THE STATE OF U.S. KIDS: 2010
KidsHealth.org and TIME For Kids Joint Survey Provides a Kids’ Eye View of Life Today
Wilmington, DE, January 19, 2010 – With President Obama’s first State of the Union Address just around the corner, many Americans are reflecting on their lives today and thinking about what’s in store for the future. When will the economy get better? Will the unemployment rate continue to rise?
But what about kids? What it’s like to be a kid living in the U.S.? That’s what KidsHealth.org and TIME For Kids magazine wanted to know. In a joint survey conducted online, they polled 1,000 kids, ages 9-13, to find out how things are going at home, at school, and in the United States. Below is a glimpse into the minds of today’s generation, appropriately titled The State of U.S. Kids: 2010.
What Kids Say About the Country & Leadership:
- Only 18% of kids totally agree that the U.S. economy is strong and only 23% totally agree that people in other countries respect the United States.
- When asked to grade how well President Obama is doing his job so far, here’s how kids score him: A (19%), B (30%), C (24%), D (10%), and F (17%).
- The economy is the #1 priority for kids, with 45% telling President Obama it is the most important issue he should work on.
- When grading the country’s leaders on the economy, 29% of kids gave leaders a C, but a very close 28% of kids gave leaders an F.
What Kids Say About the Future:
- Two out of three kids agree with the statement, “My future is going to be great.”
- 94% of kids say that in the United States, it’s possible for kids to grow up to be anything they want.
- 51% of kids think the world will be a better place in 10 years.
- 90% of kids think they will see a woman elected President of the United States in their lifetime.
Understanding Today’s Generation:
- When asked “What do you want to be when you grow up,” the most popular professions for girls are teacher (17%) and vet (12%) vs. athlete (15%) and videogame designer (9%) for boys.
- 39% of kids think math is the school subject most important to the success of their future careers, followed by reading (20%), science (13%), and technology (10%), among others.
- Only 1 in 4 kids think money is most important for their future careers, with 53% of kids choosing “How much I will enjoy my job” as first on their list of priorities.
- Almost 52% of kids spend less then an hour each day playing outside, with 16% reporting they spend no time at all. However, kids report they spend 1 or more hours each day on the following activities: playing video games (45%), watching TV/movies (79%), or using the computer or IM-ing (51%).
- Nearly 18% of kids say their families eat dinner together less then 1-2 times a week, with 8% reporting eating dinner together less then 2-3 times a month.
- Gone are the days of not being allowed to go outside and play as punishment and in are the days of technology punishments. Nearly half of kids say they often lose computer or video game privileges when they misbehave or break the rules at home.
- 1 in 4 kids report their family’s money situation is either “not good” or “bad” and 63% of kids say they worry about money “a lot” or “sometimes.”
- 75% of kids chose a family member as the person they look up to most, with 2 out of 3 kids choosing a parent.
To read more about the survey results, please visit: KidsHealth.org or TIME For Kids.
To view the KidsHealth “State of U.S. Kids” Flickr gallery of drawings submitted by kids, please click here. (Note: a Flickr account is required to view gallery.)
Note About Survey Methodology:
The survey was conducted online by C&R Research in December 2009 among a sample of 1,004 U.S. children ages 9-13. The sample was balanced and weighted to match 2007 U.S. Census figures for online households with children. The survey has a margin of error no worse than +/- 3.2%.
For complete survey findings and methodology, please contact Ryan Biliski at (302) 651-4046 or biliski@KidsHealth.org.
