Like generations before, grandparents are adjusting successfully to the language of their grand children. Caring grandparents have always been good at finding ways to communicate with the youth of the generation. The digital age brings with it new ways for grandparents to connect with their children and grandchildren and some of the digital technologies offer great advantages.
Grandparents are connecting with social media. Grandparents are flocking to social media like Face book and My Space in droves and not just to communicate with their grand children but to communicate with their friends, family and naturally they want to keep up with the career of Betty White. All kidding aside, Grandparents are getting pictures via Face book and using online chat to keep up with the family. In some ways the digital age has made our world much smaller, live chat with Grandma is one of those ways.
Grandparents are connecting by text. I had a really hard time convincing my mother to start texting; she was not willing to budge even though all her friends were doing it. She did not want to, that is, until she realized that with text, she does not need a hearing aid. Grandparents are staying connected with grand children through texting and social media and they are communicating better than ever before.
Grandparents are connecting by email.
In comparison to texting and social media, email seems like a past time but grandparents are still communicating through email. I remember when I was in the third grade I had a project where I brought stationary to school and wrote my grandparents a formal letter. Today I did that same project with my daughter except she used email to write each of her grandparents a letter.
Grandparents are closing the generation gap with Google.
Grandparents are closing the generation gap with Google; they can Google everything from a word or phrase they do not understand to the latest trends in fashion. Grandparents are more informed than ever before because, although they did not grow up in the information age, they are using it to stay connected.
Grandparents are connecting during the holidays by shopping online.
More and more grandparents are embracing the digital age by shopping online. Grandparents are finding that when they shop online at places like Amazon they have more time to spend with their grandchildren and it is easier to find what the children want.
Grandparents are connecting with Wii.
Grandparents are connecting with grandchildren by playing games on Wii. My mother’s favorite game is bowling and the kids love boxing, whatever the game they all love to do it together. Wii is great exercise and playing games is always a great way to connect.
Grandparents are connecting through digital television. Television is still the media that we all sit around and with vintage networks like TV Land and Cartoon Network grandparents can reminisce with their grandchildren and share the old times. Television can be a way to connect when you watch it together.