Toddler pretends to make a payment with phone indicating how Gen Alpha perceives technology

As kids, we used to play many imitation games. We re-enacted how our parents behaved with the outside world, proving Bandura's modeling theory right. We would use AC remotes as phones to talk about our pretend children, we used monopoly coins to trade with the shopkeeper in the mirror and even cooked a concoction of all the makeup our mother owned while standing in our father's shoes.

We might have grown out of those shoes, but that does not mean children don't do this anymore. The catch, however, is that as generations grow, the scenarios of pretend games also change, depicting the rapid changes the world presents. Amy Elizabeth—who goes by @amyelizabeth24514 on TikTok—was hit with this realization when her toddler held a landline phone up to a scanner and pretended to "pay" for stuff.

She took to TikTok and shared a "wild" observation from a 90s kid's perspective showing how rapidly the world is changing. She begins the video by explaining, "In case you didn't feel old yet. Today my kids were playing drive-through like a coffee shop and they placed their order and went to go pay. That was all ready for the credit card or cash exchange. You know, like how we played when we were little? Nope."

The video then showed her daughter holding an old cordless phone for her mother to scan. "She pays by phone now," she concluded. By sharing this video clip, she initiated a conversation about how modern technology is molding Gen Alpha's imaginations in novel ways. Children born between 2010 and 2024 who have grown up with the internet and contemporary technology as a key part of their daily life are referred to as Gen Alpha.

This clip amused viewers and many contributed stories of their children, making them "feel old" by referencing modern technology while playing pretend games. Others were delighted with the irony presented by Amy's daughter when she used an older-looking phone to impersonate such a sophisticated payment technique. Someone suggested that she pretend to chat on the phone with her toddler to see if they make a phone shape or flat hand. 

"Omg, so I am basically the same as the old woman paying with a check at the grocery store because I still take out my credit card," said @kg423423 while feeling old. "My son and daughter were pretending to be YouTubers today. They sat up a toy phone to "record" them making slime," shared @thebeddingfieldfamily. "This reminds me of the Bluey episode with granddad playing shops at the house... and it's all apps and doordash," commented @mamagastelum.

"I love the irony of the type of phone used for this payment," observed @mandyoliver29. "Now you need to ask them to pretend to talk on a phone. See if they make a phone shape or flat hand," added @blwmama_meggie. Needless to say, viewers felt pretty "ancient."

Moreover, TikTok user @lia_xix have made observations and commented to Gen Alpha holding their hands flat when pretending to talk on the phone because smartphones are the only phones they have ever seen or used over the years.