn social skills and kept them fit without it feeling like exercise, it was just fun.

If you grew up in that era, you might recall how creative play could be. A stick could become a magic wand or a toy sword; an old tire could turn into a swing. Children crafted forts from blankets, raced homemade go-carts, or pretended to be superheroes saving the world.

Being bored was never an option for long, if nothing was on TV (and in South Africa in the ’80s there were only a couple of channels with limited kids’ programming), you made your own entertainment. Screen time as we know it today simply didn’t exist; in fact, “the term ‘screen time’ wasn’t a thing yet” in the late 1980s.

Kids might have caught a favorite cartoon at a scheduled time or played 8-bit video games at a friend’s house occasionally, but these were small slices of life, not the main course. The fundamental nature of childhood was to be active and outdoors, so much so that one report notes childhood in one generation shifted from mostly outside to mostly indoors. In the ’80s, parents commonly told kids “go out and play,” trusting that play was how children learn and grow.

Childhood Today: Screens, Schedules, and Digital Play

A modern child engrossed in a glowing smartphone screen indoors. Today’s youngsters are surrounded by interactive devices from an early age. Fast forward to today, and childhood looks very different. Many children in Potchefstroom (and around the world) now spend a large portion of their day indoors, engaged with electronic screens.

Tablets, smartphones, gaming consoles, and 24/7 children’s TV channels provide endless entertainment at the tap of a finger. It’s not unusual for a child to spend an afternoon watching YouTube, messaging friends, or navigating virtual worlds, rather than climbing a tree or riding a bike. In fact, studies have documented a sharp flip in how kids spend their time: children today devote only minutes per day to unstructured outdoor play, but hours upon hours to electronic media.

One striking report found that on average, kids now spend just 4 to 7 minutes playing outside in unstructured ways, versus about 7.5 hours a day consumed by TV, video games, and other screens. This is a staggering change from a few decades ago.

Several factors have driven this shift toward indoor, screen-based play. Technology is an obvious one – the explosion of personal devices and the internet created new forms of play that simply didn’t exist in the 1980s.

Today’s children can video-chat their friends, explore vast imaginary worlds in video games, or watch cartoons on demand. As one education expert put it, “technology has changed the way kids play”. On the one hand, kids now have the amazing ability to play games with people all around the globe online.

But on the other hand, “there’s been a big disappearance in general neighborhood play,” with far fewer kids just out playing in the street with friends. In essence, online communities have partly replaced the physical community of the playground.

Parental attitudes and society have changed as well. Since the late 20th century, parents have become more cautious about safety, sometimes termed the “stranger danger” era. High-profile news stories about child abductions and accidents in the 1980s scared many families, leading parents to keep a closer eye on kids.

Even though such incidents were statistically rare, the fear was real. Research shows that since the 1980s, worries about kidnapping, traffic accidents, and violence have made parents much less willing to let kids play outside unsupervised. In South Africa, concerns about traffic and crime also mean many parents today prefer to know their child is safe at home rather than wandering the neighborhood.

This well-intentioned caution often translates into kids spending more time indoors. At the same time, schools and extracurricular activities now demand more of children’s schedules. Academic competition intensified over the years, prompting longer school hours and more homework.

In some places, recess periods grew shorter or even vanished in the 1990s as schools focused on test scores. By the time they get home, many kids have structured activities or homework, leaving less daylight for free play. All these cultural shifts, safety concerns, busier schedules, and the lure of high-tech entertainment, have fundamentally reshaped what childhood looks like.

Today’s kids are often overseen or scheduled when they do play outside. The casual, “be back by sunset” play of the past has been replaced in many families by playdates arranged by parents, supervised trips to the park, or organized sports practice. It’s far less common to see a pack of children spontaneously knocking on doors to gather friends for a game of cricket in the street.

Instead, if outdoor play happens, it might be during a structured soccer club or under a teacher’s eye during a brief recess. In other words, childhood play has become more structured and adult-guided than it was in the 1980s. Meanwhile, indoor leisure is often solitary or with virtual companions.

Even when multiple kids share a living room, you might find each on their own device rather than inventing a game together. The result is a generation that’s highly tech-savvy and connected in digital ways, yet perhaps less experienced with the kind of free-form, in-person play that earlier generations took for granted.

What Changed? Cultural, Social, and Technological Shifts

The evolution from outdoor play to screen play didn’t happen overnight ,it was driven by several cultural, social, and technological changes over the past few decades. Let’s unpack a few key differences that shaped this transformation:

Technology Boom: The late 20th and early 21st centuries brought an onslaught of new technology into homes. In the 1980s, personal computers and video game consoles were just emerging; by the 2000s, many households had internet access, and by the 2010s, smartphones and tablets became commonplace even for kids.
This tech boom created new entertainment options that often competed with traditional play. Why ride your bike in the heat when you can race virtual cars on a screen? Why build a fort from couch cushions when Minecraft lets you build a digital castle? Over time, the digital world grew more enticing as it became more immersive and accessible. Smartphones and tablets crowded out many analog forms of fun, as researchers observed, kids today spend notably less time on old-fashioned outdoor play because “they were playing with devices” instead. In short, as screens multiplied, they steadily displaced some of the physical pastimes of earlier years.

Safety Concerns and Supervision: As mentioned, the 1980s and 1990s saw rising anxiety among parents about letting kids roam freely. Media reports of rare tragedies created a widespread perception that “outside” was dangerous. In response, parenting norms shifted toward greater supervision. Terms like “helicopter parenting” entered the lexicon, describing adults who constantly hover to ensure their child’s safety. Compared to the somewhat laissez-faire parenting of the ’80s, today’s parents are generally more involved in arranging and overseeing their children’s activities.
This came from a good place, every parent wants their child safe, but it contributed to kids spending more time indoors or in structured settings rather than exploring independently. Neighborhoods also changed: heavy traffic and urban development mean some areas simply aren’t as pedestrian-friendly for kids as they once were. (Experts point out that modern cars are larger and streets busier, which understandably makes parents worry about letting kids bike around freely.) In Potchefstroom, while we still have many quiet residential areas, parents might recall a time when it felt safer to let a ten-year-old walk to a friend’s house alone. Nowadays, that scenario is less common.
Social and Cultural Shifts: The way families and communities socialize has also changed. Families today might be smaller, and people may not know their neighbors as well as before, leading to fewer impromptu gatherings of kids on the block. There’s also a trend toward indoor entertainment culture, things like malls, movie theaters, and indoor play zones have become go-to options, especially in urban settings, whereas a generation ago kids were more likely to create their own fun at home or in the yard. Additionally, both parents working full-time has become more common, meaning kids often spend after-school hours in daycare or at home on devices until parents return from work. In the 1980s, if one parent was home or a grandparent lived nearby, children had someone around to send them outside or watch them play. Today, a tablet can become the babysitter for better or worse. Culturally, there’s also more emphasis on academic and extracurricular achievement. Many kids are shuttled between tutoring, music lessons, sports, and clubs, all great opportunities, but they leave less free time for simple play and relaxation.

All of these factors intertwine. The result is a new childhood landscape: one where digital play and cautious parenting are the norm, replacing the free-range, imaginative play that thrived in the ’80s. This shift has profound implications for children’s development. Let’s reflect on some of the key effects on creativity, social skills, and physical health.

Impact on Creativity and Imagination

One of the biggest questions about this generational shift is: What does it mean for children’s creativity? Free, imaginative play, the kind that was ubiquitous in the 1980s, is known to be a powerful driver of creativity.

When kids invent games with nothing but their minds and whatever objects are at hand, they learn to think outside the box. They practice storytelling, problem-solving, and make-believe, which are all foundations of creative thought.

n contrast, much of today’s screen-based entertainment provides ready-made stories and images, leaving less to the imagination. For example, watching a cartoon or playing a scripted video game is a more passive kind of fun than, say, pretending to be explorers in the backyard. Over time, could this lead to a creativity gap?

Research suggests that constant digital stimulation can indeed hamper some aspects of imagination. Modern devices deliver fast-paced, high-quality visuals and instant gratification, which means children don’t experience boredom as often as kids in the past did.

Yet boredom can be a good thing , in fact, experts remind us that “boredom is the space in which creativity and imagination happen”. In the 1980s, kids who said “I’m bored” would eventually be forced to invent something fun, whether it was drawing, building a model, or organizing a pretend adventure.

That downtime spurred them to create. Today, if a child is bored, it’s very easy to hand them a tablet full of games or videos, immediately filling that creative void with pre-made content.

Moreover, digital play often has pre-defined rules and limitations (you have to follow the game’s programming), whereas make-believe play has no limits except a child’s creativity. Specialists in child development note that on-screen activities typically provide “impoverished” stimulation compared to reality, they engage sight and sound, but don’t involve the full sensory and imaginative range of real-world play.

A video game about building a farm, for instance, can’t replicate the rich tactile and social experience of actually planting a garden with friends. Because of this, heavy reliance on screens might exercise creativity less.

One pediatrician explains that digital media use, if not balanced, may stunt the full creative development of the brain, whereas diverse offline experiences (like free play, reading, art, and exploring nature) give the brain a chance to daydream and invent freely.

However, it’s not all doom and gloom. Kids are naturally creative, and many do channel their creativity through technology in interesting ways. For example, children might use a tablet to draw artwork, code simple games, or build elaborate structures in Minecraft (a virtual form of Lego).

During the recent pandemic, researchers observed that children’s playfulness and creativity were resilient ,kids found ways to be imaginative even when stuck at home, whether by doing lots of drawing or turning trampoline time into a game. And as one anecdote showed, even today a child with a simple stuffed animal can imagine it into “many different objects” , a top, an accordion, anything.

So, creativity is still there, but the concern is that it needs to be nurtured more consciously now. If we give kids endless ready-made entertainment, we should also remember to give them opportunities to be bored and invent something new. That might mean occasionally turning off the TV or iPad and encouraging them to play with physical toys or simply go outside and see where their imagination takes them.

Impact on Social Interaction and Friendships

Think about how children used to socialize versus how they often do now. In the 1980s, much of a child’s social learning happened through face-to-face interactions, playing in groups, negotiating rules of a game, resolving playground squabbles, or cooperating to build a fort.

These in-person activities taught kids vital social skills: how to read someone’s mood by their facial expression, how to communicate your ideas clearly, and how to empathize and share. When kids gathered every day after school, they formed tight-knit neighborhood friendships and a strong sense of community. Even siblings spent a lot of time interacting directly, because there were fewer devices to silo each person into their own little digital world.

Today’s children still socialize, but the medium and quality of interaction have changed. Many interactions are now digital , texting friends, commenting on each other’s TikTok videos, or chatting through a headset during an online game.

While these forms of communication connect kids across distances and can be convenient, they lack the richness of face-to-face contact. Children may miss out on learning subtle body language or tone of voice when most conversations happen via emoji or instant messages.

Psychologists warn that when physical play is replaced by phones and tablets, it can be bad for kids’ social development, including their ability to read facial cues and body language. In essence, if children spend more time looking at screens than at people’s faces, they get less practice in the nuanced art of person-to-person interaction.

Another aspect is that online socializing sometimes lets kids avoid conflict or skip deeper engagement. If you disagreed with a friend in a sandbox in 1985, you had to figure out how to compromise or you’d both go home upset ,a learning moment. In an online game or chat, a child can simply log off or mute the other person.

The interactions can be more fleeting and curated; you interact when you want and can disengage easily, which is not how real-life friendship works. Furthermore, playing alone on a device (even if virtually connected to others) can be isolating. A child might spend hours on social media and still feel lonely because they haven’t had any real shared experiences that build bonds.

There’s also evidence that heavy use of screen media in early childhood can affect communication skills. For instance, young children learn language and emotional cues through conversation and responsive interaction with adults.

Excessive screen time, especially if it replaces talking with caregivers, can diminish the quantity and quality of those interactions, potentially slowing language development and social confidence. It’s not that screens cause social problems outright, but they can reduce opportunities for rich social learning.

On the other hand, technology isn’t all negative for social life. Many children use apps to stay in touch with faraway family, collaborate on school projects using online tools, or join group games that teach teamwork (for example, cooperating in a multiplayer game).

Teenagers might find online communities where they feel they belong, especially if they have niche interests. These can be positive experiences. But the general consensus among child development experts is that balance is key. Nothing quite replaces playing together in person.

The laughter from a group of friends all piled on a swing set, the lessons learned from sharing toys, or the empathy gained by comforting a friend who fell down, those are experiences unique to real life. So, while kids today are incredibly connected in a digital sense, the challenge is ensuring they also build strong in-person social skills. Encouraging activities like team sports, play groups, or just unstructured hangouts can help modern children practice communication, cooperation, and friendship in the real world.

Impact on Physical Well-Being and Health

When it comes to physical activity and health, the contrast between then and now is perhaps the most visible. Childhood in the 1980s was typically full of movement: running, climbing, biking, walking to school, and active play were everyday occurrences. Kids didn’t need “exercise” because play naturally kept them on the go. In doing so, they developed gross motor skills (running, jumping, throwing) and endurance.

Additionally, being outside under the sun gave them fresh air and Vitamin D, and all that movement helped keep childhood obesity rates relatively low. If you compare statistics, the difference over time is striking, for example, in the United States, the percentage of children who were obese was only about 7% in 1980, but by 2010 it had ballooned to nearly 18%.

Similarly, teen obesity went from 5% to 18% in that period. While many factors contribute to obesity, experts point to declining physical activity as a major cause, alongside changes in diet. Kids who used to burn calories playing outside now often lead more sedentary lives.

Today’s screen-centered lifestyle means children are spending a lot more time sitting. Whether it’s in front of a TV, hunched over a phone, or at a computer for homework, hours of inactivity have become normal. This sedentary behavior can affect not just weight, but also muscle and bone development, coordination, and overall fitness.

Health professionals are concerned that children who rarely climb trees, skip rope, or play tag may struggle with tasks that previous generations found easy, like balancing, throwing a ball, or even maintaining good posture.

Indeed, replacing active play with screen time has been linked to poorer gross motor skill development. Kids aren’t using their large muscles as much when their play involves swiping a touchscreen or clicking buttons. Over years, less movement can mean weaker muscles and lower agility.

Furthermore, less outdoor play means fewer opportunities for kids to exercise their bodies naturally. Riding a bicycle to school or the park, for instance, builds cardiovascular health and leg strength. If that bike ride is replaced by a car ride (because parents feel it’s safer to drive them) and the park time is replaced by video games, children simply don’t get the same workout.

The result can be a higher risk of childhood obesity, as we’ve seen, and related health issues like type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure showing up at younger ages. Inactive habits developed in childhood can carry into adulthood, potentially leading to long-term health consequences.

There’s also a well-being aspect beyond just raw fitness. Physical play often correlates with better sleep and mood. A child who runs around playing soccer for an hour will likely sleep more soundly than one who spent that hour in front of a tablet.

Regular physical activity is known to reduce stress and anxiety, it’s a natural outlet for energy and emotions. When kids swap play time for screen time, they might miss out on those mood-lifting benefits of exercise.

Some researchers even argue that the decline in active, independent play is one factor in the rise of anxiety and depression among young people. The logic is that exercise and play help regulate mood, and the independence kids gain by managing their own playtime builds confidence. Without those, children could be more prone to stress.

In summary, the move from outdoor play to indoor screen time has clear implications for kids’ physical health. We see more sedentary kids, higher obesity rates, and possibly less robust motor skills. The good news is that children’s bodies are resilient, reintroducing regular active play can quickly improve fitness and health.

It’s just a matter of finding that balance in the modern world, ensuring that technology doesn’t completely edge out movement. After all, those “bike rides and backyard games” of the past were not only fun, but also secretly very healthy.

Finding Balance: Keeping the Best of Both Eras

Reflecting on these changes, it’s clear that each era of childhood has its pros and cons. The 1980s offered kids freedom, fresh air, and fertile ground for imagination, but it lacked the amazing global connectivity and information access that kids have today.

Now, we live in an age of incredible technology and knowledge at our fingertips, yet we risk losing some of the simple joys and developmental benefits of unplugged play. The challenge for parents, educators, and communities is to strike a healthy balance, embracing the benefits of modern technology while preserving opportunities for children to play, create, socialize, and exercise in the real world.

For families in Potchefstroom, one way to encourage that balance is to take advantage of our local outdoor spaces. Our city is fortunate to have parks and natural areas where children can safely run and explore.

A visit to the Potchefstroom Dam for a picnic and a game of frisbee, or an outing to the OPM Prozesky Bird Sanctuary for a walk and some bird-spotting, can reconnect kids with nature and unstructured play. (Here, you might include a link to a guide or list of local Potchefstroom parks to encourage readers to get outside.)

By making it a routine to go to the park on weekends or to kick a ball around in the backyard each evening, we remind children that fun doesn’t only come from screens. It can come from the splash of water as you skip a stone on the Mooi River, the thrill of chasing a friend in a game of tag, or the creativity of building a den from sticks and leaves.

Communities and schools can also help by providing safe, inviting play spaces. Playgrounds, sports fields, and community parks are essential “outdoor classrooms” where kids learn and grow. The more we invest in these spaces, the more we signal to young people that outdoor play is valued.

In recent years, some places have started initiatives to reclaim play opportunities, for example, certain cities overseas have closed off streets for children to play safely, and some schools are reintroducing longer recess by law. These ideas recognize that play is not a luxury; it’s a necessity for healthy development. Potchefstroom’s own parks and school grounds can serve as arenas for this kind of free play revival.

Ultimately, while we can’t simply turn back the clock to 1985 (and few of us would give up the benefits of progress), we can learn from the past to improve the present. Children need a mix of both worlds: the rich imaginative play and active friendship of yesteryear, and the digital literacy and global awareness of today.

It might mean consciously unplugging more often, setting limits on screen time, and encouraging kids to engage in sports, arts, and outdoor adventures. The reward is children who are not only tech-savvy, but also creative, socially adept, and physically healthy.

In conclusion

The journey from mud pies to touchscreens has been a remarkable one, redefining childhood within a generation. The differences in activities, routines, and environments between the 1980s and now are vast, shaped by cultural shifts and technological leaps.

As we’ve seen, these changes have impacts on creativity, social interaction, and physical well-being that we’re only beginning to fully understand. Yet one thing remains constant: children have an innate capacity to play, to imagine, and to find joy in their world.

Our role as the adults in their lives is to make sure that world includes plenty of room, both online and offline, for them to be kids. So next time you see your child engrossed in a video on a tablet, maybe invite them outside for a bit, or plan a family day at Potchefstroom’s parks.

Let’s help our kids enjoy the best of both eras, keeping the spirit of outdoor, imaginative play alive even as we welcome the wonders of modern technology. After all, a childhood that blends tree-climbing and tech time might just produce the most well-rounded generation yet.