I DO remember flash cards for infants! My husband's oldest sister sure had them for her kids when they were younger (as in, first through fourth grade or so). She was a Type A personality, and it bled over into her expectations for her kids. A sad story for another day.
I've seen some really extreme things, like "unschooling," which worry me. Those are often parents who hated school, and are trying to save their kids from it entirely. One article in Outside Magazine was _really_ scary. It was a dad who had taught his kids reading, writing, and basic math, but then wanted them to become competent at hunting and tracking and building things, plus the enrichment of maybe playing a musical instrument. But he was setting them up to have very few career options apart from being an outdoor guide, like he was. It was frightening.
Why can't we help kids learn things at the right developmental age, instead of trying to fruitlessly rush them into feeling like failures? And at the other end, why can't we realize that limiting our kids' opportunities to learn and thrive isn't doing them any favors either?
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Date: 2024-08-12 01:21 am (UTC)I've seen some really extreme things, like "unschooling," which worry me. Those are often parents who hated school, and are trying to save their kids from it entirely. One article in Outside Magazine was _really_ scary. It was a dad who had taught his kids reading, writing, and basic math, but then wanted them to become competent at hunting and tracking and building things, plus the enrichment of maybe playing a musical instrument. But he was setting them up to have very few career options apart from being an outdoor guide, like he was. It was frightening.
Why can't we help kids learn things at the right developmental age, instead of trying to fruitlessly rush them into feeling like failures? And at the other end, why can't we realize that limiting our kids' opportunities to learn and thrive isn't doing them any favors either?
/rant. I'm glad you enjoyed this!