Lessons Today’s Kids Can Learn From ‘90s Kids

From cultivating patience to embracing that awkward stage, here's what today's children can learn from the kids of the '90s.

Fact checked by Sarah Scott

I don’t want to start this article off by being like, “Back in my day …” but hey, it is technically the entire premise of the piece, so we’re gonna go there! I was born in late 1987, which means the majority of my youth took place in the 1990s.

IMHO, the ‘90s were a wonderful time to grow up. Pop culture was at its peak: the glory days of Nickelodeon, Beanie Babies, Pop-Up Video, the Spice Girls, Titanic, trying to win money by saving Pepsi bottle caps (did anyone ever win that?) … the list goes on. We were able to use the internet, but it wasn’t a part of our every waking minute. No one really had cell phones, unless you were my dad with an enormous brick of a car phone. (It came with a zip-up case.) We were the last generation to grow up with the buzzing sound of dial-up. People had home phones, and many of us still have our childhood besties’ phone numbers memorized.

When it comes down to it, though, my generation and Gen Alpha really aren’t all that different. The ‘90s are back again, as evidenced by the walls of butterfly clips and Tweety Bird tees at Target, not to mention the new American Girl doll whose “historical” legacy is that she's a ‘90s kid. (Still not over that one—now I know how my mom felt when I wanted bell bottoms and a smiley face T-shirt in 1996 and called it "vintage.")

In the spirit of this resurgence, I polled a few of my fellow ‘90s kids-turned-parents for the advice they’d give the children of today.

Patience Is a Virtue.

Pretty much anything and everything you want can be yours in a matter of minutes these days: your favorite episode of your favorite show, toys from Amazon Prime, dinner via GrubHub. But kids of the ‘90s, who couldn’t just cue up an episode of Rugrats on demand—you had to consult the TV Guide for that—know that sometimes, the real magic is in the waiting.

Boredom Can Be a Good Thing.

In the ‘90s, AKA the golden age of dial-up internet, you couldn’t just scroll the internet for hours on a Wi-Fi network—sometimes our parents needed to use the phone! To the kids of today, I say: set down the screens and see what happens when you let yourself be bored. Go outside and find a friend to play with, grab some colored pencils and draw, make up a game with your siblings in the yard. For many ‘90s kids, those hours of "nothing to do" became the most fun and rewarding times of all.

Related: How to Keep Kids Entertained at Home

We All Have an Awkward Stage

Sure, this era of social media makes it look like today’s tweens and teens just glow up effortlessly, but trust those of us who smiled for school pics with a mouthful of braces, giant glasses, or a poodle perm: you will one day look back on your awkward stage and think you were actually adorable.

Caring For the Planet—and Each Other—Is Essential

Calling someone a litterbug in the ‘90s was a major insult. We learned all about the three Rs—reduce, reuse, recycle—and many of us continue to care for the earth in countless small ways today, like reducing plastic consumption, composting, or supporting political candidates who work to fight climate change. Today’s kids live under more climate pressure than we did during my childhood, but if we work together and put that same pressure on those in power, change is possible.

We were also encouraged to get involved in politics. Remember “voting” for the president with Nickelodeon, or the network's deep dives into important issues on Nick News with the legendary Linda Ellerbee? Generation Alpha is being raised to speak up for what’s important, just as we were.

You Really Need to Pay Attention to Your Tamagotchi or It Will Die

Raise your hand if you got in trouble for not-so-discreetly trying to feed your Tamagotchi during math class? Guilty! The pocket-sized pets had a resurgence recently, and when I bought two for my nephews, I had to remind them that this wasn’t a set-it-and-forget-it kind of pet. If you wrong your Tamagotchi by neglecting to clean up its pixelated poop or forgetting a meal, it will tell you and your teacher will hear the cheeping through your desk! Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Not Every Moment Needs to Go Viral

At the end of the day, there’s nothing better than spending time with your best friends or family, playing outside, trying your hand at a video game, or laughing at a silly movie. In my day, All That was the sleepover show du jour and staging Spice Girls concerts for our parents was the ultimate weekend activity. Biking around town with my friends pretending to be the girls in Now & Then and painting our nails baby blue while eating giant freezies are the childhood memories I cherish most. Not everything has to be captured on video or posted on TikTok in order to hold a permanent place in your heart.

Related: 90s Shows for Black Millennial Parents To Revisit With Their Gen Z Kids

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