Kids today are smart in ways we never were, or at least not until we were much older. Today's kids have grown up with many technologies that those of my generation are still trying to learn. They can astound us with facts and figures and have a pretty complex knowledge of the answers to how and why things work the way they do. So, why is it, many of these same kids have little common sense?

Common sense needs to be taught - it doesn't just appear. As foster parents, we had kids who defrosted 10 lb. packages of hamburger when they only wanted to use one pound. They never thought of wrapping it separate first before freezing it, or hacking off a smaller section. These are the same kids who can get through mazes and advanced screen levels on computers, but have real trouble getting through life.

The past two times our computer acted up and we needed assistance with our server, teenage boys came to the rescue! Although they are tech smart, ask these young men to show you the difference between lettuce and cabbage, and they get that puzzled look on their faces that teens have made famous. I know a young lady who gets cranberries and beets mixed up!

The point is, someone must teach our kids common sense. It used to be something parents showed and passed down by example.

So, I ask, "Who's doing it now?"

Credits: Jo Ann Wentzel