The ’60s, a time where mothers suddenly started entering the workplace. While this is normal now, many systems have been set up to accommodate kids with busy parents. Then, not so much.
If a kid could stay outside all day without supervision, then they could definitely do it indoors. They would come home after school to an empty house and prepare themselves a TV dinner. Luckily, sometimes there was an older sibling to pick up the slack
Family Talks
In those days, the kids were with the kids, and the adults, with the adults. While parents certainly cared deeply for their children, deep discussions and conversations about feelings were not for the public domain.
Today, of course, there is a strong culture of parents engaging with their kids, some even argue, too much. Maybe we still have not struck the balance
Drinking from Water Garden Hoses
Bottled water was not really a thing until a couple of decades later. You would just drink from the tap, and in the summer, kids, after running around the yard for a while, had no shame in taking a sip from the garden hose.
No one ever thought that water from garden hoses was unregulated and potentially unsafe. This was totally normal. The hose was a fixture of summertime fun, with kids running in and out of sprinklers.
Spanking
If you misbehaved as a kid, it was simple. Out came the hand, or occasionally even worse, the belt. It's a good thing that most times kids were way out of their parents' sight for most of the day, but when they were with their folks, there was serious discipline.
The kind of physical punishment that went on those days would cause some serious eyebrow-raising today. In some cases, even a phone call to child services. Yep, things have changed, thankfully!
Lead Galore
Lead paint was used on everything. Which is strange, since it was published as far back as 1904 that lead is highly poisonous in large quantities for both workmen and all inhabitants of a home.
Fortunately now, the legal amount of lead is no more than 0.06% concentration. Just think of everyone breathing that in, not just kids!