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The international ‘nanny of the month’

November 3, 2011 By

Reason’s first global Nanny of the Month award goes to the European Union, which beat out the Danes, who are taxing foods high in saturated fat, and the Aussies in the Northern Territory, who have banned alcohol sales to problem drinkers.

. . . top dishonors go to the European Union’s control freaks who have cracked down on free-range kids, slapping regulations on everything from baby rattlers (which have brand-new noise restrictions) to blowing up balloons (not to be done by tots under age eight!).

Filed Under: Children, Health, Parenting Tagged With: , , , , ,

In 1979, kids could roam, but not read

September 15, 2011 By

Is Your Child Ready for First Grade On Chicago Now, Christine Whitley reprints a 1979 first-grade readiness check list for parents. In addition to age (six years, six months), the child should be able to give his address to crossing guard, color between the lines, tell the left hand from the right, stand on one foot with eyes closed for five to ten seconds, repeat a short sentence and count eight to 10 pennies correctly. Also:

6. Can he ride a small two-wheeled bicycle without helper wheels?

8. Can he travel alone in the neighborhood (four to eight blocks) to store, school, playground, or to a friend’s home?

“What a reality check!”, writes Lenore Skenazy on Free Range Kids.

 Can we all pause to remember that the very thing that terrifies so many parents today — a simple walk around the neighborhood — was not something reserved for kids age 10 or 12 or 15 just a generation ago? It was something that first graders did. And presumably those first graders got some practice as kindergarteners!

The academic expectations are much higher today, notes Slate’s XX Factor blog. In academic terms, the 1979 first grader would be on target for preschool today. “In terms of life skills, she’s heading for middle school, riding her two-wheeled bike and finding her own way home.”

Mom walked me to school the day before kindergarten started in 1957, so I’d know the route.  After that, I walked with my sister, a first grader, and all the other baby-boom kids in the neighborhood. We all walked or bicycled without parental supervision.

Parents were told not to teach their children to read because they might do it incorrectly.  So I had to learn from my sister, when she learned in first grade.

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Dangerous, educational, fun

August 7, 2011 By

The dangerous things you should let your children do include whittling, throwing a spear, playing with fire, climbing a tree, cooking with weird ingredients and taking equipment apart. Danger has been defined down. A not-very-brave girl, I did most of these things. (I never threw a spear, but I made bows and arrows out of garden stakes and used them in our games of Pony Express.)

However, I’ve never licked a nine-volt battery.

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The too-safe playground

July 22, 2011 By

Playgrounds can be too safe, writes John Tierney in the New York Times.

Even if children do suffer fewer physical injuries — and the evidence for that is debatable — the critics say that these playgrounds may stunt emotional development, leaving children with anxieties and fears that are ultimately worse than a broken bone.

“Children need to encounter risks and overcome fears on the playground,” said Ellen Sandseter, a professor of psychology at Queen Maud University in Norway. “I think monkey bars and tall slides are great. As playgrounds become more and more boring, these are some of the few features that still can give children thrilling experiences with heights and high speed.”

Children sometimes get hurt, but the pain doesn’t last, studies show: “A child who’s hurt in a fall before the age of 9 is less likely as a teenager to have a fear of height.”

The old tall jungle gyms and slides disappeared from most American playgrounds across the country in recent decades because of parental concerns, federal guidelines, new safety standards set by manufacturers and — the most frequently cited factor — fear of lawsuits.

Shorter equipment with enclosed platforms was introduced, and the old pavement was replaced with rubber, wood chips or other materials designed for softer landings. These innovations undoubtedly prevented some injuries, but some experts question their overall value.

If the playground is designed for toddlers, older children may find more dangerous pursuits.

Filed Under: Children, Health Tagged With: , , ,

60% of Texas students suspended at least once

July 20, 2011 By

Nearly 60 percent of Texas students were suspended or expelled from at least one class in middle and high school during a six-year study. Blacks and emotionally disabled students were more likely to be disciplined, concludes Breaking School Rules, a study by the Council of State Governments Justice Center and the Public Research Institute of Texas A&M University.

Schools with similar students in terms of race, ethnicity and socioeconomic status had very different suspension and expulsion rates.

The study didn’t examine whether schools that suspend fewer students have alternative ways of dealing with disruption, nor did it try to evaluate school safety.

Not surprisingly, students who were disciplined were less likely to graduate and more likely to be arrested. Thirty-one percent of students disciplined one or more times repeated their grade at least once.

 

 

Filed Under: Education Tagged With: , , , , ,

British school bans 'army game'

June 21, 2011 By

Teachers at a school in England reprimanded two seven-year-old boys for making gun shapes with their fingers, reports the Telegraph. A teacher accused the boys of threatening behavior. Parents said they were pretending to be soldiers.

Government inspectors rated the primary school as “good” last year, but said children should have greater freedom to play.

As in the U.S., British schools are limiting children’s play in the name of safety.

Earlier this year, a Liverpool school banned youngsters from playing football with anything other than sponge balls amid fears youngsters might get hurt.

Research last month also found that one in six British schools had banned conkers over concerns of pupils being hit in the face.

We used to play Pony Express and Indians with real bows and arrows (made of garden stakes) and water pistols. It was one of the few times in history when it was better to be an Indian. We could have put someone’s eye out, but didn’t.

Filed Under: Children, Education, Health Tagged With: , , , , ,

Central Falls teacher: Why I quit

June 7, 2011 By

A research scientist who became a science teacher at Rhode Island’s troubled Central Falls High, Dale Dearnley explains: Why I Resigned on GoLocalProv. A perennially low-scoring school, Central Falls fired — and then rehired — its teachers as part of a turnaround effort.

Her number one reason for leaving is “the absence of discipline and accountability.” The district approved a behavior system based on “restorative practices,” but failed to implement it consistently.

Chaos is the norm, interruption of education is consistent, and the environment is toxic.

Being sent to the “Restorative Room” is how students are held accountable for infractions from cutting class and disrupting lessons to threatening teachers and assault. I have heard from many students that they enjoy going to the Restorative Room because they can socialize with their friends, joke around with a so-called “behavior specialist, ” and their only academic responsibility is to complete a word search puzzle. If “restorative practices” were working, then students would not resort to extreme vulgarities and hate speech in response to simple directions and the routines of an orderly, productive classroom.

For five years, the high school has had no science curriculum, Dearnley writes.  Teachers were promised a chance to develop a curriculum. Instead, they get pre-packed science “kits ” from a contractor.

Teachers are “afraid to speak up because of fear of retribution,” she writes. When a student threatened to kill her, he was assigned to the Restorative Room for the remainder of the day. An administrator told her it wasn’t a police matter and reprimanded her for using the student’s full name in the school’s incident report.

Letting students get away with cursing and threatening teachers is a form of child neglect and abuse, Dearnley argues.

Filed Under: Education, Violence Tagged With: , , , , ,

The great questions

June 1, 2011 By