When I am tired or distracted it would be so much easier to just "lay down the law" with my daughter than to think things through, that it becomes a great temptation.
It is more time-consuming and requires more thought to pursue libertarian parenting. It is a lot of work to be logical, consistent, reasonable, and listen to (or consider) counter-arguments. It's easier to just say "because I said so", even in cases where you are operating from a flawed perspective or with insufficient data. Because I have seen the harm that comes from that style of "parenting" I try to avoid that trap.
But, like I say, it can be a lot of work. Most worthwhile things are.
On the other hand, a little effort now saves a lot of trouble in the future.
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Do you/have you read the TCS folks?
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ReplyDeleteHe's talking about Taking Children Seriously. I'd link but I would just be googling it for you.
ReplyDeleteAh. Thanks. I was not familiar with them at all. That does look very interesting. I see a lot of mention of unschooling, of which I am highly supportive.
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