Parenting trends you dislike?

[reecejackox]

I would say ones that pass their experiences from childhood onto their children.

 

[neverlandsky]

Parents putting their kids on social media.

 

[goofyernmost]

To me the most harmful is the constant praise! Parents that tell their kids that everything they do is top of the line. That no one was ever more clever and everything they do is perfection. Kids aren't stupid. They know when they were less than perfect and although they might feel a little better, there never is a reason to work harder and improve. Fortunately many kids are self motivating, but other are insecure do to the fact that no one cared enough to critique their actions.

One of my daughters mentioned to me that she didn't always like to hear me say anything negative but that she always knew that I was going to tell them (nicely) when they were not living up to their abilities. In other words they could trust me to tell them not what they wanted to hear, but that I would tell them what they needed to hear.

 

[PollyannaMom]

Never saying no!

 

[Sinder]

I would say ones that pass their experiences from childhood onto their children.

Could you elaborate on this? I think there are some wonderful experiences parents can pass on to their kids. Just wondering what type you are talking about.

For me, a parenting trend I dislike is doing everything for your child so that they don't really ever learn how to be independent.

 

[prairie_girl]

Endless time outs.

 

[Disney.Dreamin.Dee]

The "breast is best" culture.

 

[NannyBeBe]

Giving a child a game device as soon as they are able to hold it. I work with Kindergartners and every year when Kindergarten begins, kids come unable to hold a pencil or crayon because all they have used is their thumbs. We have to teach them how to grip a pencil. My daughter teaches 3rd grade and she has two students who sleep in class most of the day because they stay up all night playing video games. These devices are the new babysitter. It's sad.

 

[Snowysmom]

Telling your child the consequence if they do something you tell them not to do and then not following through when they test you by doing it.

 

[penn19]

Endless time outs.

That and the counting. I’m going to count to 3….and then they start over again.

 

[White Cat]

Letting them run all over the library and roam around restaurants.

 

[Sleepy425]

Buying gifts for every holiday (Valentine's Day will be the next one) and posting them on social media. And the posts prior to the holiday stressing "What do I get little Jimmy for Valentine's Day this year?!?"

 

[momz]

i will say that I dislike the social media brags. I take those with a grain of salt. Nobody is a fantastic as these mother's let on.

 

[Southernmiss]

People who complain about other people's parenting

 

[MillauFr]

To me the most harmful is the constant praise!

Yes and no. Around here the problem is that if you are not doing calculus by 5th grade and Quantum Mechanics by 7th you are complete failure. What gets beaten into young children is that you should be on developing a startup tech company that is rolling out the next big thing during your college years ... If you don't do this what are you doing? Wasting time? You should be pulling in 100 million in venture capital by your senior year.

 

[luvsvacation]

I’ve been in childcare for over 25 years now and there are several I dislike…

Number 1 acting like you have somehow discovered the parenting secret and everyone who did things differently before you was wrong. I have seen so many changes over the past 25 years, but guess what those kids who were kids back then and are now adults are perfectly fine!

Number 2 following a bonding checklist. Seriously new mothers today act as though they won’t bond with their kids if they don’t do everything social media tells them “promotes bonding” I never did skin to skin, I didn’t breastfeed, I never did any baby wearing and yet somehow I still managed to bond pretty darn well with both my kids! You don’t need to stress about promoting bonding…they are your kid, you are their parent, you’re going to bond!

Number 3 baby led weaning. It’s not that I have an issue with BLW itself, it’s perfectly fine. I do have an issue with people acting like babies who are given purées won’t ever learn to eat. I literally read an article the other day talking about why babies should be given regular cups instead of sippy cups because it promotes proper lip movement. I guess that explains why generations of adults who drank out of sippys as toddlers now are unable to drink properly

Number 4 and probably my BIGGEST pet peeve is when parents do not correct their children or teach them obedience. Then when their little terror is running around and won’t listen and yells no at the parents they then, instead of being mortified by their badly behaved child, talk about how proud they are that their little one is strong willed and how they will be so successful because they won’t take any crap from anyone! There is a huge difference between strong willed and disobedient and out of control. Don’t try to turn your poor parenting into something to brag about!

Number 5 Wooden baby toys. I’m all about educational toys. I never bought my kids toys that lit up or played music or were generally just something to watch play instead of be creative and play with. Creative toys are awesome! But why the heck are so many baby rattles wooden? I’m looking at you Montessori...I actually quite like their approach of backing off and letting babies explore on their own without the parents constantly engaging (that pushing bonding again) but seriously not all the toys need to be wooden!

Number 6 I’m pretty sure in the future everyone will look back on the neutral decor/clothes with the same disgust we now look back on the wild bright colors and patterns of the 90s

 

[Frwinkley]

Parents who act powerless. "I can't get little Johnny to stop playing his video games."

 

[evilmommie]

Parents who use technology to pacify their child.

 

[tzolkin]

I literally read an article the other day talking about why babies should be given regular cups instead of sippy cups because it promotes proper lip movement. I guess that explains why generations of adults who drank out of sippys as toddlers now are unable to drink properly

That actually doesn't sound that ridiculous to me. Of course it doesn't mean that adults who used sippy cups don't know how to drink properly, but it may contribute as one of the reasons why it seems like everyone needs braces today. We know that diet and mouth breathing/tongue posture cause crooked teeth and other health issues, so it would make sense that using sippy cups for years would have similar results.

 

[fhtpdw20]

Seeing toddlers walking around with pacifiers in their mouths. Over-scheduling a child of any age so they really don't learn how to entertain themselves or have any down time since they are rushed from one activity to another.