DailyDirt: Does It Take A Village Or A Japanese Metropolis?

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Raising kids is an adventure filled with all sorts of imperfect decisions. A butterfly flapping its wings on your kid's iPad could initiate a cascade of events, leading to his/her eventual life of crime or triumph. Or maybe that butterfly has no effect whatsoever -- how did that unusual insect get into the house, anyway? Common core standards might be crushing young spirits with "new math" -- or just frustrating parents who don't remember how to do long division. Is there an optimal way to parent that leads to a society where every child is above average and no one graduates in the bottom half of the class? Maybe the best path is just to let kids figure it all out themselves. (But probably not.)

• Parents in Japan regularly let 9yo (and younger) kids ride the subway alone, but wouldn't necessarily do so if they moved to London or New York. Is there something special about the Japanese culture that allows unsupervised children to be (or at least feel) safe in a large city? Does Tokyo really have some kind of unspoken community ethics, or is something else going on? [url]
• Unschooling is a form of homeschooling -- but "un-schooled" kids have complete autonomy over their own education. This sounds like a pretty extreme lifestyle choice, but perhaps some elements of it (such as the skepticism of the increasing number of tests and hours spent on homework) may be appealing. [url]
• Who doesn't want to raise kids to be caring, respectful and responsible adults? Apparently, there are 5 simple steps to do so... but step 4 "being a good role model" is a bit much to ask , isn't it? [url]

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Filed Under: common core, education, free range kids, parenting, standards, testing, unschooling

DailyDirt: Parents, Don't Let Your Kids Grow Up To Be Cowboys...

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

There are as many different kinds of parenting as there are parents (or more...) -- every kid is different, and no two parents treat their kids the same way. Definitely, some questionable parenting techniques exist, but who's really to say what's correct? (Okay, child services and/or a judge....) Some folks believe in a free-range kid policy, but others think that's crazy or dangerous. If you're not already flooded with parenting advice, check out some of the following links.

• Intrinsic motivation should be what drives kids to study hard and be diligent with chores. However, there are plenty of parents that try to bribe (or just pay) their kids when they've gotten good grades or mowed the lawn. Do kids learn how to be more responsible when they get paid -- or do they learn to expect a payment for every little task? Perhaps it depends on the type of task. [url]
• Parental cultures vary quite significantly around the world. It's not uncommon for Vietnamese mothers to potty train kids by 9 months. Norwegian kids take naps in strollers outside in freezing weather. In the Polynesian Islands, toddlers take care of babies. [url]
• Parenting advice is everywhere -- telling parents not to praise their kids too much.. or to let them play with matches occasionally. Kids certainly do need to learn how to fend for themselves at some point, but between the extremes of helicopter parenting and "Lord of the Flies" parenting, there should probably be a nice middle ground. [url]

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Filed Under: advice, bribery, dan pink, education, free range kids, helicopter parenting, lenore skenazy, parenting