Some of the insightful comments and approaches to mobile and web technology comes from the hearts and mouths of kids that I run across. Whether its their impressions of a device that I have, or just their general curiosity, there’s something about them (and some retirees) which grants a view into this paradigm shift in ways that only deep research seems to expose.

For example, this past weekend, I sat down with twin 10yr olds to talk about technology, their interests, and to offer them some wisdom on how to move forward. Now, your first thought might be, “they’re 10 – they will probably change their minds a few dozen times before they are 13. Why speak to them about this subject?” But, that’s just it. If their imaginations and passions are sparked now, and then matured and cultivated by parents, teachers, and other community members, these small passions become the actions by adults which change the world.

As we sat to chat, one of the twins asked me about the microprocessor in my iPad, and started to detail much of what he read by researching on Google (and elsewhere) about its internal components. He could tell me all that he read, but didn’t understand how it worked. I was delightfully surprised and took the time to answer his question – and give him and his brother some unsupervised time on my iPad.

You see, these kids were already acute to the abilities of using search engines to find the high-level information towards those things they are interested in. They were well acquainted with both the Internet their parents know, and the one their parents don’t want them to see. And like some kids I’ve come across, they are very respectful of those persons that will take the time with them to talk to them about their interests, and how they could use them right now to move forward, and what it could look like in the future.

These kids aren’t starting from penmanship classes with $2 calculators. They have mobile phones with unlimited SMS plans, and have already figured out how to connect IM, Facebook, and their parent’s email to them. They are curious to a fault. And are simply asking to be directed.

Their father and I talked about me coming to sit with them ever 2-3 months to see how they are progressing with tech and life, and to continue to give them pointers. I’m not just serving the kids, I’m also enabling the parents to understand the kind of knowledge that these kids are willing to find on their own. The parents need a means to cultivate this into mature understanding, and later wisdom in application.

I believe that as we see the age for kids with mobile and web access come down (some areas this is as young as 7/8, in the US its 11/12), we will see the need to cultivate this kind of conversation with them so that they don’t just get enamored with the shiny, but that they also learn the implications of the world that will soon be theirs to shape and mold.

So the next time you ask someone to speak to you like a 4th grader, just remember, the bar for what these kids know is a lot higher than what it was for you in some areas. Be prepared to address some heady topics, while cultivating the wisdom and understanding of things relevant  to both them and you, but which are also needed for a child that age to mature.