Roughly two to twelve. The child begins to want things directly but still cannot pay, so the market sells to parents through children — an arrangement that shapes toys, food, media and schooling. The dominant friction is preparation: a decade of compulsory learning for an adult life nobody can describe yet. Where a family lives becomes an education purchase, which is how housing, schooling and inequality become one system.
13 first-order frictions arise in this phase.
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A decade of compulsory preparation for an adult life nobody can yet describe.
Primary school, Tutoring, Educational toys and learning apps and AI tutors.
Higher education costs are visible a decade out and compound against you.
Three meals plus snacks, negotiated, for a decade.
A new wardrobe every season for a decade.
Children's clothing and footwear and Hand-me-downs and secondhand children's markets.
Every infection is a missed workday.
Pediatric care, Backup and sick-child care and Children's over-the-counter medicine.
Accidents, cancer, and congenital illness; the fear shapes every other decision in the phase.
Pediatric hospitals and specialty care, Juvenile life insurance and Child safety products.
Autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and disability diagnoses reorganise the family's time and money for decades.
Restaurants sized, priced, and menu'd for children.
Family and casual-dining restaurants and Fast food and ready meals.
Traffic, water, strangers, and falls — the leading causes of child death.
Swimming lessons, Child safety products and Child protection law and services.
The window closes in adolescence.
Religious and cultural education and Scouting and youth organisations.
The birthday party is a status event for the parent.
Children's party industry and School and milestone photography.
Puberty and reproduction must be explained before adolescence explains them worse.
Puberty and body-literacy education and Sex education and adolescent health services.