"My Mom Said She Would Get Me Anything If I Behaved!"
Just as I was helping my daughter with her swing in the park, I overheard a little conversation between a mother and her son which was deeply disturbing to me as a mother.
"Dear, stop doing that... the sand will get into your eyes"
"BUT I LOVE ITTT..... IT'S NICE"
"No dear, it's gonna fly into other kids' eyes and it will hurt them.. stop doing that, please"
"I DON'T CARE!"
"Okay now... I'll get you anything you want when we get home if you would just stop that and behave!"
The response was quick and the boy stopped scattering sand all over the slide when he heard that sentence!
I was astonished and actually wanted to tell the mom what she is doing to her son is far worse than what her son was doing with the sand and what could have potentially happened if the sand got into anybody's eyes!
I have read in papers and surveys that kid's nowadays are spoilt. However, I had trouble understanding the whole concept of it as such. Kids are kids then and now. How could things be so drastically different? And what is so special about the kid's of this generation?
I got my answer. It's not the kid's who are any different but the parenting style of our generation. I do not intend to generalize and state that all parent's are like this mom. However, I feel there is a considerable number of us parents out there who do these kind of things.
Bribery is a way of correcting a wrong behavior?
I certainly do not think so. I would give my daughter a much better regard in this case. I believe my daughter, who is just 4 yrs old is much more capable of understanding what an acceptable behavior is and what is not. If she is in doubt I take the time out to explain it to her. I do not intend for her to understand the first time or even after several repetitions. However, I believe she will get it one day.
And I do not give the authority of correcting my child's behavior in the hands of whatever it is that I could bribe her with. Trust me! My daughter would be happy to behave if I offered her sweets. However, I do not play by that book.
Just as I was helping my daughter with her swing in the park, I overheard a little conversation between a mother and her son which was deeply disturbing to me as a mother.
"Dear, stop doing that... the sand will get into your eyes"
"BUT I LOVE ITTT..... IT'S NICE"
"No dear, it's gonna fly into other kids' eyes and it will hurt them.. stop doing that, please"
"I DON'T CARE!"
"Okay now... I'll get you anything you want when we get home if you would just stop that and behave!"
The response was quick and the boy stopped scattering sand all over the slide when he heard that sentence!
I was astonished and actually wanted to tell the mom what she is doing to her son is far worse than what her son was doing with the sand and what could have potentially happened if the sand got into anybody's eyes!
I have read in papers and surveys that kid's nowadays are spoilt. However, I had trouble understanding the whole concept of it as such. Kids are kids then and now. How could things be so drastically different? And what is so special about the kid's of this generation?
I got my answer. It's not the kid's who are any different but the parenting style of our generation. I do not intend to generalize and state that all parent's are like this mom. However, I feel there is a considerable number of us parents out there who do these kind of things.
Bribery is a way of correcting a wrong behavior?
I certainly do not think so. I would give my daughter a much better regard in this case. I believe my daughter, who is just 4 yrs old is much more capable of understanding what an acceptable behavior is and what is not. If she is in doubt I take the time out to explain it to her. I do not intend for her to understand the first time or even after several repetitions. However, I believe she will get it one day.
And I do not give the authority of correcting my child's behavior in the hands of whatever it is that I could bribe her with. Trust me! My daughter would be happy to behave if I offered her sweets. However, I do not play by that book.
