I have to admit something, I am not always a big fan of kid activities. I love my kids, but attending their activities isn't always my favorite, and with a sibling (or soon two in tow) yeah not my favorite. But we go to the activities because they LOVE them. I have my doubts that participating in weekly gymnastics will be memorable to them in the long run, or that playing baseball at age 3 will improve their skills longterm, but they enjoy them in the moment, so we keep signing up.
Anyway today we went to Zach's gymnastics class. He LOVES gymnastics. He looks forward to it all week and tells everyone about it. He picks out his special outfit and waits by the door to go. Anyway we went today, he had a blast, got so tired that he had to take a nap when he got home. But while we were there I noticed something that seems to be a phenomenon at kid activities- overly involved parents. This gymnastics class requires parent participation, there's no possible way that the teacher could control 10 2 year olds, so she provides general direction and the parents help out. Anyway there is a kid in the class that brings both parents... every time. They make sure he keeps his place in line, repeats the activities he likes (and skips the one he doesn't) and basically control the entire situation so he gets exactly what he wants and doesn't have to deal with the other kids... why is this a thing? I noticed it at baseball too, and the park... oh my heavens, the park is the worst. When did we become these parents that can't let our kids do anything on their own and protect them from all discomfort. I will be the first to admit that my kids have a cushy life, but... occasionally we deal with some discomforts and disappointments. If you can't learn how to do this as a child when do you learn to do it?
Anyway today we went to Zach's gymnastics class. He LOVES gymnastics. He looks forward to it all week and tells everyone about it. He picks out his special outfit and waits by the door to go. Anyway we went today, he had a blast, got so tired that he had to take a nap when he got home. But while we were there I noticed something that seems to be a phenomenon at kid activities- overly involved parents. This gymnastics class requires parent participation, there's no possible way that the teacher could control 10 2 year olds, so she provides general direction and the parents help out. Anyway there is a kid in the class that brings both parents... every time. They make sure he keeps his place in line, repeats the activities he likes (and skips the one he doesn't) and basically control the entire situation so he gets exactly what he wants and doesn't have to deal with the other kids... why is this a thing? I noticed it at baseball too, and the park... oh my heavens, the park is the worst. When did we become these parents that can't let our kids do anything on their own and protect them from all discomfort. I will be the first to admit that my kids have a cushy life, but... occasionally we deal with some discomforts and disappointments. If you can't learn how to do this as a child when do you learn to do it?
Comments
Post a Comment