Marriage is an abstract concept that, frankly, most young children don’t fully understand. For them, it’s usually good enough to know that when grown-ups love each other very much and want to be a family together, they get often get married. There’s no need to discuss the tax implications or workplace benefits or hospital visitation rights with a three-year-old. But is it necessary to limit the concept to the traditional one-man-one-woman definition just because you’re talking to a three-year-old? Even if you, personally, are okay with the idea of same-sex marriage? Even if you live in a country where same-sex marriage is legal? Lisa van de Geyn, writing in Today’s Parent, seems to think so, because talking about same-sex marriage is hard.
Who marries who at 3 years old?
February 7th, 2012The Shallowness of Parenthood
September 4th, 2011
Yes, like just about everyone else these days, it seems, I’m on Facebook. Most of my Facebook “friends” are either family, parents of my kids’ friends, or fellow writers from the parenting world. It’s a good way to keep in touch and share ideas, news, and information with them. Sometimes, however, it becomes a source of revelation and insight as well. Such was the case last evening as I was catching up on the day’s posts at bedtime.
Alex P. Keaton and the Fourth of July
July 3rd, 2011
I have an early memory — probably from about age four or five — of Fourth of July fireworks. We had gone to see the big fireworks show and I was in bed trying to go to sleep. Back then, however, firecrackers and bottle rockets were completely legal and larger explosives were not uncommon. To a young child, however, the noise was terrifying — I knew for sure that one of those fireworks I was hearing was going to land on our roof and burn the house down with all of us in it. And perhaps that’s why I’m an ultra-liberal these days. Yes, before you head out to that Fourth of July parade or fire up the Independence Day barbecue, you might want to take a look at what a new study has to say about the lasting effects of such festivities.
Caving In To Cars 2
June 30th, 2011
Given my fierce opposition to anything violent in my kids’ entertainment and my critique of Pixar’s apparent move away from child-appropriate films (not to mention commenter Tim’s disappointed commentary on their latest film), you would not be out of line to assume that there is no way I would take my kids to see Cars 2. And so you would likely be rather surprised to hear that my kids did indeed go with their Nana to see Cars 2 yesterday. What, you might ask, was I thinking? Why would I allow such a violation of my principles?
An End To Homework
June 29th, 2011
One of the biggest parenting challenges, at least in our house, is homework. Perhaps not so much in terms of having the kids learn and understand the material — although that can be a challenge too — but just getting kids to sit down, focus on their work, and get it done. For us, this involves a lot of whining, wailing, and general gnashing of teeth. And the kids don’t enjoy it either. To make matters worse, my oldest will be entering 4th grade next year and the amount of homework sent home is reportedly kicked up a notch. If we lived in Los Angeles, however, it wouldn’t be a problem anymore.
Inappropriate Marketing
June 28th, 2011
So we had swim class in the morning and the San Francisco Free Folk Festival in the afternoon. It was a full day, to be sure, but the real challenge was that the two were 40 miles apart. So while the Junior Partner was practicing his up-faces, I took the older two to a nearby Subway to get sandwiches for a quick lunch on the road. Unfortunately, when I ordered a kid’s meal for the three-year-old, it came in a bag emblazoned with the Green Lantern character from the recent film. A film, I will note, that is rated PG-13 by the MPAA and given a 4.7.4 for sex, violence, and profanity by Kids-in-Mind.com.
Has Pixar Become Too Grown-Up?
June 26th, 2011For the last 15 years, Pixar has been known for some amazing animation, ideal, for the most part, for even younger children. Toy Story 1, 2, and 3 were all wonderful films, according to both kids and critics. WALL-E is a great lesson in what can happen if we don’t take care of our planet. And I will certainly admit that I still cry at the end of Cars when Lightning gives up the race to do the right thing. But have recent Pixar films become too violent for young kids?
American Families Come Up Short In Emergencies
June 14th, 2011
If you were suddenly faced with an emergency — a necessary repair or unexpected medical expense — how well could you handle it, financially? According to a new study, more than half of American families would likely be unable to come up with the cash to cover a significant expense in a month’s time. As the economy remains in the doldrums, even those who are still employed are no longer financially secure.
It’s a 3-way Street
June 11th, 2011
It’s an old joke — A nice old lady encounters a little boy standing on a street corner holding a bundle tied to the end of a stick. She asks where he’s going and he tells her that he’s running away from home. Concerned, she asks where “home” is and he points to a house just a couple of doors from the corner where he’s standing. Less worried, she asks if this is as far as he’s going and the boy sighs and tells her “I guess so. I’m not allowed to cross the street by myself.”
But in the real world, is there really reason to worry about kids a crossing the street? Certainly, when they’re four or five years old, they shouldn’t be going anywhere by themselves but what about at, say, age ten or twelve? Is a middle-school student old enough to cross the street by himself? You might think so, but watch this video and you may very well change your mind.
Too Much Information
June 7th, 2011
There is a lot of information that can help a teacher figure out how best to help a student learn. Seemingly irrelevant data such as who the child lives with, what language (or languages) are spoken at home, and if the child has any medical issues are all clues a teacher can use tailor lessons to a child’s specific situation. There’s one bit of information, however, that I simply can’t imagine anyone at a child’s school needing to know — but that didn’t stop one school district from asking for it.
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